At ChinaComx, I research the politics behind and within lianhuanhua. I approach these palm-sized booklets as a distinctively affective medium that bridged state propaganda and popular entertainment. Specifically, my sub-project explores such themes as: the relationship between political campaigns and lianhuanhua; occurrences of Maoism (as both ideology and state bureaucracy) within storylines; various depictions of political and national enemies; uses of lianhuanhua as manuals for new socialist knowledge and norms of behavior; as well as questions related to the role of lianhuanhua in the project of socialist modernisation.
Beyond my historical research, I serve as the project’s coordinator for graphic and web design, overseeing the visual identity and digital curatorship efforts of our output, and aid the ongoing expansion of the CATS-Seifert Collection of Chinese Comics.
Prior to joining Heidelberg University, I contributed to the research projects “The Politics of Reading in the PRC“ and “The Maoist Legacy: Party Dictatorship, Transitional Justice and the Politics of Truth” at the University of Freiburg. I am also an editor and collaborator in the ongoing international project “Revisiting the Revolution: Engaging Chinese Scholarship through Collaborative Translation”. My first monograph, currently in preparation, tackles the phenomenon of political study and other collective reading practices in the PRC.
Visit my personal website for more details about my work.
Research interests
PRC history / propaganda & political communication / visual culture / state socialism / photography, film & politics
Contact & socials
📧 Email | 🎓 Institute website | 👨🏻💻 ResearchGate | 🟢 ORCiD | ⚫️ GitHub | 🦋 Bluesky | 📚 Website