Conversations in the Humanities
Lynn Hunt & Richard Wolin
Lynn Hunt, Professor of History at UCLA, and Richard Wolin, Distinguished Professor of History at the Graduate Center CUNY discuss the past and future of human rights. Lynn Hunt is the author of The French Revolution and Human Rights: A Brief Documentary History. Richard Wolin is the author of The Seduction of Unreason: The Intellectual Romance with Fascism. Co-sponsored by the PhD Program in History.
January 24, Thursday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Proshansky Auditorium
Biyi Bandele & Tuzyline Jita Allan
Nigerian-born playwright Biyi Bandele speaks with Tuzyline Jita Allan about his daring and politically-charged adaptation of the 17th century classic Oroonoko, a story of a journey from kingship to slavery, written by Aphra Behn, the first professional female author in Europe, premiering at Theater For A New Audience in February. Biyi Bandele’s plays have been presented at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal Court and Royal National Theatre. Tuzyline Jita Allan is Associate Professor of English at Baruch College, and series editor of Women Writing Africa.
January 31, Thursday, 6:30 – 7:30pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
Gayatri Spivak & Peter Hitchcock
Gayatri Spivak and Peter Hitchcock discuss an ethics of reading and writing Asia in the age of globalization and transnationalism. Gayatri Spivak is University Professor and the Director of the Center for Comparative Literature and Society at Columbia University. Her most recent book is Other Asias. Peter Hitchcock is Professor of English at the Graduate Center and a 2007-08 Mellon Fellow at the Center for the Humanities. His books include Imaginary States: Studies in Cultural Transnationalism.
February 7, Thursday, 4:00 – 5:00pm, C203-205.
Joseph Lowndes & Kimberly Phillips-Fein
Joseph Lowndes, Professor of Political Science, University of Oregon, speaks with Kimberly Phillips-Fein, Professor of History, New York University, about the way that race, nationalism, and economics have shaped the history of the American right. Joseph Lowndes is the author of the forthcoming From the New Deal to the New Right: Race and the Southern Origins of Modern Conservatism. Kimberly Phillips-Fein is the author of the forthcoming Invisible Hands: The Making of the Conservative Movement from the New Deal to Reagan. This event will be the keynote to a conference titled “Toward a Comparative Discussion on ‘Rightist’ Movements.”
March 13, Thursday, 7:00 – 8:30pm, The Skylight Room (9100)
Sonny Rollins & Gary Giddins
Saxophonist and jazz icon Sonny Rollins speaks with Gary Giddins about the history of music, jazz, and ideas. Rollins’ long, prolific career began at the age of 11; he was playing with piano legend Thelonious Monk before reaching the age of 20. He has played with the likes of Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, and Max Roach, and is the recipient of numerous awards, among them a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement. Gary Giddins is the author of nine books, including Natural Selection: Gary Giddins on Comedy, Film, Music; Bing Crosby: A Pocketful of Dreams; and Visions of Jazz: The First Century, for which he won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Criticism.
March 26, Wednesday, 6:30 – 7:30pm, Proshansky Auditorium
Junot Diaz & Francisco Goldman
Acclaimed writers Junot Diaz and Francisco Goldman discuss writing lives, through history and fiction with Lynn Di Iorio, Assistant Professor of English at City College and The Graduate Center. Junot Diaz is the author of Drown and The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao; Francisco Goldman is the author the award winning novels The Long Night of White Chickens, The Ordinary Seaman, and The Divine Husband.
April 3, Thursday, 6:30 – 7:30pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
New Visions: Poets & Artists in CollaborationThis program will highlight artistic collaborations between poets and artists, and will include a presentation followed by a moderated conversation.
Wayne Koestenbaum, Amy Sillman, and Lawrence Weschler
Poet Wayne Koestenbaum and painter Amy Sillman discuss their work on Amy Sillman – Works on Paper with Lawrence Weschler. Wayne Koestenbaum is a Distinguished Professor of English at The Graduate Center, and the author of several collections of poetry, including Best Selling Jewish Porn Films, Model Homes, and The Milk of Inquiry. Amy Sillman’s paintings have been featured in solo exhibitions throughout the world, including New York, Italy, and India. Lawrence Weschler is former staff writer for The New Yorker and author of, among other books, Everything That Rises: A Book of Convergences.
