Welcome to the Obama Institute
for Transnational American Studies!

The Obama Institute for Transnational American Studies at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz offers a dynamic and wide-ranging program in both research and teaching for all students interested in topics related to the Americas in a global context.

With a special focus on interculturality, transnationalism, and interdisciplinarity, our expertise lies in the fields of Early American Studies, Indigenous Studies, Life Writing/Life Sciences, Political & Intellectual History, Film & Media Studies, Religion and American Culture, and Materiality.

Contact

Obama Institute for Transnational American Studies
University of Mainz
Jakob-Welder-Weg 20
55128 Mainz
Germany
+49 6131 39-22357
+49 6131 39-29097
Email

May 15 – The Image of America in pre-revolutionary France (1763-1789): A New Look at Prize-Winning Contests in French Académies 🗓

Bertrand van Ruymbeke (Université Paris 8) May 15, 2019 10 a.m.-12 noon, N3 (Muschel) How did the image of the New World evolve in France from the end of the Seven Years’ War in 1763 to the French Revolution in 1789? What was the intellectual and constitutional impact...

Obama Institute @ JGU Open Day 2019

As part of the university-wide open day on Jan 30, 2019, Dr. Nele Sawallisch, Dr. Damien Schlarb, and Julia Velten, M.A. (together with our student assistants Ana Elisa Gomez Laris and Amina Touzos) welcomed high school students to the Obama Institute and introduced...

Feb 8 – Pomo Feminist: Serious, Funny and Unhinged Performances by a Former Sacred Naked Nature Girl 🗓

Denise Uyehara (Performance Artist) February 8, 2019 10 a.m.-12 noon, P 103 (Philosophicum) Denise Uyehara was supposed to be a “good girl” from the suburbs, but instead she turned out “bad.” What went wrong — or right — depends on who you ask. In her talk, she...

Feb 8 – Career Workshop: American Art 🗓

Career Workshop: American Art February 8, 2019 Helmholtz Institute Mainz Staudingerweg 18 55128 Mainz Conference Room 1395-00-133/135 (Ground Floor), 10 a.m.–11 a.m. Interested in studying American art, working in museums, applying for research funding, or...

Feb 7 – Radical Time Travel: Shooting Columbus and Other Works by Denise Uyehara 🗓

Denise Uyehara (Performance Artist) February 7, 2019 6-8 p.m., P 203 (Philosophicum) This evening, Denise Uyehara discusses her work as part of the Fifth World Collective, a group of Indigenous and non-indigenous artists from the Southwest, U.S., as they...

Feb 7 – Symposium: International Perspectives on American Art 🗓

International Perspectives on American Art Symposium hosted by the Obama Institute for Transnational American Studies and the Art History Department, Johannes Gutenberg University The symposium, International Perspectives on American Art, brings together scholars from...