L'Agenda des Médiévistes

On 27-29 January 2022, the research units Literary Studies: Latin Literature and History of Church and Theology of KU Leuven will organize, in the framework of the C1-project «Magnum opus et arduum»: Towards a History of the Reception of Augustine’s «De civitate Dei», the international conference:

Saint Augustine’s De civitate Dei
Political Doctrine, Textual Transmission and Early Medieval Reception Leuven/Brussels, 27-29 January 2022

This conference aims to bring together scholars who have recently made important contributions to the study of Augustine’s De civitate Dei and its reception from the philosophical, historical, philological and theological points of view. The following survey offers some possible topics, but does not intend to exclude alternative issues. Preference will be given, however, to source-based contributions that focus on Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages.

(1) Political doctrine in Augustine’s De civitate Dei and its legacy

The socio-political ideas expressed by Augustine in De civitate Dei have already been extensively researched. Nonetheless, Augustine’s theory can only be properly understood if situated within the contexts of both his œuvre and his own praxis as a bishop. The place of De civitate Dei in the development of Augustine’s thought, as well as its relationship with his activity as a local political leader, should be more closely examined. Moreover, De civitate Dei exerted a crucial influence on the development of political and moral theology from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern era and beyond, which deserves to be better explored. Examples of questions that can inspire conference papers are: how did the historical context exert an influence on the ideas expressed in De civitate Dei? How is a specific concept treated in De civitate Dei compared to his other works, and those of other Church Fathers? How has Augustine’s political doctrine as conveyed by De civitate Dei and other works been reshaped by medieval readers? How did this work inspire the behavior and actions of late antique and early medieval politicians?

(2) Late antique and early medieval transmission and reception of De civitate Dei

Though Augustine’s De civitate Dei had a massive influence on Western thinking and culture, we are currently very far from understanding the path of its transmission and dissemination in the Middle Ages, as we still rely on an almost century-old edition which takes into account a limited number of manuscripts. The impact of Augustine’s magnum opus is not only reflected in the wide reception of its content, but also in the large number of extant copies and the numerous quotations in anthologies and other works composed from Late Antiquity onwards. Speakers may propose the study of a manuscript or a group of manuscripts from the textual, paratextual and/or codicological points of view, as well as a survey and an evaluation of literal and non-literal quotations in late antique and early medieval literature (e.g. florilegia, biblical commentaries, visions of the afterlife, theological, philosophical, historical and encyclopedic works).

On 27-29 January 2022, the research units Literary Studies: Latin Literature and History of Church and Theology of KU Leuven will organize, in the framework of the C1-project «Magnum opus et arduum»: Towards a History of the Reception of Augustine’s «De civitate Dei», the international conference:

Saint Augustine’s De civitate Dei
Political Doctrine, Textual Transmission and Early Medieval Reception Leuven/Brussels, 27-29 January 2022

This conference aims to bring together scholars who have recently made important contributions to the study of Augustine’s De civitate Dei and its reception from the philosophical, historical, philological and theological points of view. The following survey offers some possible topics, but does not intend to exclude alternative issues. Preference will be given, however, to source-based contributions that focus on Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages.

(1) Political doctrine in Augustine’s De civitate Dei and its legacy

The socio-political ideas expressed by Augustine in De civitate Dei have already been extensively researched. Nonetheless, Augustine’s theory can only be properly understood if situated within the contexts of both his œuvre and his own praxis as a bishop. The place of De civitate Dei in the development of Augustine’s thought, as well as its relationship with his activity as a local political leader, should be more closely examined. Moreover, De civitate Dei exerted a crucial influence on the development of political and moral theology from Late Antiquity to the Early Modern era and beyond, which deserves to be better explored. Examples of questions that can inspire conference papers are: how did the historical context exert an influence on the ideas expressed in De civitate Dei? How is a specific concept treated in De civitate Dei compared to his other works, and those of other Church Fathers? How has Augustine’s political doctrine as conveyed by De civitate Dei and other works been reshaped by medieval readers? How did this work inspire the behavior and actions of late antique and early medieval politicians?

(2) Late antique and early medieval transmission and reception of De civitate Dei

Though Augustine’s De civitate Dei had a massive influence on Western thinking and culture, we are currently very far from understanding the path of its transmission and dissemination in the Middle Ages, as we still rely on an almost century-old edition which takes into account a limited number of manuscripts. The impact of Augustine’s magnum opus is not only reflected in the wide reception of its content, but also in the large number of extant copies and the numerous quotations in anthologies and other works composed from Late Antiquity onwards. Speakers may propose the study of a manuscript or a group of manuscripts from the textual, paratextual and/or codicological points of view, as well as a survey and an evaluation of literal and non-literal quotations in late antique and early medieval literature (e.g. florilegia, biblical commentaries, visions of the afterlife, theological, philosophical, historical and encyclopedic works).

