Small Things in the Eighteenth Century
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Image: Still Life with Silver Wine Decanter, Tulip, Yixing Teapot and Globe, Roestraten, Pieter van, born 1629 – died 1700 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Thursday 6 June 2019, 9.00am7 June, 18.00
Speaker(s): This conference is co-organized by Dr Chloe Wigston Smith, University of York and Professor Beth Fowkes Tobin, University of Georgia.
We invite proposals for papers that address the scale of material objects, in particular the smaller things that have received less critical attention than larger, substantial goods. We are interested in how the scale of things shapes the cultural and / or literary significance of objects and what size might illuminate more broadly about the value and meanings of material culture. Do small things merit different kinds of attention across genres or types of media? How does monetary value, labour and time affect perceptions of the minute? What is the place of the small in scholarly conversations about material culture across humanities disciplines?
Please submit abstracts of up to 500 words, along with a very brief biography, to smallthings@york.ac.uk by October 15, 2018. Support from the British Academy will cover registration costs and food for all speakers.
Location: The King’s Manor, University of York
Admission: Ticketed. Further information to follow.
Email: smallthings@york.ac.uk