RESCHEDULED for MARCH 25, 7:00 – 8:30, The Skylight Room (9100)
C.D. Wright, Deborah Luster, and Alice Quinn
Poet C. D. Wright and photographer Deborah Luster discuss their work on One Big Self: Prisoners of Louisiana with Alice Quinn. C. D. Wright is author of numerous poetry collections, including Cooling Time: An American Poetry Vigil, Steal Away: New and Selected Poems, and String Light, which won the Poetry Center Book Award. Deborah Luster’s photography has been the subject of numbers solo exhibition throughout the country. Alice Quinn is Executive Director of the Poetry Society of America.
February 26, Tuesday, 7:00 – 8:30, Martin E. Segal Theatre
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Poetry Events
A Tribute to Marilyn Hacker
An award winning poet, translator and teacher, Marilyn Hacker has published 13 collections of poetry and many translations. Join us for an evening honoring her life in letters, including tributes from Richard Howard, Marie Ponsot, Mary Ann Caws, Francesca Sautman, and others. Co-sponsored by the PhD Program in French and the Center for Women and Society.
March 14, Friday, 4:00 – 6:00pm, C202-203
Translated Poetry: A New Landscape
Today in the U.S., the small presses and magazines hailed as "most vital" for poetry are increasingly committed to poetry in translation. What are the effects and politics of translation's newly central role in the contemporary poetry landscape? Participants will include Ammiel Alcalay, Professor of Classical, Middle Eastern, and Asian Languages and Cultures at Queens College and of English and Comparative Literature at the Graduate Center, CUNY; Sinan Antoon, author most recently of I'jam: An Iraqi Rhapsody, Mónica de la Torre, co-editor of Reversible Monuments: Contemporary Mexican Poetry and senior editor at BOMB Magazine; and Anna Moschovakis, editor and designer with Ugly Duckling Presse and author of I Have Not Been Able to Get Through to Everyone. Moderated by Stefania Heim, co-founder and co-editor of CIRCUMFERENCE.
CANCELLED.
Writing Across Borders: Asian American Women Writers
This event brings together award winning poets and writers Meena Alexander, Distinguished Professor of English, CUNY Graduate Center, author of Quickly Changing River; Jessica Hagedorn, novelist and playwright, author of Dream Jungle, and Kimiko Hahn, Distinguished Professor of English, Queens College, author of Narrow Road to the Interior, to discuss border-crossing, genre-crossing, and other contemporary literary challenges. Moderated by Harold Augenbraum, Director, National Book Foundation. Co-sponsored by the PhD Program in English, the Feminist Studies Group, the Post-colonial Studies Group, and the Center for Women and Society.
March 20, Thursday, 4:00 – 6:00pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
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Special Events
The Shadow Army: Military Contractors, Citizenship, and the Law
What position do military contractors hold with regards to international law, domestic accountability? This interdisciplinary panel brings together scholars from the fields of law, anthropology, and philosophy to consider the myriad issues surrounding the growing reliance on privately paid soldiers. Participants will include Mateo Taussig-Rubbo, Associate Professor, University of Buffalo Law School; Paul Kahn, Robert W. Winner Professor of Law and the Humanities and Director, Orville H. Schell, Jr. Center for International Human Rights, Yale University; Avril McDonald, Research Associate of the TMC Asser Institute and Lecturer in International Humanitarian Law at the University of Groningen. Moderated by John Collins, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Queens College.
