Gabriel Rockhill | |
|---|---|
 Rockhill in Paris, 2017 | |
| Born | 1972 (age 52–53) |
| Alma mater | Grinnell College School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences Paris 8 University Emory University |
| Occupation | Philosopher |
| Employer | Villanova University |
Gabriel Rockhill (born 1972) is an American philosopher, writer, and cultural critic. He is Professor of Philosophy atVillanova University,[1] Director of the Critical Theory Workshop /Atelier de Théorie Critique, and formerDirecteur de programme at theCollège International de Philosophie.[2]
Best known for his work in the fields of history, aesthetics and politics, he is also a regular contributor to public intellectual debate, and his writings have circulated in venues such asCounterPunch,Black Agenda Report, theNew York Times, Libération, and theLos Angeles Review of Books.
As an undergraduate Rockhill attendedGrinnell College in Iowa, graduating in 1995.[3] He then moved to Paris to study philosophy. He earned a master's degree under the direction ofJacques Derrida andLuce Irigaray from theSchool for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences, and a Ph.D. under the direction ofAlain Badiou fromParis 8 University, whereÉtienne Balibar led the committee for the dissertations evaluation. Rockhill also holds a Ph.D. in philosophy fromEmory University.[3]
 | This section of abiography of a living persondoes notinclude anyreferences or sources. Please help by addingreliable sources. Contentious material about living people that is unsourced or poorly sourcedmust be removed immediately. Find sources: "Gabriel Rockhill" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(June 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Rather than understanding politics and art as two spheres separated by an insurmountable divide or linked by a privileged bridge, he demonstrates through historical and materialist analysis that they are not fixed categories with a singular relation, but rather social practices and "concepts in struggle." In books likeRadical History & the Politics of Art andInterventions in Contemporary Thought: History, Politics, Aesthetics, he proposes a departure from extant philosophical debates on what is commonly called "art" and "politics" in the name of a radically historicist analysis of the political dimensions inherent in the modes of production, circulation, and reception of aesthetic practices. Engaging with an array of intellectual, artistic, and political traditions, his work maps interactions between aspects of aesthetic and political practices as they intertwine and sometimes merge in fields of struggle.
In his earlier work,Logique de l'histoire: pour une analytique des pratiques philosophiques, he developed an alternative logic of history and historical change that emphasizes the geographic and social dimensions of history, as well as a novel account of social practices and a multidimensional theory of agency. His most recent book,Contre-histoire du temps présent: interrogations intempestives sur la mondialisation, la technologie, la démocratie expands this work to a critical analysis of the dominant image of the present moment, dismantling what he refers to as the "historical and political imaginary of the contemporary conjuncture."
Since 2008, Rockhill has directed theCritical Theory Workshop/Atelier de Théorie Critique in Paris. Originally conceived as a study abroad program for Villanova University, it currently operates as an independent nonprofit that hosts an annual Summer School at theSchool for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences.
In addition to his scholarly publications, Rockhill has written a number of essays of political critiques that tie the United States'Central Intelligence Agency and other Western capitalist nation-states's security apparatuses to the anti-communist politics of Western intellectual thought, including theFrankfurt School,Michel Foucault, andSlavoj Žižek. These online articles for left literary publications have been subject to debate and have been translated into multiple languages.[4][5][6][7]
