The Comparative Literature program hosted the artist Shing Yin Khor at Bryn Mawr for a week-long residency titled "Comparative Flavors" recently. Shing is an artist and author based in Los Angeles and their recent book The Legend of Auntie Po was a National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature.
At various events throughout the week, Shing worked with students to create one-page graphic narratives based on recipes, ingredients, or even just memories connected to food that were joined together to create a zine cookbook at the end of the week. The final zine was created in Bryn Mawr's makerspace with the help of the makerspace coordinator, Bronwen Densmore.
"Working with Shing and Bronwen in the Makerspace as we put together the final editions of the recipe zine was a rewarding experience. Collaborating with someone whose writing and art I’ve previously looked to for inspiration was an honor, and it’s a memory I'll cherish for a long time," says Avery Matteo '22.
Shing also held readings from some of their works, including The American Dream? A Journey on Route 66 . The Bryn Mawr Bookstore provided copies of both of Shing’s books for purchase and Shing did a book signing after the talk.
"Organizing an event like this one captured how much fun it is to be in a major like comparative literature," says Tori Garity-Fernandez '22. "Being able to connect with artists like Shing who have a wide span of skills like writing, illustration, and carpentry, and a drive to expand into more niche craft is special in that these are the same multidisciplinary sorts of interests we have. A student coming into comparative literature might tend to be indecisive because there is so much they want to do and explore, but a student coming out of comparative literature will be on the path to finding the unique way those interests overlap."
Shing’s faculty host, Shiamin Kwa, associate professor of East Asian languages and cultures and co-director of Comparative Literature, has been teaching courses on food studies for several years and is working on a book that looks at the ways food history encourages us to think about global exchanges and adaptations in culture. She will be teaching a two-course 360° on "taste” with Anthropology's Susanna Fioratta in fall 2022 that will explore the way that tastes are formed and transformed through a variety of approaches. Applications for the 360° are due April 6.