Committed speakers include: Anne-Isabelle Bouton-Touboulic (Université de Lille), Emanuela Colombi (Università degli Studi di Udine), Jérémy Delmulle (IRHT – Paris), Volker Henning Drecoll (Universität Tübingen), Jacques Elfassi (Université de Lorraine), Jesse Keskiaho (University of Helsinki), Jerôme Lagouanère (Université Paul Valéry – Montpellier), Karla Pollmann (University of Bristol).

If you would like to deliver a lecture during this conference, please send the provisional title, abstract (max. 500 words) and a concise CV (max. 500 words) to Marina Giani (marina.giani@kuleuven.be) before 31 March 2021. Young researchers and early career scholars are especially encouraged to apply.

The colloquium will take place at the University of Leuven. A guided visit will be conducted to the Bibliothèque Royale in Brussels, where some of the most famous manuscripts and printed editions of Augustine’s De civitate Dei will be displayed. We are committed to host an on campus conference: nonetheless, if travelling abroad will not yet be safe by then, we are prepared to either switch online or to host a blended meeting.

Acceptance of your paper will be communicated by 30 April 2021. All participants are kindly invited to announce the definitive title of their lecture and a short abstract before 30 June 2021. Lectures should be approx. 30 minutes long, followed by a general discussion of 10 minutes. The organizing committee has the intention of publishing the conference papers as quickly as possible in the international series Augustinus. Werk und Wirkung, directed by Volker Henning Drecoll and Johannes Brachtendorf. More practical information will follow when abstracts have been accepted.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us. Yours sincerely,
Gert Partoens, Anthony Dupont, Marina Giani

English version below

Qu’ils participent des agencements plastiques de l’image ou qu’ils soient déployés autour de l’autel, les textiles, en alliant mobilité et fluidité, jouent un rôle de première importance dans la révélation du sacré. Depuis le milieu du XIII^e siècle, l’exaltation de la Présence Réelle et l’essor des images dévotionnelles alimentent un intense « désir de voir ». L’image elle-même, puissant instrument de médiation entre le visible et l’invisible, est souvent comparée à un voile, dans la mesure où elle est capable de suggérer la présence ou l’absence de ce qui est représenté.

Vêtements, les textiles parent et transforment les corps. Parements, ils deviennent supports de l’adoration. Voiles, ils matérialisent la séparation entre l’humain et le divin. Rideaux soulevés, ils sont les auxiliaires d’une théophanie visuelle. Ces journées d’études entendent interroger la participation des textiles – réels ou fictifs, matériels, représentés ou feints – dans la manifestation du sacré, compris dans une acceptation large au-delà de la sphère strictement religieuse. La diversité de leurs formes, la pluralité de leurs fonctions et leur potentiel métaphorique seront au cœur de la réflexion.

Comment voit-on les textiles dans un cadre liturgique ou dévotionnel ? Quels sont leurs rôles dans l’appréhension du sacré et dans sa révélation, qu’elle soit figurée ou sacramentelle ? Si l’Europe occidentale du Moyen Âge et de l’Époque moderne constitue le cadre privilégié de cette enquête, des exemples issus d’autres aires culturelles et/ou d’autres périodes pourront enrichir la réflexion, qui s’articulera autour des thématiques suivantes :

Orner. Les textiles participent du decorum de l’église : ils revêtent le célébrant, ornent l’autel et parent les murs de l’église. De même dans l’iconographie, ils honorent et glorifient les figures avec lesquelles ils entrent en contact. Mêlant brillance des matières, éclat des filés métalliques et techniques parfois prestigieuses, l’aspect précieux de certaines étoffes ; souvent accentué sous le pinceau du peintre ; enrichit l’espace ecclésial ou pictural.

Sacraliser. Barrières ou points de rencontre, les étoffes structurent l’espace, aussi bien ecclésial que pictural. Déployées autour d’une figure sainte ou des sacralia, elles en soulignent la splendeur et achèvent de les dégager de la sphère séculière. Ces textiles peuvent profiter de la sacralité des objets avec lesquels ils sont en contact et devenir à la fois agents et objets du sacré.

Révéler, dévoiler, exhiber. Tantôt les textiles dissimulent les corps, les objets et les lieux, tantôt ils en révèlent la présence. Que ce soit dans l’image dévotionnelle ou autour de l’autel, ils impliquent le regardeur physiquement, émotionnellement et spirituellement. Au-delà d’une certaine « théâtralité », le voile désigne par excellence l’ignorance et le secret. Dévoiler, soulever ou déchirer le voile relève alors d’une véritable démarche herméneutique.  

Incarner. Depuis l’Antiquité, les textiles sont les métaphores privilégiées de la chair : chair humaine qui occulte et signifie l’aveuglement, mais aussi chair divine incarnée, salvatrice, consacrée lors de l’Eucharistie. Des analogies complexes sont tissées entre la vêture, l’acte de prendre un vêtement et l’incarnation, l’acte de prendre chair.

