Dr. David Russell

Biography

David Russell is an Associate Professor of English at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), having arrived in 2023 from the University of Oxford where he served as an Associate Professor of English from 2015 to 2023. His scholarly work focuses on nineteenth-century literature, critical prose, and the intersections between psychoanalysis, queer theory, and visual arts. Russell's recent book, "Tact: Aesthetic Liberalism and the Essay Form in Nineteenth-Century Britain," published by Princeton in 2018, studies the genre of the essay and its ability to shape a sensuous ethic reflective of modernity. He is currently working on a project involving the literary and visual styles of the British psychoanalyst and essayist Marion Milner, examining the role of creativity in mental health, with a new book forthcoming from Oxford University Press in 2024. Russell’s teaching encompasses a wide range of topics within literature and the arts, drawing on his research to explore critical methodologies and art's social implications.

Research Interests