Berichten

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Lezing “Bruegel: onderwerp van speculatie en valkuilen van zien” (Brussels, 24 januari, 18 uur)

Poster_Keynote_Brueghel

De landschapskunst van Bruegel neemt haar toeschouwer mee op een visuele en mentale zoektocht naar de zichtbare wereld, die leidt naar het rijk van het onzichtbare. De lezing zal dit fundamentele kenmerk van Bruegels kunst benadrukken. De werken van Bruegel, zoals gesuggereerd wordt door Reindert Falkenburg en Michel Weemans, zijn opgevat als een oefening van het kijken: ze zijn het onderwerp van speculatie en valkuilen van zien. Lezing in het Engels, met simultane vertaling naar het Frans.

Reindert Falkenburg (New York University Abu Dhabi) en Michel Weemans (École nationale supérieure d’art, Bourges) analyseren de visuele processen die Bruegel aanwendt om onze
manier van kijken uit te dagen en te verstoren.

Op initiatief van burgemeester Éric Tomas en het schepencollege van Anderlecht in samenwerking met: le Réseau des médiévistes belges de langue française, Vlaamse Werkgroep Medievistiek & het Masereelfonds

Maison d’Érasme – Erasmushuis
Rue de Formanoir 31 de Formanoirstraat, Bruxelles 1070 Brussels

Toegang gratis mits plaatsbespreking. Inschrijving online: www.erasmushouse.museum
info@erasmushouse.museum – 02.521.13.83

De brochure  kan hier gedownload worden: Invitation_Bruegel_24.01.2019

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Les manuscrits hagiographiques du nord de la France et de la Belgique actuelle à la fin du Moyen Âge (XIVe-XVIe s.) : fabrication, fonctions et usages (21-22 mars 2019, Namur/Louvain)

À la fin du Moyen Âge, la production hagiographique manuscrite se transforme et connaît son dernier âge d’or entre le succès éditorial de la Légende dorée et l’arrivée de l’imprimerie. De nombreux textes anciens sont abrégés pour intégrer de nouvelles collections. Ce phénomène est en partie responsable du relatif désintérêt des historiens à leur égard : à quoi bon s’intéresser à ces abrégés alors qu’il reste tant à découvrir dans les grands légendiers du Moyen Âge central, et qu’on commence à peine à mieux connaître les tout premiers manuscrits conservés ?
L’objectif de ce colloque en deux temps (Lille, 30 novembre 2018 et Namur/Louvain, 21-22 mars 2019) est de mieux saisir la place du manuscrit hagiographique, entendu ici au sens large, dans le nord de la France et l’espace belge à la fin du Moyen Âge, en prolongeant notamment
les réflexions de Guy Philippart sur la fabrique et les usages des légendiers, à une période où la documentation susceptible de les appréhender est plus abondante.
L’objectif est aussi de saisir ensemble les légendiers latins et vernaculaires, en moyen néerlandais comme dans les parlers d’oïl. La journée lilloise est exclusivement consacrée aux manuscrits hagiographiques en langue vernaculaire du nord de la France, en partie exhumés jadis par Paul Meyer. La situation linguistique du nord de la France et de la Belgique induit
nécessairement un travail collaboratif, seul à même de faire réfléchir collectivement à la circulation des modèles et des traductions, aux conditions matérielles de la circulation des textes hagiographiques, mais aussi à l’usage de ces manuscrits, dans le cadre de la pastorale et des pratiques cultuelles collectives comme dans celui de l’affirmation de l’individu à la fin du Moyen Âge.

Comité scientifique
Paul Bertrand (Université de Louvain)
Esther Dehoux (Université de Lille)
Jeroen Deploige (Université de Gand)
Monique Goullet (Paris)
Xavier Hermand (Université de Namur)
Anne-Françoise Labie-Leurquin (Paris)
Charles Mériaux (Université de Lille)
Fernand Peloux (Université de Namur)
Piotr Tylus (Cracovie)
Catherine Vincent (Université de Paris Nanterre)

Contact : fernand.peloux@unamur.be

Voir le programme complet.

