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Contact Information
Recent work in an academic environment or scholarly research setting
Experience managing, writing, or editing content
Curatorial practice
 

Contact:
v-ivanova@mailbox.org
ORCIDID

Association Membership:
Memory Studies Association
Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture (ANFA)
International Association of Empirical Aesthetics
Division 10 of the American Psychological Association: Society for the Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity & the Arts
Cognitive Neuroscience Society

01.Postdoctoral Research FellowUC|CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity and Learning,
School of Education & Information Sciences
University of California, Los Angeles
10/2025 – Present


Research Seminar, “Brains, Bodies, and Buildings: Neuro-Architecture and the Spaces That Shape Us” Stanford University School of Medicine, Jan 26 to Mar 9, 2026.

Visiting researcher
Wende Museum of the Cold War
08/2024 – 02/2025

Initiated a comparative research project examining collection management strategies for Soviet heritage artifacts across former Soviet Union countries. I analyzed preservation methodologies, cataloging systems, and exhibition approaches, while investigating how political transitions influenced curatorial decisions in post-Soviet states. Through collaboration with an international network of heritage specialists, I documented best practices and developed a taxonomy of challenges unique to Soviet heritage preservation. My findings were presented at the 2025 Museums and Memory Working Group Conference. 

Conference Presentation, “Guarding the Past: Memory Securitization and Museum Collections,” Museums and Memory Working Group, Memory Studies Association, University of Southern California Los Angeles, January 24 - 25, 2025.
Conference Attendance, “Violence and Repair” at the 2024 Mnemonic Summer School, University of California Los Angeles,  July 9 - 11, 2024.
Conference Attendance, “Form, Production and Transknowledge in Soviet Modernity” at the Institut für Kunstgeschichte, Universität Wien, September 25 - 26, 2024.

Conference Attendance, “Westsplaining in Art History” at the Institute of Art History and Visual Culture, Tallinn, June 28, 2024.
Conference Attendance, “Cultural Heterologies and Democracy: Transitions and Transformations in Post-Socialist Cultures in the 1980s and 1990s” at the Estonian Academy of Art, Tallinn, June 26 - 28, 2024.
Conference Attendance, “Bridge-Building through Art Exhibitions: the Cold War Divide, the Fall of the Wall, and Beyond” at Södertörn University, Huddinge, Sweden, March 21 - 22, 2024.

Visiting researcher
Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures; Russian and Slavic Studies,
McGill University
09/2022 – 05/2023

Organized an interdisciplinary working group on "Memory Studies in Post-Socialist Contexts” and collaborated with department members on a digital archive of Soviet-era visual materials for teaching and research. Conducted primary research on cultural memory in Soviet and post-Soviet visual culture and mentored undergraduate students working on related research topics. 

RUSS 397: “ANDREI TARKOVSKY AND THE (SCIENCE) FICTIONS OF MEMORY” Developed and taught a course examining the historical significance of Andrei Tarkovsky’s work within the broader context of Soviet-era Russian cinema and its engagement with memory, history, and identity. Utilized a multidisciplinary approach combining historical, cultural, and visual analysis to explore the role of memory in shaping national histories. 

RUSS 229: “MARC CHAGALL: AN INTRODUCTION TO VISUAL ANALYSIS”Developed and taught a course linking the works of Marc Chagall to the historical and cultural contexts of 20th-century Europe. Explored how art history intersects with major historical events, such as the Russian Revolution and the rise of fascism in Europe.