Units

Modern and Contemporary Worlds

Person in charge of the Unit : Oui

The RU Modern and Contemporary Worlds constitutes a research center dedicated to the study of modern and contemporary societies from the 19th Century onwards. It brings together researchers in History and History of Art willing to engage their investigation in a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective. The spatial focus of the RU goes well beyond the realms of Europe and aims at touching ground with colonial and postcolonial societies. Among its manifold research axes we should point out transnational social history, gender history, the history of art and artistic movements, business history, the circulation of knowledge and scientific practices, urban and environment studies, the mechanisms of mass communication and consumption, and the interactions between States, Law, and conflicts. A special emphasis is laid on interartistic comparatism allowing to cross-analyse the various forms of artistic expressions without preconceived theoretical borders.

Projetcs

Social history of European societies

TBC

Consumption and communication

TBC

History of tools and vectors of propaganda and networking

Focus on networks, institutions, tools, and ideological and economic orientations of advertisement milieus in Europe from the 1920s to the 1960s onwards. This project, carried by Véronique Pouillard, has lead to the publication of ''C'est du belge. Dit is Belgisch. The History of Advertising in Belgium'', and of the thesis ''La publicité en Belgique (1850-1975). Des courtiers aux agences internationales''. A conference ''Histoire croisée des techniques de propagande et de publicité en Europe. Années 1920 - années 1960'' was furthermore held on 27th of january 2006.

Knowledge society

TBC

The cultural exchanges between Spain and Belgium

Malgré les voyages de nombreux artistes belges en Espagne (Robersart, Verhaeren, Bossuet, Van Rysselberghe, Constantin Meunier...) et les séjours de nombreux Espagnols venus étudier à Bruxelles (Dario de Regoyos, Augustin Riancho, Albeniz, Arbos, Zuloaga, Crickboom...), aucune étude n'existe à ce jour sur les relations suivies entre les deux pays. Une étude pluridisciplinaire s'efforcera de mettre en avant le fonctionnement de ces échanges, ainsi que l'évolution de l'image de l'Espagne, s'éloignant petit à petit de l'image stéréotypée héritée de Bizet pour aller vers l'Espagne noire chère à Verhaeren. En sens inverse, le regard espagnol sur la Belgique a lui aussi été profondément modifié, partant de la peinture historique se référant au XVIe siècle, pour aller vers une découverte de la lumière et des paysages. Cette recherche se concrétisera par la mise sur pied d'une exposition au Musée d'Ixelles en 2010, accompagnée d'un colloque et de concerts.

Cultural history

Business history

TBC

Practices of reference models and networks of creation in the fashion business sector - Belgium, France, and Great Britain (1900s-1980s)

The history of fashion is being especially questioned through the aspects of copying, creating, and cross-influences.