A Week on the Verge of the World: Migration, Art, and Humanities

Monday to Friday | November 13-17, 2023 | Multiple Locations | Please registerĀ for the workshop

Felipe Baeza's "Untitled (so much darkness, so much brownness)," 2016

Felipe Baeza, "Untitled (so much darkness, so much brownness)," 2016

This series of talks and workshops focused on rethinking, discussing, and finding paths toward empathy in the context of one of the most profound problems of contemporary global society: migration. In particular, the phenomenon of migration from Latin America to the US will be addressed. This week of events is focused on the cultural production from both sides of the US-Mexico border. Two internationally recognized and award-winning Latin American artists and writers will visit 51²č¹Ż. Both produce works on migration, using fiction and non-fiction literature and electronic art installations. Their works focus on Central American undocumented immigrants into the US, particularly the experience of migrant children.

This event is sponsored by:Ā 
Institute for the Liberal Arts
Romance Languages and Literatures Department
Sociology Department
Center for Human Rights and International Justice

Schedule and Registration

Monday, November 13, 2023Ā Ā |Ā Multiple locations| Registration for Workshop Only

5:00-6:00 PMĀ 

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ workshop | Gasson 301

6:00-8:00 PMĀ 

Valeria LuiselliĀ“s talk | Gasson 100


Tuesday, November 14, 2023 | Gasson 302 | Please register to attend

5:00-6:00 PMĀ 

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ workshop


Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | Gasson 100 |Ā Registration for Workshop Only

5:00-6:00 PM

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ workshop

6:00-8:00 PM

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ talk


Thursday, November 16, 2023Ā Ā |Ā Gasson 303 |Ā Please register to attend

5:00-6:00 PM

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ workshop


Friday, November 17, 2023Ā Ā |Ā Stokes S195 | Open to All

5:00-7:00 PM

Juan Pablo VillalobosĀ“ workshop showcase

Speakers

Valeria Luiselli

Valeria Luiselli

Mexican author Valeria Luiselliā€™s literary work includesĀ Faces in the CrowdĀ (Coffee House Press, 2013),Ā Tell Me How It EndsĀ (Coffee House Press, 2017), which have been translated into more than 30 languages. She is the recipient of a 2019 MacArthur Fellowship and the winner of the Dublin Literary Award 2021, Rathbones Folio Prize in the UK, two Los Angeles Times Book Prizes, the Carnegie Medal, and the American Book Award. She has been nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Kirkus Prize, and the Booker Prize. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Granta, and McSweeneyā€™s, among other publications. She has received a Bearing Witness Fellowship from the Art for Justice Fund. Luiselli is a Visiting Professor of Ethnicity, Indigeneity, and Migration in the Department of English at Harvard University.

During her campus visit, Luiselli will discuss her book, initially written in English,Ā Lost Children ArchiveĀ (Alfred A. Knopf, 2019), and other creative works that present contemporary migration.


Juan Pablo Villalobos

Juan Pablo Villalobos

The Mexican writer Juan Pablo Villalobos is the author of a dozen books translated into English and a dozen other languages. These titles includeĀ Down the Rabbit HoleĀ (And Other Stories, 2011),Ā QuesadillasĀ (And Other Stories, 2013), and published only in PortugueseĀ No Jalisco StyleĀ (Realejo/Bateia, 2014),Ā The Invasion of the Spirit PeopleĀ (And Other Stories, 2020). His fourth novel,Ā I Donā€™t Expect Anyone to Believe Me, won one of the most prestigious awards in the Spanish Language, the Herralde Literary Prize, in 2016.Ā Down the Rabbit HoleĀ was nominated for the Guardian First Book Award in the UK and the Kirkus Prize. He writes for several publications, including Granta, Letras Libres, Gatopardo, and the English Pen, and translates Brazilian literature into Spanish. He is a literature and literary creation professor at the Pompeu Fabra University of Barcelona, where 51²č¹Ż has a study abroad program, and the Autonomous University of Barcelona.

Villalobos has agreed to do a week-long residency on campus, delivering a workshop and meetings with students. His talk will discuss his bookĀ The Other Side. Stories of Central American Teen Refugees Who Dream of Crossing the BorderĀ (Macmillan, 2019). This book seeks to give a central place to the voice of Central American migrant and refugee children and youth who cross the US-Mexico border. Additionally, he will address other forms of migration that form part of the core of his literary work, such as Latin American migration to Europe and the contemporary relevance of Barcelona as a multicultural city.

Campus Map and Parking

Campus Map and Parking:

Parking is available at the nearby Beacon Street and Commonwealth Avenue Garages.

Boston College is also accessible via public transportation (MBTA B Line - Boston College).

Directions, Maps, and Parking

Visitor Parking Information

Boston College strongly encourages conference participants to receive the COVID-19 vaccination before attending events on campus.


Boston College strongly encourages conference participants to receive the COVID-19 vaccination before attending events on campus.