ICOMOS-UK Annual Christmas Lecture and Reception

Professor Rob van der Laarse:  ‘Heritage, Conflict and the Dynamics of Memory’

The world is increasingly full of conflicts: how do these colour our perceptions of places associated with historical events over decades if not centuries? In the past ten years, interest in the heritage of European regional and ethnic conflicts has grown explosively in relation to collective memory, but also in political debates, heritage tourism, the museum sector, and city branding. The so-called Crimean Treasures collection of Scythian gold, now stateless after the separation of Crimea, is claimed by Ukraine as well as by Moscow and five Crimean museums.

This lecture will focus on how the Balkans and Ukraine demonstrate the transnationalization of ‘memory events’ in present-day Europe.

We are pleased to welcome Professor Rob van der Laarse who is Research Director of the Amsterdam School for Heritage & Memory Studies, University of Amsterdam, and Westerbork Chair of War & Conflict Heritage, VU University Amsterdam. He is project leader of the international Terrorscapes Research Group which was recently awarded the Euromediterraneo Prize, 2013. Van der Laarse’s research is born from a fascination with cultural power, narratives of representation, and the shadow of the Enlightenment.

ADMISSION

£15 ICOMOS-UK & ICOM UK Members

£18 Non-Members

£10 Students

Admission includes wine and festive refreshments.

Please pay online at www.icomos-uk.org/events or make cheques payable to: ICOMOS-UK and send to the address shown below.