This symposium will celebrate the beloved and influential Reed professor, Lena Lencek (Russian and Humanities, 1977–2022). We will gather in the Performing Arts Builing along with several of her former students to  discuss their scholarly, artistic, and professional projects that benefited from Lena’s mentorship. In the concluding open mic panel, Lena’s students will talk about her as a teacher and friend. Free and open to the public.

11 a.m.: Opening remarks, Zhenya Bershstein (Reed College)

Part 1: Lena's former students discuss their scholarly, artistic, and professional projects

11:15 a.m. - 1 p.m.: Literature and Religion (Naomi Caffee, chair, Reed College)
Michael Foat '86 (Reed College): "Russian Orthodox Thought in the West"
Monica Wesolowska '89 (Writer, Berkeley, CA): "Bearing Witness: From Potty Breaks to Floating Worlds"
Rabbi Michael Goldman '89 (White Plains, NY): "Daniil Kharms's Day of Laughter"
Timmy Straw '17 (University of Pennsylvania): "Figures of Translation"

2 - 3:45 p.m.: Art (Marat Grinberg, chair, Reed College)
Stephanie Snyder '91 (Reed College): "Daniel Spoerri, the Rauschenberg Problem, or How not to make friends and alientate people"
Michael Kunichika '99 (Amherst College): "'a profound experience of art', or On an Excavation after the End of History"
Angie Wilson '03 (Artist, Oakland, CA): "Connect, Create, Empower"
Rose Lewis '13 (Artist, Portland, OR): "Kunstkamera!"

4-5:30 p.m.: Life (Zhenya Bershstein, chair, Reed College)
Seth Young '96 (NYC/Seattle): "(as our shadows still walk without us)"
Margaret Anderson '05 (Inclusive Market Systems, ACDI/VOCA, DC): "Greenhouse on a Kolkhoz: A Snapshot of Agricultural Development in the Former Soviet Union"
Orla O'Sullivan '16 (Localization Lab, NYC): "Keys, Switches, and Inclusion: Lessons from Language and from Lena"

Part II

6-7 p.m.: Lena Open Mic!
Presided over by Brandon Marrow '18 (NYC), Alex Fallow '21 (San Jose, CA), and Millie Forman '22 (Portland, OR)

7 p.m.: Closing Remarks
Lena Lencek

7:30 p.m. Reception in Gray Lounge (Kaul Auditorium)

 

Reed Magazine’s essay about Lena.