Annual IHGC Celebration Highlights A&S Faculty Books

The University of Virginia’s Institute of the Humanities and Global Cultures hosted its second annual Book Celebration on April 16, spotlighting works published the previous two years by humanities and social sciences faculty in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. The event, held in the first-floor lobby of Wilson Hall, celebrated the depth and diversity of humanistic research and creative work produced by UVA’s scholars.

Attendees had the opportunity to browse an extensive collection of new books, meet authors and engage in conversations about new ideas shaping their fields. The showcase highlighted the incredible breadth of scholarship coming out of Arts & Sciences.

The IHGC book celebration is a celebration of our faculty’s scholarship,” said Jack Chen, chair of the Department of East Asian Languages, Literatures and Cultures and director of the IHGC. “When you’re in the humanities or the interpretive social sciences and when you publish a book, it’s often not legible to the world outside or even to the community that you’re part of.”

Faculty books, translations, and edited volumes spanning a broad range of disciplines and representing 17 different departments were on display. The event fostered cross-disciplinary conversation and raised awareness about the broad intellectual contributions of UVA faculty.

“This is an opportunity for us to come together to see the amazing scholarship that’s being produced every year by all of our colleagues,” said Andrew Kahrl, professor of history and African American studies, whose book The Black Tax was one of many featured at the event.

For Robin Means Coleman, professor of media studies and African American and African studies, the event represented something even more significant.

“We know that humanities research is under threat, so this is no longer just a celebration of our faculty, but it is an urgent reminder of the importance of the circulation of ideas and the freedom of speech,” Coleman said.