Mid-America Medieval Association
42nd Annual Conference
University of Kansas, Lawrence
September 22, 2018

Theme: Skins
Plenary: Dr. Andrew Beresford, University of Durham: “Dermal Identities in the Legend of St Bartholomew”

We construe the notion of skin, or skins, as having multiple meanings, contexts, and sites of enquiry; it could pertain to humans or animals; as a covering or a disguise, revealing or concealing identity, a marker of difference and similarity, race, class, and gender; the mutilated witness to heroic and saintly deeds, or the epitome of idealized beauty; it can be sacred or profane; it may also evoke science, medicine, and the body; skin as writing surface and manuscript; as palimpsest, the scraping away of layers of meaning; it may allude to blank spaces and lacunae; skin as the polychrome surface of a statue, or a fresco; architectural skins and façades; it could relate to surfaces, spaces, and landscapes; to the veneers of civilization and society.

We invite papers that engage these topics, or any related to the field of medieval studies.

Please send proposals of 250 words by 1 June to Caroline Jewers at cjewers@ku.edu.