Sensational Experience in Early Modern Dutch and Flemish Art

The Center for Netherlandish Art (CNA) invites graduate students, PhD candidates, and recent post-doctoral scholars to explore the topic of sensation, intersensoriality, and beyond in Dutch and Flemish art and material culture from approximately 1560 to 1800.
While the modern viewing experience often curtails our full perception of artworks, museums and institutions have begun reconstructing the multisensory engagement present during the early modern period. As one example, the 2021 exhibition at the Mauritshuis Fleeting Scents In Color utilized scent boxes to attune their viewer’s senses to the still lifes and landscapes on display. To what extent can modern research, scholarship, and museum practice grant access to the world of early modern multisensory experience?  What other avenues have been unlocked with modern technology and how can they be implemented, responsibly, to expand experiences and understandings of early modern northern European art? (Via)

Museums and Emotions

Heritage sites, such as historic buildings, monuments, museums, and archives, hold deep meaning for people. They can evoke strong emotions, shape identities, and spark important conversations. Engaging with heritage means navigating its many layers: historical, political, social, and emotional. Heritage professionals play a crucial role in preserving collections, researching histories, and sharing stories with the public. Their work often carries personal significance, as they care for artifacts and shape the way heritage is understood.  At the same time, visitors actively participate in heritage by exploring, learning, and reflecting on what they encounter. The emotions they experience, whether tied to specific objects, exhibitions, or the atmosphere of a place, can be just as important as the heritage itself. Sometimes, what is absent is just as powerful as what is present. Emotions also shape how heritage is presented and interpreted. They raise important questions. Whose history is being told? What stories remain unheard? Who decides how heritage is displayed and experienced?

This one-day conference explores the emotional dimensions of heritage work, from the perspectives of both professionals and audiences. How do emotions influence museum practices and visitor experiences? How can we make these emotional processes more visible, fostering openness and inclusivity in heritage spaces? (Via)