Paul Kurek

Paul Kurek is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures at the University of Michigan, affiliated with the Weiser Center for Europe and Eurasia. He holds a PhD from UCLA (2021) and a BA from the University of Würzburg (2014), with postdoctoral research at the Free University of Berlin (2022-2023). His work bridges architecture, geotechnology, and Holocaust history, focusing on material culture's role in fascist modernity.

Education:

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Berlin Program for Advanced German and European Studies, Free University of Berlin (2022-2023)
• PhD in Germanic Languages and Literatures, UCLA (2021)
• BA in Germanistik, University of Würzburg (2014)

Research explores entangled histories of space, power, and identity through objects like the Nazi-era Schwerbelastungskörper. His first book examines this geotechnical monument as a symbol of fascist progress and destruction. He lectures on 20th-century German thought and philosophy, and his work has been featured on the podcast 99% Invisible.

Affiliations include the Michigan Society of Fellows and interdisciplinary collaborations with artists/architects.