The Association of Greek Art Historians organized a seminar by Eric Michaud on Saturday, May 6, 2017 at the Amphitheater of the Benaki Museum, 138 Pireos Street, Athens, Greece.
The talk examines the emergence of the field of art history in relation to the narrative of the barbarian invasions. Michaud considers the notions of homogeneity and continuity of peoples as the basic axioms on which the formation of states and the rise of nationalism in Europe in the 19th century were based. Consequently, the discipline of art history associated the different artistic styles to blood and racial groups as opposed to individual creation. Michaud, however, goes beyond the formation of the discipline. He examines the ways in which racial and ethnic identities today still define the value of art works in a global art market.
Eric O. Michaud is Directeur d’Études at the Ecole des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales and former Member in the School of Historical Studies.
The seminar was open to the public and was part of the Series of Lectures by Distinguished Art Historians organized by EEIT. It was delivered in English.
Video Recording – Bodossaki Foundation (Language French)
Sound Recording (Language French & Greek)
