Meng-Hsuan Lee
Lecturer
Contact
Bio
Lecturer in the Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism
Education: B.A., Drama and Theatre, National Taiwan University (2014); M.A., Humanities (art history), University of Chicago (2016); Ph.D. Candidate, Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University (current).
Personal Statement
Meng-Hsuan Lee 李孟瑄 (he/him) is a Ph.D. candidate in Art History and Archaeology at Columbia University, focusing on 19th and 20th-century architecture and urbanism. His dissertation, “Shop-House, Verandah-Arcade, Decorated Façade: An Excavation of Commercial Architecture in Japanese Colonial Taiwan,” examines a dialectical history of planning and vernacular architecture, and the emergence of capitalism in Taiwan since c. 1860. Broadly, he considers planning and regulation techniques, the “contact zones” of colonialism, histories and theories of ornament, and media archaeology.
In teaching, Meng encourages his students to engage with primary sources. He also includes modalities such as object study, visual analysis, archival visits, and architectural walking tours.