I was delighted to be invited to speak about my art for the University of California at Riverside’s Global Studies Program on May 25, 2022.
UCR’s Global Studies Goes Graphic
Global Studies Goes Graphic: Picturing Russian/Ukrainian History
Anne Bobroff-Hajal’s comical but deadly serious mixed–media polyptychs about Russian autocracy portray hundreds of 3-inch-high individuals of all classes, striving and struggling with each other, within hierarchies and governments shaped by the riches and dangers in their particular environments – the same dynamics from which the current war in Ukraine arose. Her talk will describe new dimensions her art brings to academic history by conveying the compelling human motivations – joy, greed, grief, and fury among rivals and allies – together with power dynamics and geography, so viewers can better understand the cumulative choices made by countless individuals within their own historical and social contexts. Bobroff-Hajal will also describe her complex practice of layering painting over digital images of her own paintings and of historical pictures, and her artistic process, influenced by animation storyboards, icons, graphic novels, and political cartoons, all powerful ways of telling stories in pictures.
I super enjoyed conversations with Susan Ossmann – who is about to begin an exciting new job at NYU Abu Dhabi – and with Perry Link and Rob Clark. I learned a lot from them and their students, and enjoyed seeing the gorgeous UCR campus as well.
utpouring of writings on the Russian Revolution – many of which will, unfortunately, downplay the role of ‘ordinary’ peasants and workers.