Exchanges: The Interdisciplinary Research Journal, 2017
This critical reflection originated in a visit to the ‘Artists and Academics’ exhibition held at ... more This critical reflection originated in a visit to the ‘Artists and Academics’ exhibition held at Fargo Creative Village, Coventry, 26 November 2016. My thoughts about the exhibition have served as a springboard to consider ideas of scholarship, art and community more broadly. I use my research on British artists from the early twentieth century, their ideas about the processes of viewing art and the spiritual in art, to discuss examples in the exhibition. I conclude by considering how this collaborative event can bring academic ideas into conversation with artworks. I suggest that the resulting exchanges may enable viewers to think differently about art and scholarship as well as enrich academic practice.
The article discusses artist Robert Anning Bell's projects in Liverpool, England in the 1890s... more The article discusses artist Robert Anning Bell's projects in Liverpool, England in the 1890s, focusing on his relationship with the Arts and Crafts movement. The author describes Bell's positive opinion of Liverpool and his role as an instructor at the Liverpool University School of Architecture and Applied Art (LSAA). Specific topics addressed include the relationship between fine and decorative arts, Bell's collaborations with students, and his commissions of windows and reliefs.
This thesis examines the works of three ‘forgotten’ British artists, working from the late ninete... more This thesis examines the works of three ‘forgotten’ British artists, working from the late nineteenth century and well into the 1920s. In a period which saw momentous changes associated with the onset of modernity, artworks appeared to speak of revivalism, tradition, even nostalgia, rather than the new. Thomas Cooper Gotch, Robert Anning Bell and Frederick Cayley Robinson shared an interest in the spiritual, the unseen and immaterial, which they expressed through representations of women, placing faith, broadly, in ‘the feminine’ as synonymous with humanity’s neglected ‘spirit’ in the modern, materialistic world. The eclectic and contradictory nature of the artworks examined, their complex and ambiguous representations of womanhood and female spirituality were expressive of the condition of modernity in its rich, varied forms. These artworks are analysed in the context of an important historical moment for the feminist movement, since all three artists addressed the explosion in fem...
Exchanges: The Interdisciplinary Research Journal, Nov 1, 2018
This article is a scholarly reflection on a collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Communit... more This article is a scholarly reflection on a collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Community which took place in Coventry and Leamington Spa, 1 May-31 July 2017. The project was based on extensive research on the artist Frederick Cayley Robinson, who worked in the period 1880-1920. This artist explored distinctive ideas of spirituality and enchantment in his artworks. The project sought to communicate art historical scholarship to the wider community using art and craft activities combined with educational presentations and collaborative working. The article summarises the key aspects of the project: its events, outcomes, challenges and successes including outputs and feedback statements from attendees. The article is framed by a number of scholarly perspectives: I survey historical ideas of art and enchantment which inspired the project and consider academic debates concerning outreach, public engagement and community art activities. Enchanted Community provided the opportunity to reflect on areas of historical scholarship whilst developing outreach methods, pathways and contacts for further community activities. Feedback statements during the project revealed that many participants engaged positively with the artist's ideas of using art to re-enchant modern life.
This article is a scholarly reflection on a recent collaborative art project entitled Enchanted C... more This article is a scholarly reflection on a recent collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Community, which took place in Coventry and Leamington, 1 May - 31 July 2017. The project sought to communicate art historical scholarship to the wider community through innovative methods: using art and craft activities combined with education, inter-disciplinary framing and collaborative working. Experiences of communicating art historical research and engaging the public with regard to the themes of art and enchantment were both rewarding and surprising. The article summarises the key aspects of the project: its events, outcomes, challenges and successes including outputs and feedback statements from attendees. The article is framed by a number of scholarly perspectives. I survey historical ideas of art and enchantment which inspired the project. I also consider academic debates concerning outreach, public engagement, community art activities and impact through the arts and humanities....
This critical reflection piece originated in a visit to the 'Artists and Academics' exhibition he... more This critical reflection piece originated in a visit to the 'Artists and Academics' exhibition held at Fargo Creative Village, Coventry, 26 November 2016. My thoughts about the exhibition have served as a springboard to consider ideas of scholarship, art and community more broadly. I use my research on British artists from the early twentieth century, their ideas about the processes of viewing art and the spiritual in art, to discuss examples in the exhibition. I conclude by considering how this collaborative event can bring academic ideas into conversation with artworks. I suggest that the resulting exchanges may enable viewers to think differently about art and scholarship as well as enrich academic practise.
This book proposes new understandings of modern life in Britain by bringing constructs of female ... more This book proposes new understandings of modern life in Britain by bringing constructs of female spirituality centre stage and examining three ‘forgotten’ artists identified with the Pre-Raphaelites and Victorianism. Thomas Cooper Gotch, Robert Anning Bell, Frederick Cayley Robinson are resituated squarely within the tumultuous social and cultural changes of the period: the explosion in female agency, the ‘gender crisis’, the Suffragettes and associated visual cultures. Becoming visible again, in more inclusive histories, allows such artists not only to re-inhabit but to re-shape narratives of modernism, reanimating the scholarly discourse and creating a dynamic cultural history of modern Britain expressed through their striking visions of womanhood.
