Lifelong passion leads CWU grad student to historical conservation

When Naomi Whiting applied to Central Washington University after high school, she thought she was going to be an aviation major.

As one of two schools offering such a program in Washington, enrolling at CWU was an easy decision for her. But after arriving in Ellensburg, Whiting quickly changed tracks to focus on French and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2019.

Whiting’s job hunt was interrupted by the pandemic, leading her to reconsider her previous reluctance to pursue a master’s degree, especially after one of her CWU professors emailed her with an opportunity.

“Dr. Roxanne Easley reached out to me specifically to see if I wanted to return as a master’s student and has been 100 percent supportive the entire way through my program,” she said. “She’s been more than willing to go to bat for me and my whole cohort when needed, and having that kind of backup has really helped me along the way.”

When it came time to choose a field of study for her graduate degree, Whiting took the opportunity to combine several of her interests through an interdisciplinary studies major, focusing on the fashion of Russian aristocracy before the end of the Romanoff period. This allowed her to work closely with CWU faculty from a broad range of fields, all of whom proved invaluable in her work.

“Having done a bunch of independent study, I’ve been amazed at how easy it is to work alongside the faculty here,” Whiting said. “Anytime I have a question, I can just reach out and ask to meet up to discuss, and we’re always able to work something out. They send me articles they think I’ll find fascinating, and have demonstrated every step of the way that they want me to succeed.”

Whiting’s lifelong fascination with historical dress culminated in her final project as a master’s student: an exhibit detailing the intricacies and social standards behind the complex clothing borne by the Romanoff dynasty of Russian monarchs.

“I’ve been interested in cultural dress for as long as I can remember,” she said. “There are stories of me at age 7 receiving a bunch of fabric from one of my mom’s coworkers, and parading around the house in little turbans and saris for weeks afterwards. When it came time to think about a final project for my master’s, I knew exactly what it had to be.”

With support from her different areas of study, Whiting hand-crafted three full-size replicas of aristocratic dresses, with grant funding from CWU and the encouragement of her mentors. After nine months of hard work and research, the exhibit opened in the Museum of Culture and Environment in early May.

“Coming into my 9 a.m. class with a huge grin on my face and telling people that it was done was such an incredible rush,” Whiting said. “Everyone was very happy for me. They came along to see the finished exhibit and were all super curious about my insider tidbits about the pieces.”

Following her graduation, Whiting plans to return to her hometown of Bellingham to pursue museum-level textile conservation work, thanks to her time working with the Whatcom County Museum last summer and the support she’s received from the CWU community along the way.

“The support from both faculty and my fellow students throughout this project, as well as my time at CWU, has been nothing short of stellar,” she said. “The connections I’ve made here will stay with me for the rest of my career for sure.”