Mal Meisels (they/them) is a Ph.D. student in the UCLA Department of Art History. They specialize in nineteenth-century French art at the intersections of queer theory and form, animal studies, and histories of French colonialism in North Africa. Their dissertation investigates the confluences and conflicts between queerness and colonialism in the oeuvre of French artist Rosa Bonheur (1822–1899). Mal’s research interests are intrinsically connected to their teaching practice. As a teaching assistant during the 2022–2023 and 2023–2024 academic years, they carefully developed syllabi and lesson plans to educate undergraduates about the radical potential of visual culture and artistic production. They also worked with learners of all ages as the Instruction and Engagement Fellow at the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library during the 2024–2025 academic year. All Mal’s work—in research and education—is informed by contemporary socio-political realities and their personal background in politics and queer activism. Mal advocated for Jewish queer youth at Yeshiva University, their alma mater, and published an op-ed in The New York Times about the Jewish queer experience.