Together with Ulrike Davis-Sulikowski, Anita Krainer and Gertraud Seiser, I have written an obituary of my long-time mentor and teacher Elke Mader for the journal Zeitschrift für Ethnologie/Journal of Social and Cultural Anthropology. The text is openly accessible.
After Elke Mader was appointed to the Chair of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Vienna in 2006, she declared that she had not ultimately expected to obtain a permanent position in academia. Two decades of precarious work and temporary jobs left her unsure about her future as an anthropologist. Thirteen years later and six months before her planned retirement, Elke was diagnosed with cancer. After two years fighting the illness, she passed away on 8 August 2021 at the age of 67. This obituary touches on a selection of Elke’s research, teaching and academic achievements. It does not pretend to be exhaustive in any way but rather aims to showcase aspects and pieces of Elke’s academic interests that the authors shared with her at particular moments in time.
