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eileenogrady.bsky.social
@eileenogrady.bsky.social
📝Writing about arts & humanities for Harvard's Faculty of Arts & Sciences
Can rethinking how we teach introductory courses draw more students to the humanities? Harvard thinks so. A new initiative led by Arts & Humanities Dean Sean Kelly aims to reverse the nationwide decline in humanities enrollment.

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Hooking first-years on the arts and humanities — Harvard Gazette
Beginning this fall, nine new introductory courses will be offered to engage more first-year students in the studies.
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May 7, 2025 at 7:57 PM
Remembering poetry critic Helen Vendler this week on the anniversary of her death, and the conversation we had in 2023. Publishing a book, she said, was like “somebody had taken a piece of your soul, created it into an object, and said, ‘Here’s a piece of you back.’"
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Helen Vendler honored for lifetime of achievement
Poetry critic reflects on "thrilling" career, writers who inspire, declining support for humanities.
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April 25, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Posting this story from earlier this month: Patricia Lockwood's visit to Harvard for the Mahindra Humanities Center's 'Writers Speak' series
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Patricia Lockwood wants you to admit the internet is real life — Harvard Gazette
In Harvard talk, the author riffs on "cloistered" upbringing, crafting characters through dialogue, and working in bed vs. on the couch.
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April 23, 2025 at 2:29 PM
It's been a treat to write about Harvard professor Jinah Kim's Mapping Color in History Project, an object-based pigment database for historical research on art from South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Himalayas. Check the story out below:
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Uncovering the palette of the past — Harvard Gazette
Project maps pigments used in South Asian art
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March 31, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Housing Day, one of Harvard’s most beloved (and rowdy) annual traditions, did not disappoint this year!
"When I was a freshman I didn't realize how fun it was going to be," one student told me. "I didn't know how impactful it would be on my life." news.harvard.edu/gazette/stor...
The House that will be home — Harvard Gazette
Housing Day — one of Harvard’s most beloved traditions — marks a milestone for first-years.
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March 13, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Harvard professor Joseph Koerner’s new book examines three images created in dangerous moments, and how people throughout history have reacted to them. "Art has that characteristic of becoming relevant whether you like it or not," Koerner said.

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Looking to art in troubled times — Harvard Gazette
Joseph Koerner's book explores how masterpieces from Bosch to Beckmann offer warnings and wisdom in turbulent eras.
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March 12, 2025 at 6:17 PM
This exhibition brought together portraits from The Harvard Foundation Portraiture Project and Robert Shetterly '69.
“Every one of the people I paint has a particular kind of courage that meets a particular moment,” Shetterly told chief campus curator Brenda Tindal

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Letting the portraits speak for themselves — Harvard Gazette
New exhibit elevates overlooked voices as it explores hope, change, and how we see other.
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March 11, 2025 at 3:52 PM
On Saturday, the Harvard Choruses will premiere an opera that tells the story of Puritan midwife and spiritual leader Anne Hutchinson. The story is close to home for Harvard students, as it brings to life a dramatic chapter of Boston history.

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Harvard Choruses to perform new opera ‘American Jezebel: The Trial of Anne Hutchinson’
The Harvard Choruses will perform a world premiere of “American Jezebel: The Trial of Anne Hutchinson” Saturday, an opera that tells the story of Puritan midwife and theologian  Anne Hutchinson.…
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February 27, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Davóne Tines, acclaimed operatic bass-baritone, is the recipient of the 2025 Harvard Arts Medal, which will be awarded at a ceremony in May. The award honors excellence in the arts and contributions via the arts to education or public good.
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Davóne Tines ’09 to receive Harvard Arts Medal
Davóne Tines ’09, acclaimed operatic bass-baritone, will be the recipient of the 2025 Harvard Arts Medal, which will be awarded by Harvard University President Alan Garber at a spring ceremony in…
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February 27, 2025 at 3:32 PM
“Artmaking is born from courage." Harvard's Office for the Arts celebrated its 50th birthday this month, in an evening filled with storytelling and performances in music, dance, poetry, and more.

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Office for the Arts celebrates 50 years — Harvard Gazette
An evening at Sanders Theatre filled with storytelling, music, dance, poetry, and more.
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February 26, 2025 at 8:23 PM
Harvard Theater, Dance & Media lecturer Kate Brehm is the director and designer of puppetry for the new "Odyssey" adaptation at the A.R.T. In this piece, she shared about the choreography of puppetry, and what exactly goes into making a cyclops eye. 👁️

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Star of new ‘Odyssey’ adaptation? Your imagination. — Harvard Gazette
Puppet designer on power of negative space to provoke emotion — and creating a convincing Cyclops
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February 18, 2025 at 2:17 PM
"The history of love and the history of technology have always been intertwined." New Q&A out now with Moira Weigel, Harvard assistant professor of comparative literature, and author of "Labor of Love: The Invention of Dating."

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Tech has changed. Dating? It’s complicated. — Harvard Gazette
If you think algorithms and chatbots are ruining romance, ‘Labor of Love’ author has a history lesson for you
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February 14, 2025 at 5:23 PM
The Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East's new Joseph Lindon Smith painting is an example of archaeological documentation before color photography. But it's also still a valuable historical record to scholars today. Read more here:

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An archaeological record that doubles as art — Harvard Gazette
Painter captured ancient Egyptian tomb’s secrets in vivid brushstrokes.
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February 3, 2025 at 7:39 PM
How has the 'Harvard novel,’ a subset of campus fiction, maintained such a longstanding appeal? Associate professor of humanities Beth Blum shares insights on novels that engage with Harvard as an object of cultural intrigue and critique.

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Why are so many novels set at Harvard? — Harvard Gazette
Beth Blum notes campus is beautiful, romantic setting that lends itself to exploring collision of ideals, reality
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January 31, 2025 at 4:52 PM