尤物视频

Anthropology doctoral student in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences

Tell us a little about yourself, including what inspires you to learn and continue in your chosen field

I am a textile artist with an educational background in the anthropology of religion, with an interest in material culture. I am originally from Ontario, and moved to B.C. to attend SFU. I am a pet parent to two adult cats. One question that is always somewhere on my mind is how we live good lives in our modern era of so-called late stage capitalism. As a textile artist and anthropologist, I'm conscious of the ways our everyday actions and decisions have broader impacts, and curious about to what extent individual action can impact broader social forces. I think anthropology is essential in today's world. It encourages us to complicate binaries, interrogate generalizations, and question widely held "truths" and beliefs about the world. Through attending to particular and lived human conditions, anthropology helps us understand the way people are responding to the constantly changing world around them, and reminds us of the incredible diversity of human existence and experience.

Why did you choose to come to SFU?

I chose to come to SFU for the faculty in my department working on relevant and important research, the Sociology & Anthropology department's strong methodological focus, and the location of SFU.

How would you describe your research or your program to a family member?

I research textile artisans on British Columbia's Sunshine Coast, and their efforts to find and create alternatives to fast fashion and cultures of capitalism.

What three (3) keywords would you use to describe your research?

artisanship; ethics; labour

How have your courses, RA-ships, TA-ships, or non-academic school experiences contributed to your academic and/or professional development?

RAships and my teaching experiences as a TA/TM and Sessional Instructor have been vital to my academic development. RA work on the Decolonizing Municipal Monuments and Landmarks project with Pamela Stern and the City of New Westminster helped develop my archival research skills, and a better understanding of the way scholars and city workers can collaborate to create more just communities. Teaching has given me both a stronger grasp of my discipline and field, as well as communication skills that help me convey and present my ideas more clearly and confidently. I love teaching in a department where students hold instructors accountable, aren't afraid to ask hard questions, and sit with difficult ideas. I think my teaching experience was one thing that helped me win first place in the FASS 3MT heat in Spring 2025. This competition was really helpful for developing the main story of my research, and thinking through how to tell it in a way that engaged the public.

Have you been the recipient of any major or donor-funded awards? If so, please tell us which ones and a little about how the awards have impacted your studies and/or research

I am the recipient of a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) fellowship, as well as several BC Graduate Scholarships, Dean's Fellowships, and Graduate Fellowships. These awards made it possible for me to leave an emotionally-draining part-time job in my first year of my degree and put more time and energy into reading, writing, and art.

What have been the most valuable lessons you've learned along your graduate student journey (or in becoming a graduate student)?

Rest, sleep, and have hobbies. There is some value and excitement in pouring everything you have into your research, but doctoral degrees are a marathon, not a sprint. Find and create communities of people to talk about research. Sometimes it can feel like you are going around in circles and not making any progress. Taking a different perspective might reveal that circle to be a spiraling spring. While you are circling, you are also moving.

How do you approach networking and building connections in and outside of your academic community?

I build connections by saying yes and showing up. I put energy into things that excite me, and try my best to follow through on those things. For example, I recently attended a two-day workshop with the Creative Ethnographic Writing Hub at UBC Okanagan. Pursuing something that interested me (creative writing) and following through put me in a room with other scholars interested in the same things, allowing me to meet and connect with a new community of like-minded people.   

What are some tips for balancing your academic and personal life?

I accept and work within different eras of my academic trajectory. At some points, I treat my academic life as a job. I work 8-5, take a lunch break, and take weekends and evenings off. Other times, when I am more excited by my writing, I devote time on the weekends to work on things that I feel particularly passionate about. This usually means limiting the amount of personal and social commitments I plan on weekends so that I can spend time writing.

If you could dedicate your research to anyone (past, present and/or future), who would that be and why?

I am privileged to live at a time when women can not only be anthropologists, but are some of the most insightful and respected anthropologists. I am also privileged to live at a time when textiles and the people that make them are gaining more attention and respect in the scholarly world, the art world, and the fashion world. I would dedicate my research to the people, mostly women, who came before me and helped make this possible.

Contact Madelyn:madelyn_prevost@sfu.ca