Sandra Cavallo & Tessa Storey
Renaissance Skin Reading Group
Join us as we pursue the themes of porousness and excretion, as well as the methodological approach of using source-based and comparative material.
The second Renaissance Skin Reading Group will explore the porousness of the body and the role of the non-naturals in maintaining, preserving, and protecting its integrity. We will read selections from the following works:
- Sandra Cavallo and Tessa Storey (eds.), Conserving Health in Early Modern Culture: Bodies and Environments in
Italy and England, (Manchester, 2017): Introduction and Chapter 1
- Sandra Cavallo and Tessa Storey, Healthy Living in Late Renaissance Italy, (Oxford, 2013): Chapters
3 & 8
We are delighted that Sandra Cavallo and Tessa Storey will be in attendance to read from their recent publications, respond to our questions, and engage with our discussions.
More so,
perhaps, than any other recent medical historians, Cavallo and Storey have
taken vitally important approaches to the material culture of health in early
modern Europe. The purpose of our meeting is not simply to learn from and
critique their works, but to think critically about the thematic points of
contact (excretion, porousness, protection, and maintenance) with our project,
the relevance of shared methodologies, and, more broadly, comparative
frameworks for medical history in the future. This is an informal and friendly
discussion, lasting about 90 minutes, and then followed by wine.
This event is open to participants from any discipline and at any stage of study. To attend, please register by emailing the team (see Contact page). The readings will be circulated in advance, once registered. We encourage anyone to bring materials, images, anecdotes, and ideas for discussion. There is no deadline to register but attendance will be guaranteed on a first-come first-served basis.
Please be aware that due to enhanced security at King’s and access to the room, any external guests will need to be collected from the Strand Reception by 3.50pm.
Image: Print of a perfume burner with caryatids after an original design by Raphael, Marco da Ravenna Dente (engraver), Italy, c.1490-1534, VAM 29459.8 © Victoria & Albert Museum, London