Peyton Ayers, Columbia University

Born and raised in the small town of Stuarts Draft, Virginia, Peyton Ayers has been actively involved with the arts her whole life. She attended Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School to study Visual Arts and STEM, graduating with honors before moving to New York City to study Art History and Architecture at Barnard College of Columbia University. 

Peyton has been interested in the visual arts and art history ever since she can remember. In elementary school, Peyton became heavily involved with my school district’s Gifted and Talented Art Program, motivating her to take her interest in art further. During her junior and senior years of high school, she attended Shenandoah Valley Governor’s School to attend the Visual Arts program; and though she loves creating art, she quickly came to realize that though creating art is something she will always enjoy, the rich history of art is what she finds most fascinating and enjoyable. The amazing experience Peyton had taking AP Art History was eye opening, and her love of the subject was noticed by her teacher, who awarded Peyton with the title of Best Art History Student that school year. 

The following summer, Peyton began her internship at the Shenandoah Valley Art Center’s outreach program where she had the opportunity to work with community elementary students in arts and crafts and art education. Not only was this extremely fulfilling for Peyton, but also so enjoyable as “children are so willing to explore new topics, learn new things, and think outside of the box. Getting to lead them through projects and lessons that they were so excited about was gratifying and has motivated me to get more involved in teaching children.”

Since coming to Barnard, she has been able to take Introduction to Art History II, Introduction to Architecture, Design Futures: New York City, and Early Modern Architecture. These classes have all reaffirmed her love of art, design, and architecture, making her more certain than ever that her decision to major in Art History has been the right one. 

In getting involved on campus, notably since becoming Photography Editor of the Barnard Bulletin and Art Editor of the Columbia Political Review, Peyton has been able to be a part of many creative projects and work alongside immensely talented photographers, designers, and artists, many of whom are also majoring in Art History. Speaking with them about the major and the department as a whole has allowed her to gain a better understanding of what a Barnard Art History education can provide, making Peyton all the more confident in her choice to study this incredible subject.

In the future, she would love to work in curation or gallery management. Throughout college, she intends to continue her involvement with campus publications and clubs, and hopes to study abroad in Europe her junior year.