Q & A with Dr. Timothy Pantoja

1.      Who are you?

At Stanford, I am a Mellon Fellow at Stanford Humanities Center and lecturer at the Department of African and African American Studies (DAAAS). I grew up in New York City as the only child of a Puerto Rican Baptist preacher (father) and music teacher (mother). I am also a preacher, an absolutely amateur salsero, drummer, rusty ball player, and art/music lover. My hope is that my scholarship and writing reflect the intellectual dimensions of all these aspects of my life. 

2.      What inspires you? What makes you do what you do?

What inspires me is learning with and from others who perform and think with creativity, boldness, and craft. I am inspired by the ways thinking manifests in all kinds of ways, whether it be the way Ronaldinho dribbles through a defense, or Toni Morrison evokes grief from the way she gets a character to say a name, or Robert Glasper plays chord progressions that transforms a song he is covering.

What makes me do what I do is curiosity and joy. My intellectual work is inspired by thinkers and artists who use their art and scholarship to create bonds of joy and resiliency through creating curiosity about the world we share. There is this unique and transformative jolt that comes from learning that no one can take away. And I hope to write, perform, and teach in a way that helps others feel and see what I find illuminating in another’s work. I hope to share the power of art, poetry, and criticism to create bonds with those who we share space with and with those throughout time who continue to teach us how to live with more courage, creativity, and compassion. I am also motivated by working with brilliant and committed people to explore the ways art and literature can be activated to expand our consciousness and ways of belonging together.  

3.         What sparked your interest in Black Literature and Arts?

What sparked my interest in Black Literature and Arts are the ways they moved me with displays of virtuosity, depth of thought and feeling. Black art and literature also show a resounding commitment to celebrating humanity across various kinds of conditions, some that demanded nothing less than powerful responses and expressions. Studying the Black intellectual traditions in the Humanities has led me to realize the courageous and creative ways people across times and places have created art and music regardless of circumstances. But what moves my scholarship and teaching is my desire to unveil how Black artists and writers use their craft to teach others how to rely on art and music for the sake of living life beyond merely existing and surviving. Black literature and arts take seriously the larger questions of history while also revealing the everyday conditions that make these questions so vital to live with even if we cannot adequately answer them. 

 4.         What will you be teaching at Stanford?  

I will be teaching two courses. One course is called “Aura, AI, Sports” which will explore the artistic concept of aura as it appears across cultural performances, artworks, sports, and religion. Aura has been theorized as a term that highlights the lingering religious dimension of engaging and encountering artworks. Currently, it may be a term used more for highlighting what is special about a performance or an appearance. But what can the evolution of this idea of aura tell us about being human, human creativity, and embodied life? How does the prevalence of AI add to or detract from aura? What is the connection between aura and authenticity and race? So, if you are interested in discussions around what makes a particular performance, athlete, or artwork auratic/special then check the course out. We will also use the readings of this course, which will be taken from art theory, literary theory, poetics, and visual art – most of which come from the Black expressive tradition - to think about these questions.

 The other course is entitled, “Doubt and Death” which explores the idea of doubt as a source of critique and creativity particularly when dealing with larger issues of dying, death, and grief. This course looks at Black artists and writers, most of whom are ambivalently religious, who create stories and artworks that evoke doubt. We will think about religious practices and the ways these artists and writers have relied on art to explore questions of doubt that open community for those in need of a space to question, critique, and explore alternatives for experiences of death, dying, and grief. The course looks at stories and poems that feature grief as a way of helping us see how literature and art recasts grief as another force to bond with others here and now and there and then. The goal is to also explore art and literature as resources for rethinking healing and bonding. 

5.         What can students expect in a typical class with you? Is it more lecture based, discussion-heavy or hands-on?   

Students can expect a class that is centered on discussion, communal engagement, and slow, careful analysis of a text, song, and/or artwork. I am a believer in rereading where we all decide together to slow the pace of our attention down to witness the different intellectual choices that are evident in literature and art. My classroom is open in the sense that I hope to generate an atmosphere of curiosity so that we feel confident to risk expressing our ideas even if they are not fully baked. While critique is a skill I aim to develop, I am invested in cultivating curiosity as a way of discovering the depths of an idea that is being expressed. We will also engage each other’s thoughts to help us understand the ways black study creates and conditions learning as a social practice. 

6.         What is the best advice you received as a student?   

Chase what excites you, trust in curiosity, and ask for help and clarification. Often the very question that you may be nervous to ask is the one that others are thinking about and hoping to hear answered. And the other great advice was, “There is no time to waste, so do NOT rush.” Meaning do not downplay the power of slowness. I have found that the best observations that I have discovered and communicated have come from a slow engagement with an idea. Your ideas are worth the time it takes to discover and express them.

7.         What is one skill you think is essential for success both in college and after?  

Learning to trust in revision is a necessary way to improve writing, reading, and thinking. And realizing that study takes time. It is essential to appreciate the ways slow listening, reading, and thinking generate richer insights and perspectives.  Also, learn to ask for help and get feedback. It is a gift to be able to learn in a community. 

8.         What are you looking forward to this quarter?  

      I am looking forward to being in a classroom with students and hearing their ideas and insights. The opportunity to teach is just another opportunity to learn with others. 

9.          What do you do for fun when you’re not teaching, writing or researching?  

I love to walk and explore the places I am in. Walking helps me think and reflect. I also enjoy eating and talking and laughing with people. BUT I am an introvert, so sometimes I enjoy remembering a conversation I had with someone more than having the conversation. (I think other introverts might know what I mean – I hope). I also love social dancing, salsa and bachata and whatever else. I also love standing in front of artworks for a long time and watching painting, photograph, or statues transform over time. And music. Live music of any kind is fun for me whether it be a concert hall, a small venue, or a church.