Modern languages professor remembered

aamprimoz-copy

Colleagues remember Prof. Alex Amprimoz as being devoted to lifelong learning and having a remarkable sense of humour.

Prof. Corrado Federici could always tell how Prof. Alex Amprimoz felt about someone.

The giveaway was how much Amprimoz would trade barbs with a person in one of the several languages he spoke fluently.

“I’m not sure he published anything in German or Spanish but he could tease you in in either language” Federici said. “The more he joked, the more he was your friend.”

Amprimoz, who arrived at Brock as a professor in the Department of Modern Languages, Literatures and Cultures in 1985, died Oct. 12. He was 64.

In the days since his death, his colleagues have been sharing memories of a man with a rare mind who penned books of poetry and an 80-page CV that included countless grants for his research in French literature. He even earned a degree in computer science later in life.

“No one embodied Brock’s motto ‘two sides of the brain’ more than Alex,” Prof. Ernesto Virgulti said. “I don’t know anyone who was as devoted to lifelong learning as Alex.”

What stood out for Federici was that Amprimoz was tenured at such a young age. He was in mid-30s when he was hired as a full professor at Brock.

“It’s outstanding to be at that rank at such an age,” he said. “I don’t think that happens very often. It’s a reflection of his devotion to scholarship.”

During his career, Amprimoz penned dozens of books, more than 120 conference papers and articles in journals, and received 55 grants from the Canada Council of the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Federation for the Humanities.

In 1992, he was named a chevalier in France’s Ordre des Palmes Académiques, an honour awarded to those who have made major contributions to education and the promotion of French culture throughout the world.

More than his academic achievements, Virgulti said it will be Amprimoz’s “sparkling and sometimes biting” humour that will be missed most.

“Notwithstanding his scholarly achievements – more than 30 books – he managed to retain a child-like quality, at times a mischievous little boy, which reminded us all not to take life too seriously,” Virgulti said. “His passing has left a huge emptiness in our lives, one that will never be filled.”

Amprimoz is survived by his wife Jeanette and their son Jean.


Read more stories in: Gallery, News
Tagged with: , ,

4 comments on “Modern languages professor remembered”

  1. Tatjana Kilibarda says:

    The renesanse man …..what ever he touched he was superior in it …..So much love for learning …We feel privileged to be his friends …..We really loved him…..He will be missed because nobody is like him….Thank you Alex for evry moment we spend with you….

  2. Lynda Rance Kroeker says:

    Amprimoz was one of my favourite French profs in my time at Brock, one of my favourite profs, period. He was tough and fair at the same time, and I knew that I had absolutely earned every percentage point that I got from him. He did not give compliments easily, as I remember, so every word of one was a huge gift. His love for language and learning was definitely catching, and even though I am not working in my field of study from my years at Brock, I still remember what I learned from him, the history and origins of expressions and phrases and so on, which is what fascinates me still, over 20 years later, about languages. A sad loss indeed!

  3. Jean-Michel Salain says:

    A great and talented man.
    I thoroughly enjoyed his personal conversations and the one French Literature course I took under him.
    The world lost a giant.
    Reposez en paix Mr Amprimoz.

  4. maurice yacowar says:

    I remember Alex as a warm friend and a scholar of extraordinary range of passion. My condolences to his family.