About us
The research group Histories of Art, Architecture and Visual Culture (VISU) offers a platform for fundamental research on the history and theory of art, architecture and visual culture from the early modern period up to the present. We study not only the artistic and architectural practice, the material object and the spatial environment, but also the broader cultural, historical and societal context, which often relates to current themes such as new media, visualisation of conflict and war, urbanisation, sustainability, multiculturality and globalisation. Key questions concern the circulation of images, artefacts, practices and knowledge across boundaries. These cross-overs are understood as mutual interactions between the different arts and as exchanges between different cultures, traditions, regions or periods.
Recent News
Exploring artisanship, technical knowledge and ingenuity in the making of silver cups
VISU member Hanne Schonkeren will be presenting her research at the Material Culture Pre-1850 Workshop on the 10th of March 2025, hosted by the University of Cambridge.
The sculpture garden of the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium: issues of outdoor sculpture in a metropolitan environment
VISU member prof. Katarzyna Ruchel-Stockmans is a guest speaker at the webinar series "Musées d’art en plein air / Sculpture Parks" on 10 December, 2024. This webinar is co-organized and moderated by VISU member prof. Francisca Vandepitte.
Remediating photography in community archives and the question of epistemic reparations
VISU member Katarzyna Ruchel-Stockmans and student Zoë Kennis (Talent for Research Program) will be presenting their research at the Intermedial Networks -- The Digital Present and Beyond, organized from 23-25 October 2024, and taking place at Linnaeus University in Växjö.
Events
Practical info-Lecture Bruegel's Room for all Seasons
On 24 February, Tine Meganck will deliver a lecture at Trinity Hall Cambridge, UK, on the 16th Century Southern Netherlandish painter Pieter Bruegel.
Practical info-Lecture Manuelina Maria Duarte Cândido, Social museology: museums as agents of social change
Manuela Maria Duarte Cândido is invited by the ‘Ties That Bind Us’ lecture series to give a talk on 17 February on how museum practices have evolved, focusing especially on the shift from traditional roles to more activist and community-driven approaches.
Practical info-Lecture Silvia Burini, Uzbekistan Avant-Garde in the Desert
Prof. Dr. Silvia Burini is invited by the Global Art Histories lecture series to deliver a lecture called Uzbekistan Avant-Garde in the Desert at the VUB on 21 February.
