UVA Clubs: "Through the Lens" with Ashleigh Wade

All alumni, friends, and families are invited to join us for Through the Lens, a new virtual faculty lecture series brought to you by the UVA Clubs Global Network. The series kicks off in February with Ashleigh Wade, Assistant Professor of Digital Studies, in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.

As UVA honors Black History Month, Ashleigh joins us virtually for an intimate look into what it means to understand Black life through the lens of Black girlhood.

What to expect:

• An in-depth exploration of how social media contributes to a vibrant record of Black stories.
• Understand the urgency of documenting Black life in the United States.
• Gain unique insights into the intersection of Black girlhood and cultural production.

Join us for an engaging discussion on the transformative power of Black cultural production!

Talk description provided by Ashleigh Greene Wade:

Documenting Black Life through Black Girls’ Digital Practices
Black cultural production provides a window into the experiences of Black people. The aim of this talk is to consider what it means to understand Black life through the lens of Black girlhood. My new book, Black Girl Autopoetics: Agency in Everyday Digital Practice, positions Black girls as cultural producers, theorists, and critics in an effort to understand what looking at the particularities of Black girlhood can tell us broadly about Black life in the United States.

I define Black girl autopoietic as a creative praxis of self-making through which Black girls invent and re-invent themselves, cultures, spaces, and discourses. Using this definition, I offer an in-depth exploration of how Black girls’ everyday social media content creation contributes to a record of Black stories and demonstrates the urgency of documenting Black life.

For audience members who would like more context for this talk, the introduction to Black Girl Autopoetics is available to read here:
https://www.dukeupress.edu/Assets/PubMaterials/978-1-4780-2560-
3_601.pdf

This is an online event; the Zoom link to join us will be sent via email before the event.

Through the Lens is a virtual faculty lecture series highlighting faculty from across Grounds whose research and knowledge promote intellectual discourse. Enjoy these riveting topics from the comfort of your own home - learn like our current Hoos when we bring the professors to you!

If you have any questions regarding this event, please contact Joshua Stuart (Col '18, Ed '22), Senior Associate Director for UVA Clubs Global Network, at jcs2wv@virginia.edu.