Concepts : sacré ; rituel ; performance ; gestes ; mouvement ; espace ; dévoilement ; révélation ; visualité ; matérialité ; decorum ; ornement.

Modalités de soumission
L’appel s’adresse en priorité aux historien(ne)s de l’art, spécialistes de l’iconographie ou des textiles. Les propositions de communication, en français ou en anglais, doivent comprendre un titre et un résumé d’environ 300 mots et sont à envoyer, accompagnées d’un CV, avant le 15 février 2021 par courrier électronique à l’adresse suivante : textiles.rituelimage@gmail.com. Un dispositif de captation et de retransmission audio-vidéo est prévu pour tous ceux qui ne pourraient pas être présents physiquement à ces journées.

Comité scientifique
Philippe Morel (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne), Philippe Plagnieux (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, École nationale des Chartes), Alain Rauwel (Université de Bourgogne, CéSor). 

Partenariats
Centre d’Histoire de l’Art de la Renaissance (CHAR), Centre d’études en sciences sociales du religieux (CéSor).  

Organisatrices
Juliette Brack (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, CHAR), Julie Glodt (Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne).

Ritual and Image: Textiles and the Revelation of the Sacred

Be they part of the composition of an image or gathered around the altar, textiles, as pliable and movable material, played a crucial part in the revelation of the invisible. Since the middle of the thirteenth century, the Real presence of Christ in the Eucharist became physically exalted and devotional images flourished in churches and in domestic interiors. It led to a genuine visual appetence, an intense desire to see the sacred. The image itself, powerful instrument of mediation between the visible and the invisible, is often compared to a veil, as it is able to suggest the presence or the absence of what is represented.

As garments, textiles adorned and transformed bodies. As dossals, they were the backdrop for adoration. As veils, they delineated the frontier between the human and the divine. As lifted curtains, they participated in a visual theophany and emphasized a supranatural presence. By this workshop, we want to explore the roles of textiles – be they real, fictional, material, painted or feigned – in the manifestation of the sacred, understood in its broadest sense, beyond the strictly religious sphere. Their diverse forms, their multiple functions and their metaphorical potential will be the core of our reflections.

How weretextiles seen in a liturgical or devotional context? What were their roles in the figured or sacramental revelation of the divine? Even though the occidental Europe of middle ages and modern times constitute the preferred setting of this workshop, proposals on other cultural areas or periods could be accepted. We welcome proposals on themes including, but not limited to:

Adorning. Textiles participated in church decoration: they clothed the celebrant and adorned the altar and the walls of the church. In iconography, they glorified the figures with whom they came into contact. Combining the brilliance of materials, the shine of metallic yarns and prestigious techniques, the precious materiality of certain fabrics, sometimes accentuated under the painter’s brush, enriched the ecclesial or pictorial space.

Sacralizing. Barriers or meeting points, the fabrics structured the space, both ecclesial and pictorial. Deployed around a holy figure or sacralia, they underlined their splendor and isolated them from the secular sphere. As absorbent materials, textiles thus placed in contact with the most venerated elements could themselves be sacred and become both agents and objects of the sacred.

Revealing, Unveiling, Exhibiting. Sometimes textiles concealed and veiled bodies, objects and places, sometimes they revealed their presence. Whether in the devotional image or around the altar, they physically, emotionally and spiritually engaged the worshipper. Beyond a certain “theatricality” that we wish to question, the veil designated ignorance and secrecy. Unveiling, lifting or tearing the veil is a true hermeneutic, almost theophanic approach. 

Incarnating. Since antiquity, textiles have been the privileged metaphors for flesh: human flesh that concealed and signified blindness, but also divine flesh, incarnated and consecrated in the Eucharist. Complex analogies were woven between clothing, the act of taking a garment, and incarnation, the act of taking flesh.

Concepts: Textiles; Sacred; ritual; performance; gestures; space; unveiling; revelation; visuality; materiality.  

Submission guidelines
We invite proposals for 20-minute papers in French or English from scholars across the arts, humanities and museum staff. Please submit a title, a 300-word abstract and a short CV in French or English by February 15, 2020, to the following address textiles.rituelimage@gmail.com. Presentations might be recorded and be followed online.

Scientific committee
Philippe Morel (University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne), Philippe Plagnieux (University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, École nationale des Chartes), Alain Rauwel (University of Burgundy). 

Partnerships
Centre d’Histoire de l’Art de la Renaissance (CHAR), Centre d’études en sciences sociales du religieux (CéSor). 

Conveners
Juliette Brack (University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, CHAR), Julie Glodt (University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne).

Version PDF de l’appel (français) : ici
Veriosn PDF de l’appel (anglais) : ici