The College Arts & Humanities Institute, is pleased to announce an interdisciplinary series of presentations devoted to the theme of "Solitude." This series is conceived to invite to the Bloomington campus a series of well-known authors and scholars who deal, in their respective fields, with the theme of solitude in a multifaceted way. The project is twofold: on the one hand, it focuses upon the relationship between solitude and creative activity; on the other, it focuses upon its philosophical, legal, social and political implications.
Invited speakers:
2010-2011:
- Mark Strand Pulitzer Pizer-winner and Poet Laureate.
2009-2010:
- Seamus Heaney Nobel Laureate in Literature, Poet, Translator, and Essayist.
2008-09:
- Billy Collins and Kay Ryan, former and current US Poet Laureates.
2007-08:
- Russell Banks, award-winning author.
- Robert Hass, United States Poet Laureate, Environmentalist and Teacher.
2006-07:
- Louise Glück, US Poet Laureate, Pulitizer-Prize winner.
- W.S. Merwin, US Poet Laureate, Pulitzer Prize winner and environmentalist.
- Robert Pinsky, US Poet Laureate.
Cultural Conflicts is a series devoted to speakers whose works reflect contrastive issues related to cultural, ethnic, social, political, and gender diversity.
Invited speakers:
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2011: Alexandra Fuller Award-winning Author of Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness
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2011: Michael Chabon Pulitzer Prize-winning Novelist and Author of The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
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2010: Barry Lopez National Book Award winner.
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2009: A. S. Byatt leading British Novelist.
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2009: Alexander McCall Smith, world celebrated author of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, The Sunday Philosophy Club and 44 Scotland Street.
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2009: Joyce Carol Oates, one of America’s most known writers.
- 2005: Claudio Magris, Italian-Austrian-Croatian author; one of the foremost experts on the cultural/political background of the ex-Yugoslavia; winner, amongst many others, of the European Union Literary award.
- 2004: Tony Judt, Director of the Henry Marie Remarque Institute at NYU, author of the acclaimed A History of Europe Since 1945, and a noted analyst of European-US relationship and the Middle East.
- 2003: JM Coetzee, South African novelist and essayist, winner of the 2004 Nobel Prize for Literature.
- 2002: Sisters in Resistance US premier of the film Sisters in Resistance, a film by Maia Wechsler on four French women during the resistance in WWII France (the only surviving protagonist came to Bloomington, along with the director, for the screening of the film).
Invited speakers:
2007-08:
- Robert Sapolsky, recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Award, Professor of neurology at Stanford University, author of the award-winning book A Primate’s Memoir as well as other acclaimed books such as Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers.
2006-07:
- Temple Grandin, bestselling author and animal behaviorist.
Technology, Human Performance and Artistic Ability:
A series of lectures by guest speakers who bridge the world of science and technology with that of arts and humanities. The speakers will be addressing the ever-changing and multifaceted possibilities to further explore the arts and humanities thanks to technological help. From digital archives to digital art; from art preservation to art dealing; from scholarly research to creative production.
Translating the Global World:
National and international speakers from many disciplines to discuss issues of language, multiculturalism and multilingualism in a global environment.
The Ethics and Aesthetics of bio-technology:
This series is devoted to ethical issues which deal with scientific, moral, philosophical and humanistic views dictated by and linked to problems which relate to medicine, gender matters, reproductive issues, etc.
Humanist/Scholar in Residence:
One well-known author, artist, scholar is invited to Bloomington under the auspices of CAHI for a period of between 2 and 6 weeks. His/ her role is that of giving a public lecture and, above all, of offering a series of small seminars to colleagues and students on the subject of his/ her expertise.
Celebrated Author series:
Annual world-known guest speakers / artists to visit our campus to give lectures and discuss their own production. We plan to have two guest authors each semester.