Babcock Lecture to Discuss How Climate Crisis Affects Art

At 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 17, Anna Kornbluh will deliver the 2024-25 Babcock Lecture in the Anderson Theater, Anderson Center for the Arts, on the Hartwick College campus. In her presentation, titled “Historical Fictions, Heist Flicks, and Other Climate Genres for a Burning World,” Kornbluh will explore whether there is time for art amid the emergency of the climate crisis.

The talk will consider pressures on contemporary literature and culture, examining how artists, authors, and critics are responding to environmental issues. Kornbluh will also propose alternative approaches through popular genres like historical fiction and heist films.

Kornbluh is a professor of English, a member of the United Faculty bargaining team, and director of graduate studies at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Her research and teaching focus on the novel, film, and critical theory. She is the author of several books and founder of the V21 Collective and InterCcECT(Inter Chicago Circle for Experimental Critical Theory).

The Babcock Lecture is presented by the Babcock Chair in English, the Department of Literature Media and Writing, and the Visiting Writers Series at Hartwick College and is administered by the Babcock Chair in English. The chair was partially endowed by Cora A. Babcock, a graduate of Hartwick Seminary, in honor of Dr. James A. Pitcher, whose inspired teaching of English and theology at the seminary had influenced Babcock’s decision to teach. Later, after receiving further support from a National Endowment for the Humanities grant, the Babcock Chair’s endowment was increased to reward outstanding achievement by a member of the Hartwick College faculty.

Kornbluh’s presentation along with a reading by the eminent poet and feminist critic Rachel Blau DuPlessis, kicks off the Oneonta Literary Festival on Oct. 17. The lecture and reading will be followed by a reception and book signing with books from both authors available for purchase, including Kornbluh’s recent book, Immediacy, or, the Style of Too Late Capitalism (Verso, 2024).

For more information, contact Bradley J. Fest, associate professor of English and Babcock Professor of English, at [email protected] or 607-431-4921.