The Byzantine Research Group promotes the study and understanding of Byzantine art and culture, with particular focus on the late and post-Byzantine periods. We strongly support and encourage research into the relationship between Byzantine cultural heritage and the Renaissance through these periods. This focus makes a significant contribution to an understanding of the nuanced and complex nature of this important period in Western cultural development. The department hosts the Konstantinos Leventis Fellowship in post-Byzantine art at the Open University. The end result of this fellowship will be a publication with contributions from experts in both Byzantine and Western art (for more details, see under Publications). This promises to be a pioneering publication examining and addressing issues from the perspective of both European cultures rather than investigating one through the looking glass of the other.
An important forthcoming project is concerned with representations of hell in the frescoes of Venetian-dominated Crete (13th –17th centuries). The aim of this initiative is to examine wall paintings showing depictions of hell created when the island was ruled by the Venetians and to place these representations within the wider Mediterranean and Western European context. This is an interdisciplinary project based on an international core team of scholars, which will bring art-historical, historical and archaeological input.
If you have an enquiry specific to this research area please contact:
Email: arts-research-students@open.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0)1908 655244