February 28, Thursday, 7:00 – 8:30, The Elebash Recital Hall
Jasper Johns: Gray Uncensored
In conjunction with “Jasper Johns: Gray,” a major exhibit opening this February at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, a group of internationally renown scholars and curators gather to speak on a widely suppressed topic: the import of Johns’ sexuality and its role in his art. Participants include Thomas Crow, formerly Director of the Getty Research Institute at the Getty Center and currently the Rosalie Solow Chair in Modern Art History at the Institute of Fine Arts, NYU, New York; Jonathan D. Katz, Clark-Oakley Fellow at the Clark Art Institute and author of the first scholarly article exploring the Johns/Rauschenberg relationship and Seth McCormack, a recently completed Columbia PhD now a fellow at the Yale University Art Museum. Moderated by James Saslow, Professor of Renaissance Art and Theater, The Graduate Center, CUNY. Co-sponsored by The PhD Program in Art History and made possible by the generous support of the Leslie/Lohman Gay Art Foundation.
March 3, Monday, 5:30 – 8:00pm Proshansky Auditorium
Left Out in the Open:
Are Progressives Evolving from “New Left” to “OpenLeft”?
Internet activism has upended American politics by amplifying new voices, connecting disparate social networks, shifting campaign funding, enhancing public scrutiny and electing unconventional candidates. This impact has been most profound on the Left. This panel will convene leaders and writers from the emerging OpenLeft movement as well as traditional progressives and offline activists for a lively and significant discussion of the past, present and future of the American Left. Speakers will include Katrina vanden Heuvel, Publisher and Editor of The Nation; Ari Melber, blogger for, among others, The Huffington Post; Matt Stoller, blogger and the president of BlogPAC; Zephyr Teachout, the architect of Howard Dean’s internet strategy; and others. Co-sponsored by The Nation.
March 5, Wednesday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Proshansky Auditorium
America on the Global Stage: A Performance and Discussion
Join us for a performance of scenes from YEAR ONE OF THE EMPIRE, an award-winning documentary play about America’s first imperial war, the forgotten U.S. – Philippine War of 1899-1902, and a discussion on its shocking parallels with the war in Iraq. Panelists include renowned scholars David Nasaw, Arthur M. Schlesinger Professor of American History, and Neil Smith, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and Geography, award-winning theater critic Elinor Fuchs, Professor of Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism at the Yale School of Drama, Joyce Antler, Samuel Lane Professor of American Jewish History and Culture at Brandeis University, and Metropolitan Playhouse Artistic Director Alex Roe. Alisa Solomon, Director of the Arts and Culture Program of Columbia School of Journalism, will moderate.
March 10, Monday, 6:30 – 8:30pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
Staging William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury
Opening with an excerpt from the new stage adaptation of William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury, which will be performed by the provocative downtown theater company Elevator Repair Service at New York Theater Workshop this spring, this event will bring together directors, literary scholars, and scholars of theater to explore the excitement and challenge of modernist literary adaptation. Discussants will include John Collins, director of Elevator Repair Service, Sarah Jane Bailes, Professor of Theater, University of Sussex, England, Morris Dickstein, Distinguished Professor of English, The Graduate Center, CUNY and David Savran, Distinguished Professor of Theater, The Graduate Center, CUNY. Moderated by Julie Bleha.
March 17, Monday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
Storytelling Through Sound
This panel will look at hip hop as a storytelling genre. It will explore the narration of life experiences in rap lyrics; the documentation of people’s lives in hip hop scholarship, film, and literature; and the non-verbal means such as deejaying and producing beats through which people tell stories. Participants will include La Bruja, a New York based rapper and poet; JLove Calderon, a writer, educator, and activist, and author of That White Girl and Joe Schloss, adjunct assistant professor of music at New York University, and author of Making Beats: The Art of Sample-Based Hip-Hop and the forthcoming Foundation: B-boys, B-girls and Communities of Style. Moderated by Sujatha Fernandes, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Queens College, and resident Mellon fellow at the Center for the Humanities for 2007-2008.
March 24, Monday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, The Skylight Room (9100)
Brands of Faith: Marketing and Religion
Over the past two decades, tactics of branding and marketing have been applied to the promotion of religion, adding to the commercial clutter of today’s society. This panel discussion will explore the political, social, and theological implications of this ever-increasing commoditization of faith. Discussants will include Mara Einstein, Associate Professor of Media Studies, Queen College, and the author of Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion in A Commercial Age; Heather Hendershot, Professor of Media Studies, Queens College, and the author of Shaking the World for Jesus: Media and Conservative Evangelical Culture; Douglas Rushkoff, Director of the ITP Narrative Lab at NYU’s Tisch School, and the author of Nothing Sacred: The Truth About Judaism; and Jeff Sharlet, contributing editor, Harper’s, and co-creator and editor of www.therevealor.org.
