Dr. Lorraine Kooistra

Biography

Lorraine Janzen Kooistra is a Professor in the Department of Art History at the University of Toronto and also serves in the Department of English at Toronto Metropolitan University. She is a member of the Yeates School of Graduate Studies and a contributing member of the MA Literatures of Modernity interdisciplinary joint graduate program in Communication and Culture. Kooistra is the founding Co-Director of Ryerson’s Centre for Digital Humanities (CDH) and works at the intersection of Victorian illustrated print culture and digital humanities, notably directing the Yellow Nineties 2.0 project, an open-access, peer-reviewed electronic resource focused on seven aesthetic periodicals from the 1890s Britain. She is a specialist in the history of book and periodical studies, with significant contributions to the fields of illustration and Victorian literature. Kooistra has published numerous essays on Victorian illustrated books and has worked on various open-access digital editions. Her research interests also span textual ornaments, wood engraving, and the contributions of women artists and activists. Kooistra has held key positions, including Chair of the English Department and Undergraduate Program Director, and has received multiple teaching awards, alongside her induction as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2018.

Research Interests