Lauren Drapala is trained as an architectural conservator and works primarily on nineteenth- and twentieth-century architecture in the United States, with a particular focus on immersive decorative interiors. Drapala is interested in the role that decoration served in the professionalization of twentieth-century design practice, as well as considering patronage and the crafting of interior space as formative to shifting constructions of identity. Her work focuses on the material culture and physical fabric of space, considering interiors through their relocation, preservation and/or fragmentation. She holds a BA in art history from Smith College and an MS in historic preservation from the University of Pennsylvania. In addition to her graduate work, Drapala teaches in the Historic Preservation graduate program at the Boston Architectural College and serves as Program Director at the Historic Preservation Education Foundation (www.hpef.us).