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CfP “Moving Forms: The Transformations and Translocations of Medieval Literature” (Athens, 11-13 september 2019)

The movement of people and books across space and time – mobility and portability – were driving forces of medieval European literary and intellectual culture. Men and women, clerical and secular, constructed extensive social networks and communities through travel, written communication, and the exchange of texts. Shared literary practices and forms occurred at the regional and transregional levels, defining local identities and forging links between people separated by distance and time. Around the North Sea and Baltic littorals, legends from the Norse sagas, for instance, were taken up by writers. On a larger scale, people from north-western Europe to China exchanged stories of Barlaam and Josephat, while tales of Alexander are found from India to Ireland; in both cases, transmission was facilitated by the movement of people along the Silk Road. Rather than a full picture, often we are left with a set of trails, traces and clues that challenge us to create narratives out of the fragments.

This symposium aims to contribute to the understanding of medieval literature through the development of methodologies which examine the intersection of social networks and communities with literary forms. We welcome papers that attend to the agency of people (men and women), genres (literary, scientific, philosophical, legal etc.), modes (verse, poetry, prose), styles, texts and manuscripts (book types, layouts, images) in creating literary links across space and time. Building on the practices of both comparative literature and entangled history, the symposium will open up connections between literary cultures often considered to be separate. At the same time, and of equal importance, it will be alert to the absence of connections, to discontinuities, exposing the diversities and ruptures of medieval literature, as well as the commonalities.

By following the movement of forms and tracing social connections from Antiquity to the Renaissance, we will interrogate both geographies and chronologies of medieval European literature. Always keeping the intersection of the social and the formal in view, the symposium will move back and forth between small and large scales of time and place: the local, the transregional, the European, and the Afro-Eurasian. Issues of morphology, scale and periodization will be central to discussion, enabling conversations across a wide range of material to gain traction. The symposium will bring together methodological and theoretical contributions, addressing the intersection of people and forms; we welcome papers that work on large scale typological models as well as papers that address broader issues though closely-worked case studies.

Questions to consider include:

  • How do we move from specific examples to writing/formulating larger narratives, from the micro to the macro, from the close up to the panoramic, without falling into generalizations?
  • What are the advantages and disadvantages of existing methodologies that account for the movement of objects, texts and people through space (e.g. histoire croisée, actor network theory, global history, etc.)?
  • How does medieval Europe fit into a wider Afro-Eurasian space? How does Europe divide into and participate in regional geographies?
  • How conscious were medieval people of new forms as a dimension of cultural exchange?
  • What role does the modern historical imagination have to play in recreating social networks and formal encounters?
  • How do medieval theories of cultural movement (e.g. translatio imperii et studii, spoliation, etc.) enable us to explain the transmission of literary forms?

Format

The symposium will meet over three days, with each day including 3 panels with three speakers. Papers will last 20 minutes and be followed by 45 minutes of discussion per panel. Since the substantial discussion following the papers is as important as the papers themselves, papers will not be allowed to overrun. Each session will have a respondent/moderator who will read papers in advance of the session and launch the discussion of their session through a short reflective invitation. For this reason, we ask that all papers be given in English. Speakers are asked to frame their research in ways which are simultaneously sophisticated and inviting of exchange with colleagues working across the literatures of medieval Europe (including Byzantium, and Islamic Spain and Sicily) and its neighbours. We welcome proposal for individual papers and for panels.

There will be a modest amount of preparatory theoretical reading in advance of the symposium.

Publication

We anticipate publishing extended versions of a selection of papers from the workshop in a special issue of Interfaces: A Journal of Medieval European Literatures.

Venue

The symposium will take place in the Danish Institute at Athens, conveniently located in the Plaka. There are many tavernas, cafes and restaurants nearby.

Cost

There will be no charge to attend the symposium. There will be a charge to cover the cost of the symposium dinner. Delegates are responsible for covering the cost of their travel and accommodation. A small number of bursaries will be available for PhD students and early career scholars, for further information contact Kristin Bourassa (kristin@sdu.dk).

