Medieval Art Research

Lecture: Deserts, Rivers and Mountains: Nature and Divinity in Byzantine Pilgrimage Art, Brookline, MA

Dr. Anastasia Drandaki (Benaki Museum) considers the role of natural landscape in Byzantine pilgrimage art. A pilgrimage was born of the believer’s longing to be in a locus sanctus (holy place), to see and touch and imitate holy persons, treading in their very footsteps. Pilgrims themselves express this in their journals, describing step by step with emotion how they followed the episodes in scripture or accounts of the lives. They need to be sure that they are in exactly the right place, on the particular spot where the sacred events took place. It is as if eradicating the geographical distance might also circumvent the distance in time, bringing them as close as possible to the presence of the holy persons and their acts. Moreover, the natural formation of the holy place often plays a decisive role in texts related to shrines, and the pilgrims’ contact with the particular landscape of any given pilgrimage affects their religious experience. But is the relation between landscape and holy place reflected in any way in Byzantine pilgrimage art? Does the natural landscape of the loca sancta project in art and artefacts related to holy sites, offering a potential exception to the familiar and much debated sketchy presence of physical space in Byzantine religious scenes? This lecture will explore how the natural, physical environment of the locus sanctus is depicted and participate in the art and artefacts that completed the pilgrimage experience.

Conference: London Medieval Society ‘Postgraduates Present’ 2014

You are warmly invited to our ‘postgraduates present’ colloquium on 10 May 2014 – this is a chance to hear the latest research from PhD candidates on important and on-trend aspects of medieval culture and history. Our friendly learned society is open to academics and non-academics. The event is free for members of the Society and you may join on the day (annual membership is £20/£10 concessions).

http://www.the-lms.org/colloquia.html

http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/the-london-medieval-society-2707281234

Call for papers: Latinate Nuns and Liturgical Commentary: The Graduals from Paradies bei Soest, c.1360-1425, Leuven

Professor Jeffrey H. Hamburger (Harvard University) is the holder of the 2014 LECTIO Chair. Aside his public lecture on Tuesday 27 May entitled “The Autonomy of Images: The Prayer Book of Ursula Begerin and Late Medieval Picture Books”, he will give on 28 May a Doctoral Seminar “Latinate Nuns and Liturgical Commentary: The Graduals from Paradies bei Soest, ca. 1360-1425”.

On the occasion of this seminar, a selection of early-stage scholars (PhD students and postdocs) are given the opportunity to present their research during a paper session and to discuss it with the chair holder, the scientific committee and other colleagues.
Three domains have been selected: (1) ‘Hearing as viewing, viewing as sensing’. The medieval book and manuscript as synesthetic medium; (2) ‘Nuns as artists’ revisited after the material turn; and (3) ‘Word & Image’. Methodological challenges for interdisciplinary studies.

We invite early-stage researchers to submit proposals for papers in one of the aforementioned domains. We especially welcome interdisciplinary and innovative scholarly case studies that document these topics, from fields as diverse as philosophy, history, history of art, theology and religion, musicology, manuscript studies, gender studies, and hagiography. Selected researchers are expected to give a brief 10-minutes presentation in English.

A single page description of the proposed poster and a short CV should be submitted no later than 21 April 2014 to lectio@kuleuven.be.
Scholars who want to attend the seminar without presenting a poster are also asked to express their interest before that date.

Lecture: Romanesque Sculpture: Contexts and Perceptions from Lincoln and Pavia to Moissac and Saint-Genis-des-Fontaines, Courtauld

The Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain and Ireland requests the pleasure of your company at its Annual Lecture on Tuesday 29th April 2014 at 5.30 p.m. at the Courtauld Institute of Art.

The lecture is divided into two parts, concerning form and content respectively. The first discusses what is special about Romanesque sculpture and how it could have arisen, with particular reference to its relationship to the buildings it adorns. This section also examines the theory that architectural sculpture was developed out of church furniture.

The section on content considers a number of examples, including capitals in the cloister at Moissac, carvings on the façade of San Michele in Pavia, and a relief on the Puerta de las Platerias at Santiago de Compostela.

Professor Eric Fernie has held the posts of Professor of Fine Art at the University of Edinburgh and Director of the Courtauld Institute of the University of London. He is a fellow of the British Academy, the Royal Society of Edinburgh, the Society of Antiquaries of London (of which he has been President), and the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.

His books include The Architecture of the Anglo-Saxons (1983), An Architectural History of Norwich Cathedral (1993), Art History and its Methods(1995), and The Architecture of Norman England (2000). He has also published some seventy chapters in books and papers in refereed journals.

Call for participants: British Archaeological Association Study Day, Llancarfan and Llantwit Major, Vale of Glamorgan, deadline 30 April 2014

The parish churches of St Cadoc at Llancarfan and St Illtud at Llantwit Major are among the most historically significant religious sites in south-east Wales. In the pre-Conquest period, both were the sites of important ‘monastic’ communities. After the Conquest, they were held by the great Benedictine abbeys at Gloucester and Tewkesbury. The standing medieval fabric at each church holds a wealth of architectural and artistic detail bearing witness to centuries of use and renewal. During this study day we will consider some of the points of comparison and contrast between the two churches.

The day will start at Llancarfan, where St Cadog’s monastery was mentioned in the Book of Llandaff over a long period (c.650–1075). The present church was probably begun in the 12th century. The focus of our attention will be the extensive medieval wall paintings which are currently being conserved and researched by Jane Rutherfoord. Led by Jane, the morning session will offer an insight into the practical, technical and sensitive nature of wall painting conservation, including an introduction to medieval wall painting techniques and the methods used to sustain these works in situ.

