Image
Through creative programming and collaborations between Hofstra’s colleges, schools, and programs, the Institute for Public Humanities and the Arts will showcase ways in which the humanities and the arts are relevant to other areas of study, including the natural and social sciences. These initiatives are part of the University’s strategic plan, Hofstra 100, an ambitious course leading to Hofstra’s centennial in 2035.
As founding director, scholar, author, and New York Times columnist, Dr. Rhonda Garelick will be developing a diverse range of programs, including lectures by visiting scholars, workshops, symposia, and off-campus excursions.
Spring 2025 Events
Institute for Public Humanities and the Arts
presents
"FASHION MAGIC" SPEAKER SERIES
All events in the series take place at 4:45-6:15 p.m. in Room 308 C.V. Starr Hall, South Campus (unless otherwise indicated). For more information, please email the Institute Director, Rhonda Garelick, at rhonda.garelick@hofstra.edu.
Thursday, February 13
The House of Hermès: Craft and Creativity — Peter Malachi, Senior VP for Communications for Hermès, USA
Mr. Malachi leads communications for Hermès USA, defining brand strategy. He oversees a team of 25, creating events and campaigns across digital, social, and experiential media. Partners in the cultural sphere include the MET Museum, Performance Space NY, Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian, and the Aperture Foundation. Malachi serves as a mentor to young talent and often speaks to MBA students on the craft of effective communication.
Thursday, February 20
“Beauty is good for people”— Mariza Scotch
Ms. Scotch is a world-renowned designer of luxury accessories, who has led design teams at Mark Cross, Ralph Lauren, Tod's, and Kate Spade. Equally comfortable in a consulting role, she's been responsible for collections produced by a wide and diverse group of clients, including Zac Posen, MAC, and Salvatore Ferragamo.
Image
Thursday, February 27
The Business of Luxury — Pauline Brown
For 30 years, Pauline Brown has acquired, built, and led the world’s most influential luxury brands. She is the former chairman of North America for LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, where she provided regional leadership for 70 brands in five sectors including fashion and leather goods, watches and jewelry, perfume and cosmetics, wine and spirits, and selective retailing. Ms. Brown teaches at Columbia Business School and is the author of the groundbreaking book, Aesthetic Intelligence: How to Boost It and Use It in Business and Beyond.
Image
Wednesday, March 12
Moshtari Hilal
Ms. Hilal presents her new book, Ugliness. She is a visual artist, writer, and curator based in Hamburg and Berlin. Ms. Hilal studied Islamic studies and political science with a focus on Gender and Decolonial Theory in Hamburg, Berlin, and London. Ms. Hilal is co-founder and co-curator of AVAH (Afghan Visual Arts and History) collective. Her essayistic debut Hässlichkeit (Ugliness) won the Hamburg Literature Prize for nonfiction and is listed as one of the most beautiful German books by Stiftung Buchkunst.
Guthart Cultural Center Theater, Axinn Library, South Campus
Image
Thursday, March 13
Writing Fashion — Judith Thurman
Ms. Thurman is senior critic for The New Yorker, a National Book Award winner, and was conferred the insignia of Chevalière de L’ordre des Arts et des Lettres. She has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 2000 and a contributor since 1987, specializing in cultural criticism. Ms. Thurman is the author of Isak Dinesen: The Life of a Storyteller, which won the National Book Award for Nonfiction in 1983, and was the basis for Sydney Pollack's Oscar-winning film Out of Africa. Her latest book, A Left-Handed Woman, won the 2023 PEN award for The Art of the Essay.
Guthart Cultural Center Theater, Axinn Library, South Campus
Image
Thursday, March 27
Fashion Curation and Museums — Dr. Valerie Steele, Director of the Museum of the Fashion Institute of Technology
Dr. Steele has written more than 20 books about fashion and curated over 20 exhibitions. She is also founder and editor-in-chief of Fashion Theory, the first peer-reviewed fashion studies scholarly journal.
Image
Thursday, April 10
Fashion Journalism/Fashion Writing — Vanessa Friedman
Ms. Friedman is fashion director and chief fashion critic for The New York Times. She has won the Fashion Group International’s Media Award, the Front Page award for fashion writing, and the Fashion/Beauty Monitor award for fashion journalist of the year.
Image
Thursday, April 24, "FASHION MAGIC" SPEAKER SERIES
Fashion Activism — Abrima Erwiah
Ms. Erwiah is the director of the Joseph and Gail Gromek Institute for Fashion Business, Parsons School of Design, and an experienced fashion industry executive and activist. With co-founder, Rosario Dawson, she created Studio One Eighty-Nine, devoted to producing African-inspired clothing, which won the CFDA’s Lexus Fashion Initiative for Sustainability Award.
Image
This series is FREE and open to the public. To RSVP, visit events.hofstra.edu.