Abstracts

Please send short abstracts (250 words) and a brief CV (1/2 page) to George Younge (george.younge@york.ac.uk) by 1st March 2019. Panel proposals should include overview (100 words) and abstracts and CVs (as above) for all papers.

DOWNLOAD THE CALL FOR PAPERS AS A PDF

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In memoriam dr. Anne Bollmann (1963-2018)

Op 14 november is Anne Bollmann na een ernstige ziekte overleden. Haar vroege dood is hard aangekomen bij de mensen met wie zij samengewerkt heeft, zowel aan de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen als elders. Bij de herdenkingsbijeenkomst, die haar huidige afdeling Europese Talen en Culturen voor haar organiseerde op 4 december, kwam dit duidelijk naar voren.

Anne liet zich vanaf het begin in Groningen kennen als een gepassioneerd mediëviste en ijveraar voor het onderwijs in de Duitse taal en cultuur. Voortbouwend op haar dissertatie Frauenleben und Frauenliteratur in der Devotio moderna: volkssprachige Schwesternbücher in literarhistorischer Perspektive, die binnen het vakgebied als fundamenteel wordt beschouwd, bleven in haar onderzoek vrouwen en kloosterzusters in de late middeleeuwen en vroegmoderne tijd centraal staan. Het onderwijs had haar hart evenzeer. Annes passie daarvoor kwam naar voren in haar colleges, maar ook in de soms felle discussies die zij ten tijde van de grote veranderingen binnen de faculteit der Letteren voerde, vanuit een sterk gevoel van verantwoordelijkheid voor de studenten en voor de wetenschap.

Vanwege haar grote kennis, zorgzaamheid en humor was Anne bij veel studenten geliefd. Ze was veeleisend, bereidde haar colleges altijd zeer zorgvuldig voor en verwachtte deze inzet ook van de studenten. Maar als de nood aan de man kwam, stond ze altijd klaar om hulp te bieden. Ze ging zelfs mee naar de dokter als dat nodig was.

Annes hartelijkheid en zorgzaamheid werden ook door de sprekers bij de herdenkingsbijeenkomst met veel waardering genoemd. Anderen binnen de universitaire gemeenschap kenden Anne eveneens op die manier, zoals de medewerkers van het ondersteunend personeel en van de Universiteitsbibliotheek. In deze bibliotheek was zij een graag geziene bezoeker. Ze leende daar zoveel boeken dat men zich weleens afvroeg of het gewicht daarvan haar niet teveel zou zijn. Ze gaf waardevolle aanschafsuggesties voor de collectie, begeleidde enthousiast de studenten bij rondleidingen en deelde hen na zo’n rondleiding of na een tentamen soms dubbele exemplaren van bibliotheekboeken uit, dan vaak voorzien van een persoonlijk advies. En als iemand van de medewerkers een tijdje afwezig was geweest, informeerde ze altijd bezorgd naar diens gezondheid.

Tegen het eind van haar leven bleek tijdens het opruimen van de mediëvistische boeken in haar werkkamer pas goed met hoeveel mensen Anne in vriendschap en onderzoek verbonden is geweest. Veel boeken bevatten persoonlijke briefjes en notities van medeonderzoekers, ook van ver buiten Groningen. Daaruit kwam steeds grote achting naar voren voor haar persoon en voor haar wetenschappelijke arbeid. Anne zal zeer gemist worden.

Annes promotor Alasdair MacDonald, haar ‘Doktorvater’ zoals Anne zelf zei, verwoordde zijn warme waardering voor Anne in de tekst die hieronder volgt.

– Cora Zwart

 

Anne Bollmann, who passed away on 14 November 2018, was for over twenty years a familiar and much liked figure in and around the University of Groningen. She was born in Germany, and had her training at the University of Münster, where she graduated in Germanistik, with a speciality in the Middle Ages. She came to Groningen as the result of a research co-operation agreement between the Netherlands National Research School for Medieval Studies and the University of Münster. Under this scheme, graduate students were able to pursue their higher studies in the ‘other’ country, and Anne wasthe first to come to Groningen.

