Areas of specialization: Islamic studies, Iranian studies, contemporary Shi’ism, material religion, gender studies
Prof. Mixon teaches courses on a variety of topics in Islamic studies, as well as a course on the materiality of religious practice.
She is currently working on her book project, The Fatima Paradigm: Materiality and Memory in Iran. This book is focused on contemporary Shiʻism in Iran through an analysis of Fatima, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, using a collection and examination of devotional visual and material culture. She considers the significance of Fatima al-Zahra in contemporary Iran and especially in the city of Mashhad as produced through material artifacts and ritual commemorations since the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988). By following the trajectory of the succession to Muhammad after his passing to the Battle of Karbala, contemporary Shiʿa studies and broader studies of Islam and Muslim histories or cultures have narrowly focused on prophethood and the Shiʿi imams, thereby missing the opportunity to consider gendered notions and models of religious leadership and the significance of Fatima as the female link to the line of the imams.
Prof. Mixon is a book review editor for the journal Material Religion and is an interviewer for podcasts on The Religious Studies Project. She is also a member of the Contemporary Islam steering committee in the American Academy of Religion.