Cornell Research

Expertise

Poetry; poetry and science; African-American literature; southern literature; nineteenth-century American literature

Current Research Interest

Poetry; the science and history of color, especially synthetic coal tar dyes; the perception or lack of perception of blackness in Appalachia; African American identity 

Distinction

Lannan Fellow
Civitella Ranieri Fellow
Cave Canem Poetry Prize for Black Swan
National Book Award/Poetry Finalist for Open Interval
Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist for Open Interval
Appel Fellowship

Selected Publications

Van Clief-Stefanon, Lyrae. Open Interval. Pittsburg, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2009.

Van Clief-Stefanon, Lyrae. Black Swan. Pittsburg, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2002. 

Cornell Research Website Article

Interwoven—Coal, Colors, and Other Stories