mshp portfolio

CATHERINE RESTREPO

 

Documentarian and preservationist focused on the intersection of urban change and policy in the historic built environment. This portfolio highlights selected work completed during my MSHP at Tulane, spanning research, fieldwork, and documentation in the U.S. and the Caribbean.

 
 

fall 2022

Started with theory: an introduction to U.S. preservation principles and research methods. Wrote a National Register nomination and traced property histories through archival work and site visits.

SPRING 2024

Began thesis work through training in research methods, literature review, and peer review. Also produced a 200-page reference guide on historic windows in the U.S. Southeast, covering materials, mechanics, and regional practices from the 1700s to 2000s.

SUMMER 2025

Joined a multidisciplinary studio focused on the Mississippi River corridor. Conducted fieldwork, mapping, and design research, culminating in collaborative proposals and a public exhibition at the Small Center.

spring 2023

Studied New Orleans architecture through style and detail. In Barbados, joined a team to document Roebuck Street, a UNESCO site—surveying, scanning, and co-authoring a 700-page preservation report.

SUMMER 2024

Conducted fieldwork in Miami Beach’s Art Deco District, integrating GIS training and thesis research. Surveyed the case study and developed a comparative framework on neoliberalism and preservation, culminating in a literature review and custom matrix.

FELLOWSHIPS

Awarded the Ann and Frank Masson Travel Fellowship to conduct field research in Houston’s Third Ward and Miami Beach, examining how preservation operates under neoliberalism.
Selected for the Island Preservation Field School on Martha’s Vineyard (June 2025), a fully funded, community-based program focused on the cultural heritage of archipelagic America at risk of loss and erosion.

summer 2023

Served as a Cultural Resource Management Fellow at THNOC. Researched, documented, and interpreted the Merieult House to support a major renovation of one of the French Quarter’s oldest Spanish Colonial buildings, built in 1792.

FALL 2024

Studied preservation law across federal, state, local, and international levels. Explored the legal, ethical, and cultural implications of salvaging the Galleon San José. Completed a conditions assessment and conservation specs for the Orpheum Theater, focusing on material deterioration and intervention strategies.

Fall 2023

Trained in field documentation and AutoCAD using NPS standards. Studied American architecture from pre-contact to modern and wrote weekly descriptions in National Register style.

SPRING 2025

Completed thesis on neoliberal mechanisms shaping Miami Beach’s Art Deco District, grounded in primary research and fieldwork. Also surveyed and mapped the French Market District in the Vieux Carré using GIS and the Field Maps app, producing a digital StoryMap that includes photogrammetry of a key architectural element.

New Orleans, LA, USAinfo@madameguignol.com
Castillo San Felipe del Morro, or “El Morro,” completed in 1790, stands as the quintessential symbol of Spanish military might in the Americas. The six-level fortress was built 140 feet above the Bay of San Juan and was designed to unleas
Perched on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, approximately 40 miles from its mouth in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, Fort St. Philip stands as a haunting relic of the region’s turbulent past. Once a critical military installation prote
Charity Hospital, a 20-story Art Deco icon in New Orleans, has been a symbol of healthcare and architectural innovation since its completion in 1939. Designed by Weiss, Dreyfous, and Seiferth and funded by the Public Works Administration (PWA), it re
The century-old Market Street Power Plant, a historic complex that once powered New Orleans and was described by the Times-Picayune in 1905 as “the largest electrical generating plant in the South,” now stands abandoned along the Mississi
Thomas Sully, a renowned Louisiana architect of the late 19th century, had a lesser-known passion for boat design. Alongside his architectural achievements, Sully served as commodore of the Southern Yacht Club and dabbled in yacht design. Although it
Fort Gaines, located on Dauphin Island, Alabama, boasts a rich history spanning more than two centuries. Named after Edmund Pendleton Gaines, it was constructed in 1821 as part of the Third System plan to enhance America’s coastal defenses. To

Powered by Squarespace

Cart (0)