A Tufts professor is about to get knighted.
The French government will award Art and Art History Professor Judith Wechsler with the title of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres on Nov. 19 for her extensive contributions to French art.
"The minister of culture and communications decided to make Mrs. Wechsler a knight in the Order of Arts and Letters because of her outstanding accomplishments in the academic and film [fields]," said Alexis Berthier, a press attaché at the Consulate General of France in Boston.
Wechsler, Tufts' National Endowment for the Humanities Professor, is excited about receiving the title. "It's tremendously rewarding after working on French art for such a long time," she said.
Chevalier is one of three ranks given by the Order of Arts and Letters: Chevalier, Officier, and Commandeur, in increasing rank. These awards were established in 1957 to recognize people who contribute significantly to furthering the arts in France and abroad.
Wechsler specializes in 19th- and early 20th-century French art. She currently teaches several classes in the art history department, including Origins of Modern Art and Historiography and Methodology of Art History.
Her interest in French art was sparked by "Children of Paradise," (1945) a French film she saw when she was fifteen.
Since then, she has written three books: "A Human Comedy: Physiognomy and Caricature in 19th Century Paris," "The Interpretation of Cézanne" and "On Aesthetics in Science." She has also been very active in curating and producing films about French art.
"As both an academic and a director, she's been committed to promoting French culture and particularly 19th-century French art and theater. ... She's [a] tremendous expert in art history," Berthier said.
Amaury Laporte, a press attaché from the French Embassy in New York, said that Wechsler's new title is very prestigious.
"[It is] awarded to artists of the general sense, not just painters but also writers, dancers, actors ... who've played a key role in the cultural domain and people who have promoted French culture," she said.
Recipients are nominated by embassies and consulates around the world, and they need not be of French descent.
Laporte said it is "basically one of France's highest honors."
Wechsler feels that it is through her many films that she contributes the most to promoting French culture. Twenty-one of these films are about art, and they broadcast on TV and at museums.
"I'd like to think that I've helped people understand more about French art in a historical context," she said.
She has also had a significant impact as a professor.
"I really loved [teaching] from the start," Wechsler said. "It's enormously rewarding."
She said she strongly encourages people from all career paths and backgrounds to learn about art.
She thinks that it is "deeply enhancing" and that it "expands your eyes, [providing] a whole new way of thinking about the visual world."
Wechsler's colleagues were enthusiastic to hear about Wechsler's achievement.
"It is terrific that she has won such a distinguished award," Dean of Arts and Sciences Robert Sternberg said in an e-mail. "We are very proud of our faculty and awards such as this one are a source of great pride to the university."
Americans previously honored by the Order of Arts and Letters include actress Meryl Streep, author Paul Auster and historian Robert Paxton.
The recipients are given a certificate from the French minister of culture and communications as well as a medal and lapel pin.
