Mercè Picornell is Lecturer (Professora Contractada Doctora) of Catalan Literature and Comparative Literature at the Universitat de les Illes Balears. She has published essays on testimonial and ethnographic writing, experimental literature and catalan contemporary culture. She is the author of Discursos testimonials en la literatura catalana recent (2002), and Continuïtats i desviacions. Debats crítics sobre la cultura catalana en el vèrtex 1960/1970 (2013) Current research interests include the analysis of the cultural context of experimental literature and the poetics and politics of modern ruins. As a member of the LiCETC (Contemporary Literature: Theoretical and Comparative Studies) research group she is coauthor of the books Transformacions: literatura i canvi sociocultural dels anys 70 ençà (2010), Literatura i cultura: aproximacions comparatistes (2009), Poètiques de ruptura (2008) and Textualime i subversió (2007). She has published papers in journals such as Els Marges, Catalan Review, Journal of Catalan Studies, Catalan Journal of Cultural Studies and Communication, Tesserae. Journal of Iberian and Latin American Studies, Revista d'Etnologia de Catalunya, Letras Femeninas, Feminismo/s or Cuadernos Americanos.