The international congress “Jewish Architects – Jewish Architecture?” aims to re-examine the biographies of Jewish architects from the 19th century up to the present day from an international perspective. It will deal with the question whether and to which degree Jewish self-definition and the perception of “Jewishness” by a non-Jewish environment has influenced and still influences the life and works of Jewish architects all over the world. During the last decades, multifaceted research on Jewish architects has been conducted, however focusing primarily either on certain persons and their oeuvre or on limited regions.
The conference emphasizes the need to provide a more extensive view, drawing comparisons between different times and regions – from late the 18th century to present days, in Europe, America, Israel and other countries. A new focus will be set on biographic networks, on the cultural and economic preconditions for Jews in the professional field of architecture, and on the role of Jewish women-architects. This will also lead to the question of defining “Jewishness” in architecture as based on respective contemporary perspectives.
The congress intends to examine the subject in different methodological ways. Architectural and art historians are invited as are historians and scholars from other fields to contribute to the debate, herewith developing new and trans-disciplinary approaches to Jewish culture and history.
Unterschiedliche Veranstaltungsorte, darunter die HCU.
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