UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Three doctoral candidates in the Penn State College of Arts and Architecture’s Department of Art History, Amy Orner, Han Chen and Holli Turner, have been awarded sought-after fellowships to advance research in their respective fields.

The fellowships, awarded to Orner by Sir John Soane’s Museum Foundation, to Chen by the Getty Foundation and to Turner by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, will provide each doctoral candidate with an opportunity to continue work on their dissertations during the 2026-27 academic year.

“The department is incredibly proud of the fellowships Amy, Han and Holli have earned, each among the most competitive and prestigious in our field. As importantly, we look forward to the remarkable research this support will make possible,” said Robin Thomas, head of the Department of Art History.

Amy Orner

With the Soane’s 2026 Richard T. Sharp Graduate Fellowship, which supports a research residency at Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, Orner will examine the influence of Robert Adam on 18th-century British architecture and interiors, and the impact of his work on Sir John Soane’s architectural imagination and collecting practices.

Orner will pay particular attention to the Soane Museum’s collection of Adam drawings, widely regarded as one of the most important collections of 18th-century architectural drawings in the world.

Founded in 1991, Sir John Soane’s Museum Foundation is a New York-based educational nonprofit that supports Sir John Soane’s Museum in London through exhibitions, public programs, academic scholarships and grants to support the museum. Preserved as it was at Soane’s death in 1837, Sir John Soane’s Museum is one of the world’s most distinctive and evocative house museums. To learn more, visit the foundation website.

Han Chen

Chen’s research interests include the global circulation of Chinese objects, digital mapping of social networks, the history of collecting and global modernism.

During the Getty Fellowship, which will take place from September 2026 through June 2027, Chen will continue work on her dissertation titled “Chinese Art en route: Reconstructing Global Knowledge of China in the Art Markets, 1900-1949.”

Since 1985, the Getty Scholars Program has provided a dynamic platform for international scholars to pursue advanced research on art and its histories, broadly defined. By fostering collaboration across disciplines and professional practices, the program cultivates new perspectives and expands audiences for scholarly work. Scholars in residence benefit from unparalleled access to Getty’s world-class collections and join a global community dedicated to intellectual exchange. Residencies take place at either the Getty Center or the Getty Villa.

Holli Turner

With the Chester Dale Fellowship, which is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s History of Art and Visual Culture Fellowship program, Turner will continue studying the entanglements between the Venetian painter Titian — the figure at the center of her dissertation — and the Spanish Crown. Her dissertation is a re-reading of Titian's poesie — a canonical series of paintings for King Philip II of Spain — through the lens of violence and imperialism.

During the fellowship, Turner will be hosted by Dita Amory, The Robert Lehman Curator in Charge of The Robert Lehman Collection, from September 2026 through August 2027.