Dr. James Ellis

Biography

James Ellis is a professor of English at the University of Calgary and the director of the Calgary Institute for the Humanities, Canada’s oldest humanities institute. With a focus on sixteenth-century poetry and prose, he has written numerous essays and books, including 'Garden World: Poetry and Performativity in Elizabethan England' (Northwestern University Press, 2023). His current research project examines the role of plants in the 'Faerie Queene.' Ellis has also published extensively on British film, particularly focusing on queer directors like Terence Davies, Isaac Julien, and Derek Jarman, with noteworthy works such as 'Derek Jarman’s Angelic Conversations' (University of Minnesota Press, 2009). As director of the Calgary Institute for the Humanities, he has edited a series of books on environmental humanities, including 'Calgary: City Animals' (2017) and 'Water Rites: Reimagining Water in the West' (2018). He is also the series editor of the Calgary Atlas Project, producing maps of alternative and forgotten histories of Calgary. Additionally, he writes about contemporary art for the magazine 'Border Crossings.'

Research Interests

Awards