On March 3, my friend and colleague Malcolm Thurlby will be visiting Carleton to give an HTA guest lecture on Durham Cathedral. I’m really looking forward to this, partly because Malcolm’s a great lecturer and Durham’s a great building, and partly because it will be a case study in something we don’t always do – or teach – as well as we should: how to look very, very closely at what we study.
The west front of Durham Cathedral (built 1093-1133)
Looking closely is a lot harder than it sounds. We bring all kinds of assumptions to what we see, and are drawn to evidence that reinforces those assumptions. The methodology of material culture teaches us to ignore our assumptions, see what’s actually there and figure out what it tells us. An object, after all, is what it is because of its history; it can’t lie, but it can easily be misinterpreted if we don’t have the training to ‘read’ it properly.
Malcolm – who is a Professor of Art History at York and Adjunct Research Professor here in HTA – has been ‘reading’ Romanesque buildings for decades and there’s no one better at it. He is an architectural Hercule Poirot; he assumes nothing, observes everything, proceeds inductively, and draws impeccable conclusions. This will be a master class in analytical looking, as well as an up-close and personal look at one of the most majestic buildings ever made.
The stones of Durham Cathedral have a lot of stories to tell – if we know how to ‘read’ them.
All are welcome. Don’t miss it!
What: “Detective Work on English Romanesque Architecture: The Case of Durham Cathedral”, an HTA guest lecture by Professor Malcolm Thurlby
When: Tuesday, March 3, at 12:00 noon
Where: 2017 Dunton Tower