April 2, Wednesday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Martin E. Segal Theatre
Blackface: Examining the Minstrel Tradition
This panel discussion will bring together scholars and writers to examine the influence of the wildly popular and deeply reviled art of minstrelsy on American culture. Participants include Camille F. Forbes, Assistant Professor of African-American Literature and Culture, University of California-San Diego, and author of the newly published Introducing Bert Williams: Burnt Cork, Broadway and the Story of America’s First Black Star; Eric Lott, Professor of English, the University of Virginia, whose books include Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class; Mel Watkins, whose books include Stepin Fetchit: The Life and Times of Lincoln Perry; and Greg Tate, whose books include Everything But the Burden: What White People Are Taking From Black Culture. Moderated by Gary Giddins whose most recent book is Natural Selection: Gary Giddins on Comedy, Film, and Music.
April 7, Monday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, The Skylight Room (9100)
Writing the World: Literature and the Environment
This discussion will explore the ways literature moves an issue such as global warming from the isolated realm of scientific discourse into the broader cultural imagination. Featuring ecologist Bill McKibben, author of numerous books, including Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future; Daniel Hillel, a researcher at Columbia University’s Center for Climate Systems Research, and the author of many books, including The Natural History of the Bible; poet Susan Howe, whose most recent collection of poetry is Souls of the Labadie Tract; and others. Moderated by Joan Richardson, Professor of English and Comparative Literature, The Graduate Center, CUNY.
April 9, Wednesday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, Proshansky Auditorium
Torture and the Decline of Empire
This event will examine the historical relationship between torture and imperial power from multiple vantages. Participants will include Karen Greenberg, Executive Director of the Center on Law and Society, New York University, and the editor of The Torture Papers: The Road to Abu Ghraib; Amy Kaplan, Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania and author of numerous books and articles, including “Where is Guantanamo?”; and Marnia Lazreg, Professor of Sociology, the Graduate Center, CUNY, and author of Torture and the Twilight of Empire: From Algiers to Baghdad.
April 28, Monday, 6:30 – 8:00pm, The Elebash Recital Hall
Rites of Return: Poetics and Politics
What is driving the contemporary obsession with the recovery of roots? Join world-renowned scholars, writers, artists, and curators as they explore questions of origin and identity, national and cultural memory, “trauma tourism” and museums of conscience. Participants include writers Daniel Mendelsohn, Saidiya Hartman, and Eva Hoffman; photographers Keith Calhoun, Chandra McCormick, and Susan Meiselas; journalist Amira Hass; and scholars Svetlana Boym, Marianne Hirsch, Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, Nancy K. Miller, Leo Spitzer, Diana Taylor, David Troutt, and Patricia Williams.
A two-day symposium on April 10 and 11th. Columbia University Law School on April 10th and continues throughout Friday, April 11th, in the Elebash Recital Hall at the Graduate Center. For a complete conference schedule, please click here.
Owning Things
How are our lives reflected by our possessions and how has this changed through different times and cultures? Join an interdisciplinary panel of scholars and writers as they explore questions about collecting and collections. Leah Dilworth, Professor of English, Long Island University, and author of Acts of Possession: Collecting in America; Anne Higonnet, Professor of Art History, Barnard College, and author of Pictures of Innocence: the History and Crisis of Ideal Childhood; Judith Pascoe, Professor of English, University of Iowa, and author of The Hummingbird Cabinet: A Rare and Curious History of Romantic Collectors; and Bettina Carbonell, Assistant Professor of English at John Jay College, and editor of Museum Studies in Context: An Anthology. Moderated by Valerie Allen, Resident Mellon Fellow at the Center for the Humanities, 2007-2008.
May 5, Monday, 6.30 – 8:00pm, The Skylight Room (9100)
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