My New Book!

My New Book!
My New Book!

Wednesday, August 24, 2022

August 24, 2022: Virginia Profs: John Edwin Mason

[For this year’s annual Cville series, I wanted to highlight a handful of inspiring and impressive profs at my hometown school, the University of Virginia (beyond the UVA prof who will always come first in my heart). I’d love to hear about profs—teachers, advisors, mentors, colleagues, friends—you’d highlight in comments!]

I believe I first got connected with Dr. John Edwin Mason on Twitter through the hugely underappreciated American artist Gordon Parks (maybe when I shared the posts in that June 2015 weeklong series on Parks). Mason is working on a definitive book about Parks, currently titled Gordon Parks and American Democracy, and to say that I can’t wait for it would be to significantly understate the case. But Mason is also an amazing Renaissance man—an expert scholar of South Africa, one of the leading voices on American photography and co-director of the Holsinger Portrait Project, and a talented French hornist who has played with multiple orchestras in and around Cville. Oh, and he’s also one of the most supportive and kind folks I’ve had the chance to interact with on Twitter (and that’s a delightfully competitive list). All the folks I’ll highlight this week inspire me in many ways, but Mason inspires me in about twenty-seven all at once!

Next UVA prof tomorrow,

Ben

PS. Professors you’d add to the weekend post?

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