Dustin Kidd

I began my adventures in American Studies as an MA student in the English department of the University of Virginia. Concentrating in American Studies, I focused on some the early writings in this field: Alan Trachtenberg's The Incorporation of America, Leo Marx's The Machine in the Garden, Warren Susman's Culture as History, and many others--including Temple's longtime director of American Studies Miles Orvell's The Real Thing. My research at the time included studies of the paintings of Thomas Eakins, the 1930 World's Fair in Chicago, and the current ways that art museums are making use of the Web. Recognizing the heavy influence that sociological thinking has had on the field, I chose to pursue a PhD in that discipline to complete my studies. Today, I am rooted in the sociologies of art and popular culture, but I work across disciplines and under the influence of literary theory, art history, political science, and cultural studies.  My recent work has examined arts controversies, government funding for the arts, the art theory of WEB DuBois, the significance of the Harry Potter novels, and the influence of feminism on popular music and film.