The afternoon will be spent at Llantwit Major, where, according to the Life of St Samson, an important monastery (and school) was established in the early 6th century by St Illtud. The site retains a major group of inscribed and sculptured stones ranging in date from the late 8th/early 9th to the 11th century. The 12th-century and later church is complex, and requires both archaeological and art historical approaches to untangle the development of its fabric. David Robinson will guide us through some of the problems of interpreting such a complicated site and introduce techniques by which investigation and analysis can be successfully carried out.

By the end of the day we will have enjoyed, in the company of experts, a detailed study of two remarkable medieval buildings. We will have come to understand something of their pre-Conquest foundation, considered their medieval development, and studied the extent of their artistic ambition.

The cost of the day will be £20 for members. The event is free for students.

A private coach will collect participants from Cardiff mainline station in the morning and return there at the end of the day. Please bring a picnic lunch as refreshments will not be provided, although toilet facilities will be available. Full details will be sent out to participants closer to the event.

Places are limited to 20, of which 10 are reserved for students. To apply please email Helen Lunnon (h.lunnon@uea.ac.uk) by Wednesday 30 April, stating if you are a student. In the case of a greater number of applications being received a ballot will be used to allocate places. Successful candidates will be contacted by email by Friday 2 May, with a request for payment.

Conference: Sensory Perception and the Medieval World, UCL

Participants will consider the ways in which we understand and interpret written, printed, and physical materials from the early medieval period. This is enhanced by the growing availability of digital resources which enhance the potential for visual perception while reducing the opportunity to use other senses for interpretation.

At the same time, scholarship is becoming more conscious of ways in which artefacts and documents were perceived and used in the period: of how the design of objects, including books and manuscripts, controlled their reception.

Papers include discussions of the role of digital editions of texts, the impact of art, perceptions of deafness, the sensory experience of manuscripts, and the presentation and exploitation of the senses in Old English, Old Norse, and Medieval Literature.

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/calendar/articles/20140412

Conference: British Institute at Ankara – Alan Hall One Day Event & Pre-Event Dinner, London

The British Institute at Ankara warmly invites you to a one-day event being held on Saturday 11 October at King’s College London, Strand Campus. The programme provides a fascinating menu of topics for anybody who is enthusiastic and curious to discover more about Turkey past and present and will foreground the achievements of research promoted by the BIAA, which has supported pioneering and ground-breaking work in the country since 1948. The speakers are all in the forefront of research on Turkey, and their presentations will cover prehistoric archaeology, Roman village life, Ottoman art, the role of women and the contemporary political scene. There will be a musical interludes provided by a London-based Turkish group, and a drinks reception after the programme, with opportunities to talk to the speakers and other active BIAA members.

We are also holding at dinner before the event at the British Academy on Friday 10 October, and we hope that as many as possible of you will join us there for a relaxed and enjoyable Turkish evening.

http://biaa.ac.uk/event/alan-hall-one-day-event-non-member-ticket

Call for participants: Koç University RCAC’s Summer Programs 2014

1. Being the center of magnificent empires through time, İstanbul is calling you to discover its rich cultural heritage by following the footmarks of saints, sultans and angels in this enriching summer seminar. Koç University Research Center for Anatolian Civilizations is excited to invite you to have a taste of İstanbul with its intellectual, in-depth program developed by world renowned Ottoman and Byzantine academicians.

2. Prof. Robert Ousterhout (University of Pennsylvania) and Dr. Tolga Uyar (University of Paris I), with the contribution of some esteemed faculty members from Koç University, will present Cappadocia through a combination of lectures, seminar discussions, site visits and field trips. A camera, sturdy walking shoes and a taste of exploration are essential!

3. “Introduction to Ottoman Epigraphy” focuses on surveying the development of the Ottoman inscriptions from a chronological standpoint starting with the earliest examples in Anatolia. The program will take place in Istanbul and there will be a field trip to Bursa to study inscriptions of critical historical importance in situ. The program will be leaded by experts in the field from University of Chicago.

http://rcac.ku.edu.tr/summerprograms

Call for papers: Material culture and diplomatic relations between the Latin West, Byzantium, and the Islamic East, Liege

Material culture and diplomatic relations between the Latin West, Byzantium, and the Islamic East (11th-16th c.) / Culture matérielle et contacts diplomatiques entre l’Occident latin, Byzance et l’Orient islamique (XIe-XVIe siècle). Submissions are invited for this international conference to be held at the University of Liege (Belgium) on 27-28 April 2015. The deadline for submissions is 30 June. The call for papers may be downloaded at the following address: http://www.islam-medieval.cnrs.fr/actus_colloques.php. Papers may be submitted either in French or in English.

Conference: Symposium on Byzantine Law, Groningen

On 24 June 2014, Prof. Giuseppe Falcone will give his solemn address marking his acceptance of the H.J. Scheltema-chair of Byzantine Law at the University of Groningen. Preceding this festive occasion, the Department of Legal History in cooperation with the University of Palermo (Italy) will host a Symposium on Byzantine Law in Groningen, the Netherlands, on Monday 23rd and Tuesday 24th of June 2014. The symposium will be held in the Senaatskamer, Academy Building (Broerstraat 5), Groningen.

The aim of the symposium is to present the results of the two year cooperation between Groningen and Palermo following the establishment of the H.J. Scheltema-chair. All those with an interest in Byzantine Law are invited to attend the lectures. For the provisional programme, see below.

The results will also be published in the Subseciva Groningana, scheduled to appear in June 2014.

http://www.rug.nl/rechten/organization/vakgroepen/rg/h.j.-scheltema-symposium-on-byzantine-law