From the very beginning, Anne’s friendly personality and her ability to speak Dutch allowedher to integrate easily within the new environment. Anne was outstanding in her culture and learning, in her academic and practical skills, in her sense of dedication and duty, in her psychological maturity and in her emotional intelligence. In 2004 she obtained a cum laude for her impressive dissertation on an aspect of the devotio moderna movement of the later Middle Ages ̶ whereby groups ofindependently-minded women set up, within bustling towns, religious houses in which they could lead a life of piety, support themselves by their own work, and manage their own affairs. Anne very clearly felt an affinity with the subject of her research.

Anne was appointed to a lectureship in the Faculty of Arts at Groningen, where she taught German language and also literature, both medieval and modern. She was a gifted and dedicated teacher, and was much liked by her students, who respected her high standards. She was deeply committed to improving the public image of German Studies in the Netherlands, and she also gladly made good contacts with students and colleagues in other Departments within the Faculty. Anne was always open, good-humoured and collegial, and she participated willingly in activities that crossed the artificial boundaries between disciplines. Her contribution to German and Medieval Studies at Groningen was profound, and the impact of her scholarship, though now sadly cut short, was admirable.

All those who were privileged to know Anne will feel the deepest sadness at the loss of such a caring teacher, learned colleague, and warm-hearted friend.

– Alasdair A. MacDonald

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Call for Papers: 13th European Social Science History Conference (18-21 maart 2020, Leiden)

The ESSHC aims at bringing together scholars interested in explaining historical phenomena using the methods of the social sciences. The conference is characterized by a lively exchange in many small groups, rather than by formal plenary sessions.

The conference welcomes papers and sessions on any historical topic and any historical period. It is organized in 27 thematic networks: Africa ‑ Antiquity ‑ Asia ‑ Criminal Justice ‑ Culture ‑ Economics ‑ Education and Childhood – Elites and Forerunners ‑ Ethnicity and Migration ‑ Family and Demography – Global History – Health and Environment ‑  Labour ‑ Latin America – Material and Consumer Culture – Middle Ages ‑ Oral History – Politics, Citizenship and Nations – Religion ‑ Rural ‑ Sexuality – Social Inequality – Spatial and digital History – Science and Technology ‑ Theory – Urban ‑ Women and Gender

The deadline for paper and session proposals is 15 april 2019.

More information about the call for papers and the conference be obtained by clicking here.

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Emeritaatsviering Thom Mertens 20 december 2018, Antwerpen

De Faculteit Letteren & Wijsbegeerte van de Universiteit Antwerpen en het Ruusbroecgenootschap hebben het genoegen u uit te nodigen voor de feestelijke viering ter gelegenheid van het emeritaat van professor Thom Mertens.

De viering vindt plaats op donderdag 20 december 2018 om 16 uur in het Hof van Liere, Frederik de Tassiszaal, Prinsstraat 13, 2000 Antwerpen. Omstreeks 17.30 uur heffen we samen met Thom het glas.

Gelieve uw aanwezigheid te bevestigen voor 10 december 2018 via het inschrijfformulier:

https://www. ua ntwerpen.be/n l/facu lteiten/facu lteit-lette ren-en-wijsbegeerte/n ieuws-en-activiteiten/emeritaten/emeritaatsviering-thom-mertens/inschrijven

(Het aantal plaatsen is beperkt. Om zeker te zijn van een plaats raden we u aan snel in te schrijven).

De uitnodiging kan hier gedownload worden.

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CfP “Freedom of speech in the medieval and early modern society” (UGent 17–18 May 2019)

This interuniversity workshop hosted by Ghent University is the first in an alternating series of three on ‘freedom of speech’ in late medieval and early modern Europe. By drawing together research on several European countries in the period 1300-1700, the series will reveal various perspectives on premodern free speech. Freedom of speech, i.e. ‘the right to express beliefs and ideas without unwarranted government restriction’, was by no means a fundamental right in the late medieval and early modern period. Yet research has shown that there were several opportunities for the expression of critical opinion towards power holders and that this practice was often widespread. These could be uttered verbally, through the spoken or written word, but also through other sign systems and media, ranging from the sound of musical instruments to heraldic languages. The objective of this workshop is to connect the different segments of research and thereby create a better overall understanding of pre-modern free speech.

