Graduate Students

Examining the border crisis through the lens of performance art

Salvador Herrera’s research occupies the space between reality and speculation. Herrera, a UCLA doctoral candidate in English, studies how literature and performance art can both confront the existing violence of the U.S. border apparatus and imagine a more equitable world. When Herrera arrived at UCLA in 2018, he planned to pursue a dissertation project in literary studies. But those plans shifted after his social media algorithms began serving him troves of content about local artists whose work confronted the conditions at the U.S.–Mexico border. One example was a Snapchat video of a transgender artist who uses the name Muxxxe. Festooned…

4 Humanities graduate students receive Fulbright-Hays fellowships

Four Humanities graduate students are among the 12 UCLA scholars overall who have received Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad fellowships for 2023. UCLA received more Fulbright-Hays awards than any other university. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, the Fulbright-Hays program allows awardees to study aspects of a society or societies, including their culture, economy, history and international relations. The fellowship is designed to contribute to developing and improving the study of modern foreign languages and area studies in the U.S. UCLA’s 2023 fellows come from diverse disciplines, and they will conduct their research in Brazil, Chile, England, Japan, Mexico,…

Art is their adventure: Graduate students will benefit from Peter and Sheri Weller’s beautiful vision

When he was working on his master’s degree at the highly selective program at Syracuse University’s campus in Florence, Italy, Peter Weller experienced firsthand the challenges of graduate work in art history: hours of archival research, hours in front of the art itself, fluency in multiple languages and, of course, the expenses of travel, school and life. “It was extraordinarily arduous, and I wanted to quit after a month,” he said with a laugh. An Oscar-nominated filmmaker and acclaimed actor of stage and screen, Peter persevered and even went on to earn his doctorate in art history from UCLA in 2014. However,…

Gefyra documents weaving traditions in Geraki, Laconia

From June 24 to July 14, 2023, graduate students from UCLA, Simon Fraser University, and the University of British Columbia explored the artistry of weaving in Geraki, a Lakonian village where generations of women have preserved and passed down their craft. This comprehensive project, which forms part of Gefyra, a partnership between the SNF Hellenic Centers at UCLA and SFU, was generously funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. The project was held in collaboration with the Cultural Society of Geraki and was further supported by the Municipality of Evrotas. The Ephorate of Antiquities of Laconia and The Geraki Project, affiliated…

Celebrate Pi Day with a slice of UCLA PIES

In mid-March every year, the spotlight shines extra brightly on the Greek letter pi, which represents the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. That’s because, although ratio’s value is an irrational and transcendental number — it has been calculated to more than 50 trillion digits without repetition or pattern — it is approximately 3.14, which, of course, corresponds with the date March 14. It probably also doesn’t hurt that the name of the letter is pronounced just like the name of an appropriately round dessert, which provides a nifty excuse for anyone to eat, well, pie. But did…

Postdoctoral fellow expands research in the UCLA Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures

Alisée Devillers joined the UCLA Department of Near Eastern Languages and Cultures as a postdoctoral researcher through a fellowship awarded by the Belgian American Educational Foundation. Devillers, an Egyptologist archaeologist and art historian, originally applied for the fellowship in connection with a project that involved conducting research on ancient Egyptian stelae. “With this project, the idea was to pinpoint visual identity strategy used by people who were not meant to be seen in our Egyptological documentation — so people who were not part of the elite,” Devillers said.  After arriving at UCLA, Devillers has received several new opportunities. She is…

Near Eastern Languages and Cultures works with Howard University to offer pipeline to Ph.D. for Black students in Egyptology

To increase inclusivity within the field of Egyptology, the Near Eastern Languages and Cultures department at UCLA is collaborating with Howard University to offer a pipeline program for Black students. “Summer Research Internship and Pathway to PhD’s in Ancient Egyptian, North African, and Western Asian Studies” is an eight-week course that will start this summer. In it, four to five students from historically Black colleges and universities will be brought to UCLA to learn about the field of study while also receiving mentorship and support from faculty which will extend beyond the program. Kara Cooney, a professor of Egyptian Art…