Beyond Commemoration: Interrogating Modern Statues of Medieval Figures (Panel)
Submit proposals at https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/21759
Primary Area / Secondary Area
Cultural Studies and Media Studies / Interdisciplinary Humanities
Modality
Hybrid: The session will be held in-person but a few remote presentations may be included.
Hybrid: The session will be held in-person but a few remote presentations may be included.
Chair(s)
Afrodesia McCannon (New York University)
Abstract
This paper session examines how medieval individuals are memorialized and reinterpreted through contemporary statuary across the globe. Moving beyond simple historical commemoration, these modern depictions serve as potent symbols, reflecting and shaping modern identities, national narratives, and artistic expressions. This session seeks to explore the multifaceted significance of these statues and the diverse contexts in which they are erected and understood.
I invite papers that critically examine the motivations, ideologies, processes, and impacts of creating and displaying statues of medieval figures in the modern world. Potential topics include, but are not limited to: the role of these statues in constructing or reinforcing nationalisms and regional identities; the ways in which medieval figures are adapted or reimagined to serve contemporary political agendas; the intersection of medievalism and modern artistic practices in sculptural representations; the impact of these statues on public memory and historical understanding; and the controversies or debates surrounding their creation, placement, and interpretation.
I particularly encourage submissions that explore a geographically diverse range of examples, including statues representing European, Islamic, East Asian, African, and other medieval traditions. By bringing together sculpture from various cultural contexts, this session aims to foster a comparative understanding of how the medieval past is invoked and visualized in the present, and to interrogate the broader significance of these tangible links to the premodern era.
Description
This session explores how contemporary statues of medieval figures across the globe reinterpret the past to shape modern identities, political narratives, and artistic expression. The session invites critical engagement with the global uses of medievalism in public sculpture today.
Afrodesia McCannon (New York University)
Abstract
This paper session examines how medieval individuals are memorialized and reinterpreted through contemporary statuary across the globe. Moving beyond simple historical commemoration, these modern depictions serve as potent symbols, reflecting and shaping modern identities, national narratives, and artistic expressions. This session seeks to explore the multifaceted significance of these statues and the diverse contexts in which they are erected and understood.
I invite papers that critically examine the motivations, ideologies, processes, and impacts of creating and displaying statues of medieval figures in the modern world. Potential topics include, but are not limited to: the role of these statues in constructing or reinforcing nationalisms and regional identities; the ways in which medieval figures are adapted or reimagined to serve contemporary political agendas; the intersection of medievalism and modern artistic practices in sculptural representations; the impact of these statues on public memory and historical understanding; and the controversies or debates surrounding their creation, placement, and interpretation.
I particularly encourage submissions that explore a geographically diverse range of examples, including statues representing European, Islamic, East Asian, African, and other medieval traditions. By bringing together sculpture from various cultural contexts, this session aims to foster a comparative understanding of how the medieval past is invoked and visualized in the present, and to interrogate the broader significance of these tangible links to the premodern era.
Description
This session explores how contemporary statues of medieval figures across the globe reinterpret the past to shape modern identities, political narratives, and artistic expression. The session invites critical engagement with the global uses of medievalism in public sculpture today.
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