We are accepting proposals from a variety of disciplinary angles for 30-minute papers on
• Pre-modern ideas about ‘freedom of speech’
• Juridical practices on free speech and subversive verbal utterances
• Political narratives and lyric
• Non-verbal media of ‘free-speech’ (visual, multimedia, sound…)
• …
Applicants are strongly encouraged to present papers in English. French papers will be accepted as well, if the powerpoint presentation is in English. Please send an abstract of 200 words to
minne.deboodt@kuleuven.be or linde.nuyts@ugent.be by the 10th of january 2019. Applicants will be notified by the 10th of february.

See the website http://www.freedomofspeech.ugent.be/

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Freedom of speech in medieval and early modern society. Media, power, politics, and gender (1300-1700): Ghent, 17th-18th May 2019

Organization: Jan Dumolyn & Linde Nuyts (Ghent University), Jelle Haemers & Minne De Boodt (University of Leuven), Martine Veldhuizen (Utrecht University)

This workshop is the first in a series of three on ‘freedom of speech’ in late medieval and early modern Europe. Drawing together research from several European countries in the period 1300-1700, the series will reveal various perspectives on pre-modern free speech. Although freedom of speech, ‘the right to express beliefs and ideas without unwarranted government restriction’, was by no means a fundamental right in the late middle ages and early modern period, expressions of critical opinions towards power were always possible and often widespread. They could be uttered verbally, through the spoken or written word, but also through other sign systems and media, ranging from the sound of musical instruments to heraldic languages.

The Ghent workshop will study evidence from literary and prescriptive sources describing the ideals of free speech, and political-historical evidence of cases in which men and women wrote down and orally uttered their opinions within the context of medieval and early modern society. In Europe, urban cultures of ‘subversive speech’ existed from the late middle ages onwards. Cities offered contenders public space in which they could utter conflicting opinions in many different ways. Singers travelled through the countryside to spread news. Public poetry, songs, petitions and the like were popular media to confront ruling elites with contentious thought, but so were bells, musical instruments and visual signs. This workshop invites speakers to present their research into such media and the contents of publicly uttered speech. Case studies about the use of both written and oral, as well as visual media, and their interconnectedness, during the fourteenth until the seventeenth centuries are very welcome.

 

The following questions will be addressed:

  • Which media were used by citizens to express their discontent? What determined the choice of a certain medium?
  • What kind of messages were spread? Were they subversive or did they legitimize power?
  • Were contenders successful in spreading their message? How was the reception and circulation of these messages? How did the urban elite and the authorities react to the utterance of subversive thought?
  • In what way was freedom of speech related to the social class and gender of speakers and listeners?
  • Can a ‘European’ pattern be distinguished? Do we see a trend in the use of media in periods with fundamental political or religious change (such as the 14th or the 16th centuries)?
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Workshop “Nieuwe perspectieven op ambachten binnen de stedelijke ruimte” (30 november 2018, Aalst)

De onderzoeksalliantie “Stadsgeschiedenis en Stadsarcheologie” van de UGent en de VUB organiseert op vrijdag 30 november een workshop “Nieuwe perspectieven op ambachten binnen de stedelijke ruimte”. Luc Geeroms, conservater van ’t Gasthuys – Stedelijk Museum Aalst, is onze gastheer. Na de voorstelling van recent stadshistorisch en stadsarcheologisch onderzoek naar ambachten, beroepen en vroege industrieën, gaan we met elkaar in gesprek om mogelijke samenwerkingsverbanden met het Erfgoedveld in Aalst te verkennen. Deelname aan de workshop is gratis, mits inschrijving voor 25 november bij heidi.deneweth@vub.be. U mag de uitnodiging ook bezorgen aan collega’s die hier niet rechtstreeks aangeschreven zijn.

Alle informatie leest u in het bijgaande programma.