Faculty Spotlight Fall 2026

Art Joyce (Archaeology)

I am a Mesoamerican archaeologist who directs a large-scale interdisciplinary project in Oaxaca, Mexico. This research has included survey and excavation at the ancient cities of Río Viejo and Tututepec and excavation of a 13,000-year-old Paleoindian site as well as paleoecological, paleoclimatological, and geomorphological research on prehispanic climate and anthropogenic landscape change. I currently use posthumanism, Peircean semiotics, and Indigenous Mesoamerican knowledge to explore the interrelationship of maize agriculture, mountains, sacrifice, creation narratives, divine rulership, and the emergence of urbanism in Mesoamerica. My research has been published in journals ranging from Quaternary Science Reviews and Current Anthropology to World Art.