Michael Kowalchuk received his undergraduate degree in Architecture and English & Textual Studies from Syracuse University in 2014. Michael grew up in New Hampshire and worked at a boutique architecture firm in Portsmouth, NH, upon receiving his undergraduate degree. He is thrilled to return to New England after working as an architectural designer in New York City for the past three and a half years. Michael is especially interested in the political culture of the Left and its aesthetic and literary ramifications. Michael’s primary research topic centers on the ideological cross-pollination that occurred between French and Latin American Marxists during the 1960s and 1970s — particularly those who studied under Louis Althusser. Additional research interests include: the Comintern’s influence on American and French literary values during the 1920s and 1930s, queer life in the Socialist Bloc during the Cold War, and the radical identity politics of Derek Jarman’s films. Michael primarily employs feminist, queer and Marxist methodologies in his work. Leveraging his academic/professional background in architecture, he understands the interrelationship between visual culture, aesthetics, space and political power. Michael is a native English speaker and fluent in French, with a conversational knowledge of Spanish and Italian.