Sharon Lubkemann Allen

Sharon Lubkemann Allen is Professor of Comparative Literature and Director of Graduate Studies in the English Department at SUNY Brockport, where she has served since 2005, rising from Assistant Professor to full Professor. She holds a PhD in Comparative Literature from Princeton University and maintains a unique dual career as both a distinguished scholar and visual artist.

Her educational background includes:

• PhD in Comparative Literature, Princeton University (2004)
• MA in Comparative Literature, Princeton University (2000)
• MA in English and Comparative Literature and Theory, University of Dallas (1996)
• BA in Soviet and East European Studies, Yale University (1991)

Professor Allen's research spans comparative literature, cultural semiotics, and transnational studies with emphasis on Lusophone cultures, postcolonial theory, and cultural memory. Her scholarly work explores how literature, film, and visual arts reconfigure cultural memory across Portuguese, Brazilian, Luso-African, French, Slavic, and East European contexts. She examines modernist and postmodernist narrative strategies, urban contexts, women writers, and the decolonization of critical discourses.

Her publications reveal consistent focus on cultural memory mapping, with recent work examining contemporary Lusophone artists and writers who reimagine cultural memory. The trajectory shows increasing interdisciplinary integration between literary analysis and visual arts, particularly in how artists navigate transatlantic cultural connections and postcolonial memory.

Her significant academic honors include:

• Fulbright Fellowship at Universidade de Lisboa (2009-2010)
• Mellon Postdoctoral Fellowship at University of Pennsylvania (2004-2005)

As Director of Graduate Studies and former Interim Director of Film Studies, Professor Allen has shaped curriculum and mentored numerous students. Her extensive university service includes leadership roles such as College Senate President (2016-2017) and membership on strategic planning, diversity, and budget committees. Her scholarly work has been supported through international research fellowships in Portugal, France, and Russia.

Professor Allen maintains an active visual arts practice focused on sculpture, drawing, and photography that directly intersects with her academic interests. Her artistic work explores migration, memory maps, and cultural identity through bronze casting and mixed media installations, frequently exhibiting at university galleries and participating in humanitarian art projects such as the ART ACTS fundraiser for Ukraine.