HISTORIAN TO GIVE TALK ON FOOTBINDING IN CHINA AT BARD COLLEGE ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6
ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—On Thursday, February 6, Bard in China will present a talk by Barnard College historian Dorothy Ko. Her talk, "The Artifacts of Footbinding," will explore the meaning and culture of footbinding in China. The event, which is being supported by the Freeman Undergraduate Asian Studies Initiative, will take place at 4:30 p.m. in the center studio of the Fisher Studio Arts Building.
Ko is the author of the book, Every Step a Lotus: Shoes for Bound Feet. Rather than condemning the practice, her talk at Bard will explore the meaning of footbinding to the women themselves and focus on its material and visual cultures. From the procedures and instruments of binding to the crafting of the embroidered slippers, the culture of footbinding was intimately related to how women experienced their bodies and, by extension, their worlds. Ko's talk takes place in conjunction with an exhibition, The Art of Contemporary Asian Women: If the Shoe Fits and Vernal Visions, which will be on view in the Fisher building during the month of February and opens officially with an artists panel on February 8.
Ko is a professor in the history department at Barnard College and taught previously at Rutgers University and the University of California, San Diego. She earned her B.A. and Ph.D from Stanford University. In 2000–01 she was a fellow of the Guggenheim Foundation and a member of the School of Historical Studies at the Institute for Advanced Study. She has lectured extensively on footbinding and other aspects of Asian culture across the United States and in Europe and Asia.
For further information about the talk or Bard in China, call 845-758-7388 or e-mail [email protected].
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