CFP: On the Spiritual in Russian Art (Cambridge, 7 Sep 2012)

CALL FOR PAPERS

Cambridge Courtauld Russian Art Centre (CCRAC)

7 September 2012 

Pembroke College, Cambridge
  
'ON THE SPIRITUAL IN RUSSIAN ART'

 
Keynote Speakers: Professor Wendy R. Salmond, Chapman University, U.S.A. Dr 
Oleg Tarasov, Institute of Slavic Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences, 
Moscow

Conference Convenors:
Louise A. Hardiman, University of Cambridge
Nicola Kozicharow, University of Cambridge

The Cambridge Courtauld Russian Art Centre (CCRAC) was founded in May 2011 
on the joint initiative of Dr Rosalind Blakesley of the Department of 
History of Art, University of Cambridge and Professor John Milner of The 
Courtauld Institute of Art, London. Arising from significant research over 
many years among faculty and graduate students in both institutions, it 
aims to stimulate debate, support collaborative work, and generate and 
disseminate research on all aspects of the visual arts, architecture, 
design, and exhibitions in Russia and the Soviet Union.

This conference, CCRAC's first in Cambridge, takes as its theme the concept 
of the 'spiritual tradition' in Russian art, in celebration of the 
centenary of Vasilii Kandinskii's seminal text, Über das Geistige in der 
Kunst (On the Spiritual in Art) (1910-12) - arguably one of the most 
influential works of Russian artistic thought in the context of 
international modernism. We propose this banner as a stimulus for a broader 
discussion of the intersection between spirituality and Russian art, which 
ranges beyond the extensive and enduring impact of Kandinskii's well-known 
manifesto for new directions in art. Through such exploration, we aim to 
highlight the current diversity and depth of Russian and Soviet art 
scholarship in Britain and overseas, while also providing a forum for the 
reassessment of one of its most frequently recurring and critical themes.

We invite papers on a wide range of subjects, periods, artists and media 
which engage with the subject of religiosity or spirituality in Russian and 
Soviet art. These could include topics such as:

-	 the icon tradition and its ongoing significance;

- the intersection of religious art and the secular tradition in Russian 
painting;

- the twentieth-century resurgence of interest in icons and the engagement 
with the icon tradition in avant-garde art;

- the religious tradition and the decorative arts, including folk art and 
the revival of interest in pagan Russia;

-	 religiosity and Soviet art; 

- artists for whom the religious or spiritual aspects of their art assumed 
particular significance (e.g. Ivan Kramskoi, Nikolai Ge, Mikhail Nesterov, 
Nikolai Rerikh, Natal'ia Goncharova, Vasilii Kandinskii);
 
- new perspectives on significant works of Russian religious art (e.g. 
Andrei Rublev's Holy Trinity, Aleksandr Ivanov's The Appearance of Christ 
to the People);
 
- religiosity in contemporary Russian art (e.g. religion and spirituality 
in Soviet non-conformist art; Mikhail Epstein's concept of the "religious 
unconscious" in Russian post-modernism);

- the relevance of the spiritual tradition to the reception of Russian art, 
e.g. the Western perception of, and/or responses to, religiosity in Russian 
art.

We invite submissions for 20 minute papers from established scholars, 
independent researchers and postgraduate students in all disciplines 
relating to the theme of the conference. Papers will be grouped into 
panels, organised thematically.

Abstracts of up to 300 words should be sent to Louise Hardiman 
([email protected]) and Nicola Kozicharow ([email protected]) by 15 April 2012. 
Please include the title of your proposed paper, your name, institutional 
affiliation and full contact information (address, phone number, and 
email).

The conference is supported by funding from the British Association for 
Slavonic Studies (BASEES) and the Department of History of Art, University 
of Cambridge.

-- 
Louise Hardiman
PhD Candidate
The Department of History of Art
1-5 Scroope Terrace
Cambridge CB2 1PX
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