Scholarly Definition

A Canadian school of sociological scholarship grounded in the assumption that to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, deep reflection on questions of epistemology is needed. A distinctive area of contribution referring to a broad range of work that is conversant with developments in contemporary theory, methods, and practices in the social sciences.

Artistic Statement

While drug scientists work on treatment regimens and vaccines, social scientists focus on societal responses to HIV/AIDS. Here I use the red ribbon as a symbol for the condition, lacing around outstretched hands. We see a moment just before two people, living in different parts of the world, poise to touch. Critical social science perspectives, as a frame for analysis, are shown as a third hand emerging from an opened book. Knowledge derived from social research from within this family of perspectives cuts the ribbon in two. This splicing is promissory: ushering in an era of theoretical and methodological innovation in social science research on HIV/AIDS.

Digital art © Ujwal Mantha