The National Museum in Wrocław and the Institute of History of Art at the University of Wrocław would like to invite researchers on medieval Silesian art to participate in the scientific conference organised to accompany the exhibition “The centenary. The anniversary of the great exhibition of medieval Silesian art”.
The conference is intended to explore medieval art in Silesia and its relations with historical, artistic, political and social phenomena in Europe. The aim is to address new findings, as well as reflect on the existing body of work created by researchers and museum curators.
The organisers would also like to present research results including the more modern and the latest methodologies and areas of study, such as (new) materiality, digital humanities, ecological humanities, gender studies, new technologies in materials testing, and artistic techniques.
“We wish to create space for international dialogue and discussion on the future of the research on Silesian and Central European art” – declared the organisers of this conference.
Fot. A. Podstawka
Conference title:
Medieval Art in Silesia: Old Topics, New Perspectives
Conference venue, dates:
Wrocław (Poland), 3–5 December 2026
Abstract submission deadline:
28 June 2026
Organisers:
The National Museum in Wrocław (Piotr Oszczanowski, director);
Institute of Art History, University of Wrocław (Romuald Kaczmarek, Agnieszka Patała, Jacek Witkowski)
Participants are invited to prepare 20-minute presentations of a monographic or review character, within the following subject areas:
- The makers of medieval painting and sculpture in Silesia and Central Europe: questions of identity and anonymity, patterns of migration, sources of inspiration, and the organisation of workshops both within and beyond guild structures.
- Medieval art in Silesia: historical and contemporary attributions, alternative approaches, and proposals for new classification systems;
- Medieval art in Silesia in relation to that of neighbouring and more distant European regions: formal, stylistic, and comparative studies, research in iconography and iconology, pursued both within traditional frameworks and through attempts at renewed interpretation.
- Materials and materialities of medieval painting and sculpture in Silesia and Central Europe.
- The ‘afterlives’ of medieval artworks, and critical reflections upon the history of their study, display, musealisation, conservation, and protection across the centuries, both in Silesia and within the broader Central European context.
- Digital humanities approaches and initiatives for sharing knowledge of medieval art in Central Europe – achievements so far and future prospects.
The submissions should include:
— an abstract of the paper (around 300 words for the 20-minute presentations),
— additional information: academic degree/title, affiliation, short bio,
and should be sent to agnieszka.patala@uwr.edu.pl up to 28 June 2026.
Notification on the admittance of the papers will be sent out in early July 2026