Exchanges: The Interdisciplinary Research Journal, 2017
This critical reflection originated in a visit to the ‘Artists and Academics’ exhibition held at ... more This critical reflection originated in a visit to the ‘Artists and Academics’ exhibition held at Fargo Creative Village, Coventry, 26 November 2016. My thoughts about the exhibition have served as a springboard to consider ideas of scholarship, art and community more broadly. I use my research on British artists from the early twentieth century, their ideas about the processes of viewing art and the spiritual in art, to discuss examples in the exhibition. I conclude by considering how this collaborative event can bring academic ideas into conversation with artworks. I suggest that the resulting exchanges may enable viewers to think differently about art and scholarship as well as enrich academic practice.
The article discusses artist Robert Anning Bell's projects in Liverpool, England in the 1890s... more The article discusses artist Robert Anning Bell's projects in Liverpool, England in the 1890s, focusing on his relationship with the Arts and Crafts movement. The author describes Bell's positive opinion of Liverpool and his role as an instructor at the Liverpool University School of Architecture and Applied Art (LSAA). Specific topics addressed include the relationship between fine and decorative arts, Bell's collaborations with students, and his commissions of windows and reliefs.
This thesis examines the works of three ‘forgotten’ British artists, working from the late ninete... more This thesis examines the works of three ‘forgotten’ British artists, working from the late nineteenth century and well into the 1920s. In a period which saw momentous changes associated with the onset of modernity, artworks appeared to speak of revivalism, tradition, even nostalgia, rather than the new. Thomas Cooper Gotch, Robert Anning Bell and Frederick Cayley Robinson shared an interest in the spiritual, the unseen and immaterial, which they expressed through representations of women, placing faith, broadly, in ‘the feminine’ as synonymous with humanity’s neglected ‘spirit’ in the modern, materialistic world. The eclectic and contradictory nature of the artworks examined, their complex and ambiguous representations of womanhood and female spirituality were expressive of the condition of modernity in its rich, varied forms. These artworks are analysed in the context of an important historical moment for the feminist movement, since all three artists addressed the explosion in fem...
Exchanges: The Interdisciplinary Research Journal, Nov 1, 2018
This article is a scholarly reflection on a collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Communit... more This article is a scholarly reflection on a collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Community which took place in Coventry and Leamington Spa, 1 May-31 July 2017. The project was based on extensive research on the artist Frederick Cayley Robinson, who worked in the period 1880-1920. This artist explored distinctive ideas of spirituality and enchantment in his artworks. The project sought to communicate art historical scholarship to the wider community using art and craft activities combined with educational presentations and collaborative working. The article summarises the key aspects of the project: its events, outcomes, challenges and successes including outputs and feedback statements from attendees. The article is framed by a number of scholarly perspectives: I survey historical ideas of art and enchantment which inspired the project and consider academic debates concerning outreach, public engagement and community art activities. Enchanted Community provided the opportunity to reflect on areas of historical scholarship whilst developing outreach methods, pathways and contacts for further community activities. Feedback statements during the project revealed that many participants engaged positively with the artist's ideas of using art to re-enchant modern life.
This article is a scholarly reflection on a recent collaborative art project entitled Enchanted C... more This article is a scholarly reflection on a recent collaborative art project entitled Enchanted Community, which took place in Coventry and Leamington, 1 May - 31 July 2017. The project sought to communicate art historical scholarship to the wider community through innovative methods: using art and craft activities combined with education, inter-disciplinary framing and collaborative working. Experiences of communicating art historical research and engaging the public with regard to the themes of art and enchantment were both rewarding and surprising. The article summarises the key aspects of the project: its events, outcomes, challenges and successes including outputs and feedback statements from attendees. The article is framed by a number of scholarly perspectives. I survey historical ideas of art and enchantment which inspired the project. I also consider academic debates concerning outreach, public engagement, community art activities and impact through the arts and humanities....
This critical reflection piece originated in a visit to the 'Artists and Academics' exhibition he... more This critical reflection piece originated in a visit to the 'Artists and Academics' exhibition held at Fargo Creative Village, Coventry, 26 November 2016. My thoughts about the exhibition have served as a springboard to consider ideas of scholarship, art and community more broadly. I use my research on British artists from the early twentieth century, their ideas about the processes of viewing art and the spiritual in art, to discuss examples in the exhibition. I conclude by considering how this collaborative event can bring academic ideas into conversation with artworks. I suggest that the resulting exchanges may enable viewers to think differently about art and scholarship as well as enrich academic practise.
This book proposes new understandings of modern life in Britain by bringing constructs of female ... more This book proposes new understandings of modern life in Britain by bringing constructs of female spirituality centre stage and examining three ‘forgotten’ artists identified with the Pre-Raphaelites and Victorianism. Thomas Cooper Gotch, Robert Anning Bell, Frederick Cayley Robinson are resituated squarely within the tumultuous social and cultural changes of the period: the explosion in female agency, the ‘gender crisis’, the Suffragettes and associated visual cultures. Becoming visible again, in more inclusive histories, allows such artists not only to re-inhabit but to re-shape narratives of modernism, reanimating the scholarly discourse and creating a dynamic cultural history of modern Britain expressed through their striking visions of womanhood.
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