Associate Professor, Afroamerican and African Studies/History of Art/Art
About
David T. Doris is associate professor in the Department of the History of Art, Department of Afroamerican and African Studies, and the Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design. He specializes in the history of African arts and visual cultures. His scholarly interests include theories of cross-cultural interpretation, conceptions of an "anti-aesthetic" in African contexts, and the representation of Africa and its peoples in world's fairs, theme parks, and other commodity spectacles. He maintains a special focus on the art and culture of the Yoruba people, both in southwestern Nigeria and in the Diaspora. His book Vigilant Things: the Strange Fates of Ordinary Objects in Southwestern Nigeria deals with the moral and mnemonic function of assemblages of useless and discarded objects in contemporary Yoruba culture. The dissertation on which the book is based received the 2004 Roy Sieber Memorial Award for the Outstanding Dissertation in the Field of African Art History, from the Arts Council of the African Studies Association.
Field(s) of Study
- African arts and visual cultures
