CONF: French Language in Russia, Uni of Bristol, 12-14 Sept 2012

The French Language in Russia
The second half of the eighteenth century and the first half of the nineteenth
On the occasion of the bicentenary of the war of 1812
An international interdisciplinary conference
University of Bristol, Wednesday 12-Friday 14 September 2012


The bicentenary of Russia’s war against Napoleon provides an opportunity to explore various aspects of the history of the French language in Russia.
The war drew the attention of Russian society to the use of French in Russia. Disapproval of francophonie had already been expressed in the second half of the eighteenth century but at the beginning of the nineteenth century the practice became a target for certain groups of Russian intellectuals, and the growth of a national self-consciousness in Russia was thus revealed. Russian writers had stressed the importance of learning and mastering the native language well before 1812, to be sure, but it was the war against Napoleon that made it possible for the attitudes of different social strata and groups towards the francophonie of Russian high society to be clarified.


The conference aims to examine various cultural practices and ideological positions that were associated with the use of French in Russia both before and after the Napoleonic Wars. The chronological extent of the period to be studied is very broad, from the reign of Elizabeth to the age of Nicholas I, so that it should be possible to trace the appearance of francophonie in Russia, its flowering and the beginning of its decline.


The conference will address questions such as the following: the way French was learnt, cultural practices associated with its use (correspondence, keeping a diary, reading and composition of works of literature, translation, literary circles and salons, and so forth), the social groups which used it, and reservations about and hostility towards its use among the nobility. However, this list of questions is not exhaustive. Other matters may also be addressed, such as the linguistic situation in Russia during the period in question, the use of other foreign languages there and similar phenomena in other European countries.
The conference is being organised within the framework of a three-year project in the University of Bristol on the history of the French language in Russia from the eighteenth century to the early twentieth century. The project is led by Professor Derek Offord and funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. This is the first European project which aims to study the history of francophonie in one of the countries that was most affected by it. A number of international events will be organised as part of the project and it is envisaged that their proceedings will be published.


The conference will take place in Clifton Hill House, one of the University’s most attractive halls of residence. It will begin at lunchtime on 12 September and end around 4.00 on 14th.


Conference organisers
School of Modern Languages, University of Bristol; Derek Offord, project leader; Vladislav Rjéoutski and Sarah Turner, post-doctoral research assistants.
http://www.basees.org.uk/CFP-french-in-russia.shtml

Historical photographs of Konchalovsky in China digitised by University of Bristol

In 1945, Pyotr Konchalovsky (1876-1956) painted a full-length studio portrait of Hu Zipang lying on chaise longue.  While he worked on the portrait, the Chinese ambassador to the USSR, Fu Bingchang photographed the scene.   Hu Zipang was Fu's attache at the embassy in Moscow, as well as being his lover, a war correspondent, and a Communist agent who was spying on Fu.

The negatives survived the fall of Nationalist China and ended up in a trunk in Lincoln, England.  The four photographs (and many others by Fu) were digitised by the Historical Photographs of China project, at the University of Bristol, and are now online at http://chp.vcea.net (search for Konchalovsky, or for the four image reference numbers: Fu-n322, Fu-n324, Fu-n326 and Fu-n327).  In the background of Fu-n322, Konchalovsky's painting 'Hercules and Omphale' (1928) can be seen on the wall.

Historical Photographs of China project, University of Bristol
Images copyright of Yee Wah Foo, a relative of the photographer Fu Bingchang.


Text by Jamie Carstairs, Digitisation Officer, Special Collections, Arts and Social Sciences Library, University of Bristol 


Historical Photographs of China
http://chp.vcea.net
Visualising China
http://visualisingchina.net
Treasures from Special Collections
(supported by the University of Bristol Alumni Fund)
http://bris.ac.uk/is/library/collections/specialcollections/archives/treasures/

Tate Modern: Blue Rider Centenary Symposium

The conference programme for the Tate Modern symposium celebrating the Centenary of the Blue Rider has now been published.

The Blue Rider Centenary Symposium
Friday 25 November 2011, 10.30–17.30
Saturday 26 November 2011, 10.30–17.00

This symposium celebrates the centenary of the first exhibition of The Blue Rider at Galerie Thannhauser in Munich in December 1911. The Blue Rider was a global project including references as diverse as Japanese art, Russian folk art, children's drawings, Bavarian glass painting and artworks by contemporary European artists, musicians and writers.

Wassily Kandinsky 

Cossacks 1910–11 

Tate © ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2002

The two-day event will establish the divergent as well as related patterns of intention, outcome and influence presented under the name Der Blaue Reiter and explore its ongoing legacies and relevance today. Keynote presentations by Annegret Hoberg and Peter Vergo. Keynote performance by Stelarc. A performance of Kandinsky's Der Gelbe Klang (Yellow Sound) will take place on Saturday evening.

In collaboration with University of Bristol and Centre for Fine Art Research Cardiff (CSAD)
Supported by the British Academy and the Bristol Gallery

Tate Modern  Starr Auditorium
£30 (£20 concessions), booking required. For tickets book online or call 020 7887 8888.
http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/eventseducation/symposia/24491.htm
Programme 
http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/eventseducation/symposia/blue_rider_programme.pdf