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AAH09 INTERSECTIONS

Student Session: And You Call Yourself an Art Historian? Navigating the Terrain of 'Cross/Trans/Inter-research'

Lara Eggleton Laraeve8@googlemail.com
University of Leeds

Clare O'Dowd clare.o'dowd@postgrad.manchester.uk
University of Manchester

Every academic discipline has its boundaries: what happens when you cross them? Those who do may find themselves entering a minefield, at constant risk of being deemed 'pseudo-academic' or 'non-specialist'. Can you be a successful art historian while also being a capable writer who can tell a good story? Is it possible to produce findings that are relevant to larger and possibly diverse audiences, without sacrificing the depth of your argument? Is it possible to work across multiple fields, deploying the ideas and methodologies of other disciplines, without threatening or diluting academic research?

We invite papers that come up against the visible as well as the implicit boundaries of art history: they may operate on the border of other disciplines (whether it be archaeology or neuroscience); may be termed sensationalist (because of writing style or the controversial nature of the topic); or engage with different or multiple methodologies.

This session will look beyond the (unwritten) rules of art history, providing a forum for postgraduates who are navigating the terrain of 'cross/trans/inter-disciplinary research' while still defining themselves as historians of art.