The University of California San Diego’s Division of Arts and Humanities is committed to interdisciplinary collaboration. Consistent with that approach is the Department of History’s Distinguished Professor Paul Pickowicz and Department of Literature Chair Yingjin Zhang, who have coedited the new book, “Filming the Everyday: Independent Documentaries in Twenty-First Century China” (Rowman & Littlefield, 2017). The book includes essays about a Chinese film group led by Wu Wenguang, a former artist-in-residence at UC San Diego, who first revealed the struggles of rural people at a time when China’s state-controlled media depicted a thriving, modern country. The book’s debut happens to coincide with Pickowicz’s announcement of his retirement after more than 40 years. He will deliver a parting lecture entitled, “Very Close Encounters: Modern China at the Grassroots,” Jan. 18, 3 to 5 p.m., at the Faculty Club on campus.
The Holocaust Living History Workshop (HLWH) at the University of California San Diego continues its year-long series of educational events with three insightful programs this winter, underscoring this year’s theme, “Holocaust and the Burden of History.” This year’s events approach the Holocaust from various angles to shed light on lesser-known aspects of the atrocities committed, such as the transgenerational transmission of trauma. The series, now in its ninth year of programming, is presented by the UC San Diego Library and the UC San Diego Jewish Studies Program.
The next presentation in UC San Diego’s “Inside Innovation” series features Dr. Catriona Jamieson speaking on “Detection and Therapeutic Targeting of Cancer Stem Cell Evolution.” The free and public presentation will be held 4-6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 17, in Roth Auditorium at the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine, 2880 Torrey Pines Scenic Drive. A networking reception will follow.
On January 12, graduate students from UC San Diego will stage MACHINAL, a live performance and interaction with live audience to explore how technology and machines have changed the landscape of human interactions..
The University of California San Diego’s Department of Music is known for its unconventional approach to the art of sound. The fact that soprano Susan Narucki and composer Lei Liang are collaborating to create a chamber opera around the theme of gun violence only fits that reputation. Their unique project entitled, “Inheritance,” struck a note with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which awarded the UC San Diego team an Artworks grant as part of its first $30 million in major arts funding for 2017.
University of California San Diego history professor Frank Biess is interested in emotions. More specifically, he plans to examine the role of fear and anxiety within the historical context of postwar West Germany. The NEH Fellowship for University Professors enables Biess to address questions about how feelings are produced politically, how they impact society and how they change over time—demonstrating the valuable insight humanities scholars can gain when they engage with the expanding interdisciplinary research on emotions.
