News Archive - Erika Johnson

Joint $3M Grant Strengthens Pathway for Transfer Students to Study and Work in the Arts and Humanities

A multiyear collaboration between UC San Diego’s School of Arts and Humanities and the San Diego Community College District (SDCCD) to increase the number of students studying and embarking on successful careers in the arts and humanities is receiving a $3 million grant from the Mellon Foundation, the third grant garnered since the program’s inception in 2016.

Nancy Guy Named Inaugural Chiu-Shan and Rufina Chen Chancellor’s Endowed Chair in Taiwan Studies

Nancy Guy, an ethnomusicologist and professor of music at UC San Diego, has dedicated her career to studying the music of Taiwan. From the way environmental concerns seep into songs to how politics proliferate opera, Guy is passionate about discovering and sharing the diverse ways music shapes culture and society in Taiwan. Now, Guy has been appointed the inaugural holder of the Chiu-Shan and Rufina Chen Chancellor’s Endowed Chair in Taiwan Studies in the School of Arts and Humanities in support of her research and teaching activities.

10th Annual Reed Family Concert Showcases the Best in New Music

This January a three-part series of events will be held in honor of the 10th anniversary of the Reed Family Concert, an annual showcase of musical innovation at the University of California San Diego led by Distinguished Professor of Music Steven Schick. The celebration also recognizes the 30-year tenure of red fish blue fish, a beloved and highly acclaimed percussion ensemble created and directed by Schick that performs, records and premieres work from the last 85 years of western percussion’s rich history.

Philosopher Eddy Keming Chen Receives $325K Grant to Explore the Nature of Reality

Eddy Keming Chen, associate professor of philosophy at the University of California San Diego School of Arts and Humanities, has been awarded a $325,000 grant to explore the nature of quantum foundations.

Award-Winning Film Reanimates Queer Culture of 1970s South Korea

Fifty years ago in Seoul, South Korea, there was a vibrant queer hub located in the Euljiro neighborhood where theaters and bars served as popular sites for same-sex encounters. In 2020, Associate Professor of History Todd A. Henry returned to the area to search for remnants that would offer clues about the evolution of gay subculture from the 1950s until the 1980s, resulting in an award-winning documentary film.

The Curious Allure of Gothic Gore and Vampire Lore

Lillian Lu, an assistant professor of literature in the School of Arts and Humanities, has always been drawn to gothic stories. She is currently writing a conference paper on the 2022 television adaptation of Anne Rice’s “Interview with the Vampire,” as well as taking a transhistorical look at how contemporary authors of the Asian diaspora are adapting novels from the 18th century.

UC San Diego Professor Wins 2024 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry

“Tripas: Poems,” chronicles the voices of Brandon Som’s Chicana and Chinese grandmothers.

Musical Documentary Named Finalist for 2024 Pulitzer Prize in Music

UC San Diego alumna Mary Kouyoumdijian developed “Paper Pianos” to highlight the global refugee crisis.

National Medal of Arts Awarded to UC San Diego Alumna Carrie Mae Weems

Carrie Mae Weems, a celebrated American artist and University of California San Diego visual arts alumna, was presented the National Medal of Arts by President Joe Biden at a White House ceremony on Oct. 21. Artist Mark Bradford, whose work is included in the university’s public art collection, the Stuart Collection, was also recognized.

Free Will: A Metaphysical Force or Social Mediator?

Two UC San Diego philosophers in the School of Arts and Humanities are examining a centuries-old debate about the nature of free will from two angles—whether the universe’s makeup allows for the freedom of choice and the way free will functions in society as a method of cooperation.