Papers are sought for two sessions: Armenian Studies: Literature and Art I and II to be proposed for the 57th International Congress on Medieval Studies (Kalamazoo, ONLINE: May 9-14, 2022), organized by Dr. Michail Kitsos (University of Toronto)
Classical and medieval Armenian literature and material culture offer a plethora of information about Armenian history, culture, theology, and politics during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Despite the importance of classical and medieval Armenian sources, these remain understudied. Armenian Studies I & II: Literature and Art aim to demonstrate the importance of the study of classical and medieval Armenian literary sources and material culture and to highlight the role of Byzantine and Medieval Armenia by exploring literary contacts, interactions, the perception and the impact of Byzantine cultural tradition on the Armenian life, and exchanges between Armenia and its neighbors.
These two sessions aim to demonstrate the importance of classical and medieval Armenian sources and material culture for the study of Byzantium and beyond in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. We welcome papers that study different literary genres such as chronicles, theological treatises, narratives, letters, legal texts, as well as various forms of artistic expression in order to explore points of interaction, cultural exchange, literary contacts, and polemics between Armenia and its neighbors. Through these sessions, we aim to provide a multifaceted perspective of the role of medieval Armenia between Byzantium and Islam.
To submit a paper proposal, you are kindly requested to do so no later than September 15, 2021 using the conference portal: wmich.edu/medievalcongress/call.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the organizer: Dr. Michail Kitsos at mkitsos@umich.edu
Recent work on subjecthood and patronage in Byzantine studies has shown the import of formulas and models, especially in light of liturgical and literary ones, for understanding and presenting the self. At the same time, theories of queerness and intersectionality have been used to bring greater awareness to previously overlooked medieval identities. Drawing on these discourses, this panel revisits traditional sites of self-presentation, such as seals, donation images, and objects of commemoration to ask how these issues were visualized. How did patrons with marginal or liminal identities represent themselves? Or why would a patron choose to represent themselves via a figure whose identity did not fit neatly into societally defined categories? For example, why would a man choose an angel as his emblem? At stake is how we recognize and interpret medieval self-identification. Speakers are encouraged to address de-centered subjects, either patrons or iconographies, and ask how the arena of self-presentation can aid our understanding of what liminal and marginal meant to medieval patrons and viewers. Deadline for Submissions: Wednesday, September 15, 2021.
To encourage the integration of Byzantine studies within the scholarly community and medieval studies in particular, the Mary Jaharis Center for Byzantine Art and Culture seeks proposals for a Mary Jaharis Center sponsored session at the 2022 International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, July 4–7, 2022. We invite session proposals on any topic relevant to Byzantine studies. The deadline for submission is September 3, 2021.
Call for Papers: PhD Candidates and Early-Career Researchers
Securing Power in the Sixth-Century Roman Empire
The deadline for submitting abstracts is 31 August 2021 and the workshop will take place online on 7 December 2021. We envisage the publication of a volume based on the papers delivered at the conference, dependent upon a peer-review process.
To encourage the integration of Byzantine studies within the scholarly community and medieval studies in particular, the Mary Jaharis Center for Byzantine Art and Culture seeks proposals for a Mary Jaharis Center sponsored session at the 57th International Congress on Medieval Studies, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, May 9–14, 2022. We invite session proposals on any topic relevant to Byzantine studies. Session proposals must be submitted through the Mary Jaharis Center website. The deadline for submission is May 18, 2021.
The deadlines for Free Communications and Posters (April 15), Thematic Sessions for Free Communications (April 15), Round Tables (May 15), and Plenary Sessions (May 15) for the 24th International Congress of Byzantine Studies (Venice – Padua, 22-27 August 2022) are approaching. Please visit the Congress website for more information.
The JLAIBS as a hotspot for interdisciplinary dialogue aims to disseminate new approaches and methodologies that intend to transform our understanding of broader Late Antique and Medieval phenomena, such as knowledge transfer and cultural exchanges, by looking beyond single linguistic traditions or political boundaries. It provides a forum for high-quality articles on the interactions and cross-cultural exchange between different traditions and of the so-called Byzantine Empire and the Islamic world. Thematically, the journal also welcomes submissions dealing individually with Late Antique, Byzantine and Islamic literature, history, archaeology, and material culture from the fourth to the fifteenth century.
Aquafauna has recently been the topic of several conferences and publications focusing on zoological knowledge, its transmission, and transformation. Our workshop aims to investigate the imagery of aquatic animals in literature, their symbolism, their metaphorical use, and widespread views and misconceptions about such animals. We ask for proposals for papers looking at the period between ca. 500 and 1500 from a broader perspective, trying to understand how aquatic animals made their way into literature, oral traditions, proverbs, idioms, and art. Proposals due by April 15. The workshop will take place online (via the ZOOM platform) September 27-28, 2021.
The Center for Eastern Mediterranean Studies (CEMS) at Central European University (Vienna/Budapest) is pleased to announce the 7th International Graduate Conference on “Materiality in the Eastern Mediterranean World”, Vienna, 28-29 May 2021 (ONLINE). The conference provides a forum for graduate and advanced undergraduate students working on the Eastern Mediterranean to present their current research, exchange ideas, and develop scholarly networks.
Application deadline: April 5
CFP: Studying Byzantium in the interwar years
Workshop at the XXIV International Conference of Byzantine Studies
Venice/Padua, August 22–27, 2022
Submissions due March 31, 2021
The present workshop aims to explore how Byzantine art history has developed at a key moment in European history, during the 1920s and the 1930s, focusing on the individual stories of Byzantine art historians in that period. Formed by pioneers of the field, scholars working on the art of the Eastern Roman Empire during the interwar period pursued their research in a world radically transformed by the First World War.