Hello, and welcome to my project, Sappho in Translation: Literary and Artistic Representations. My name is Adison Delgado, and I am a second-year student at FSU studying English-Literature, Media, and Culture and Media/Communication. Outside of class, I love to read and write, and I am involved in Her Campus FSU, Pride Student Union, and Southeast Review. I am honored to have been chosen as an IDEA Grant recipient, and I am looking forward to starting my project over the summer – and taking others along the research journey with me. My interest in research started with my UROP Project, “Lesbian Relationships on Postcards”; then, I started my Honors in the Major project, and now I am continuing in my research journey as an IDEA Grant Recipient.
My project, Sappho in Translation: Literary and Artistic Representations, started in Spring 2025 in my Women in Literature class at FSU. My first academic exposure to Sappho was in this class, where I read her poetry for the first time. Researching Sappho and her influence as a historical figure drew me further into translations of her work and her reception in the literary world. After the semester ended, I continued this work, tracing her legacy and her influence on literature and art.
With the new academic year came new opportunities for research. As a part of UROP, I worked with Dr. Neal on the FSU Postcard Archive and curated an exhibit on representations of lesbian women on postcards. One of my postcards was a postcard depicting Sappho, and this was the spark of inspiration that became my IDEA Grant project. My IDEA Grant combines my interest in Sappho with my passion for archival research from my time working on my UROP project. My project aims to answer the burning question, “How has Sappho’s poetry been translated from the page to paintings?” Scholars have taken a revitalized interest in Sappho since new fragments of her work were published in 2014, and with my project, I hope to contribute to the growing field.
I will be taking an interdisciplinary approach to this project by combining a literary and visual analysis of Sappho and representations of the poet. The end result will be a thoughtfully curated exhibit for the FSU Postcard Archive, examining how literary representations of Sappho have affected visual representations of her figure. I will be working with Dr. Neal on this project, as I also worked with him on my UROP project for the FSU Postcard Archive. I am looking forward to continuing my work in the archive, as it provided me with essential analysis and research skills that I can apply to my IDEA Grant project.
My project will start with a literary analysis of Sappho, translations of her work, and works by other authors who were influenced by the poet. Sappho’s legacy started with the page, so to trace representations of the poet, I must also start with the written word. I will then begin my work on researching and analyzing visual representations of the poet, tracing how Sappho has been translated from the page to visual art. By the end of this project, I will help the scholarly and broader community gain a deeper understanding of Sappho’s legacy by drawing new connections between Sappho literature and artwork. Furthermore, besides just tracing these new connections, I aspire to help scholars and non-scholars alike understand why Sappho is so influential and why studying her work is important.
Long-term, besides curating an exhibit for the archive, this research project will help me to become a better researcher. One day, I aspire to be a professor, and I can share my experiences from this project with my future students. I am extremely honored to be chosen for this program, and I am also excited to start diving into my project. While I know the research process can be a bumpy road, I know I will have the support of my research mentor and my fellow undergraduate researchers to help me along the way.
If you had told me a year ago that I would be conducting this project in the future, I would not have believed it. I have found so much passion in researching Sappho and her work, and I cannot wait to continue this work. FSU has provided me with so many amazing opportunities, with being an IDEA Grant recipient at the top of the list. What started in a fun elective class has become a fully fleshed-out research proposal and now a project. For anyone reading, I would encourage you to chase your dreams as I did. Get involved in research, find what you are passionate about, and take every opportunity you can – you never know where it may take you.
I am extremely honored to have been chosen as an IDEA Grant recipient, as this project would not be possible without FSU and the CRE. The IDEA Grant has given me a platform to conduct my research and share my findings, and I am looking forward to continuing my research and sharing my findings as my project progresses.
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