V&A Public Country House Conference Meetup
James Stewart is a PhD student at Birkbeck University, looking at Queer possibilities in the artistic activities of William Courtenay, 9th Earl of Devon at Powderham Castle. He also works at the Museum of London, Docklands. Connect with him @james.t.stewart
Before the V&A Public Country House conference on the 16th and 17th May, some members of the PGECR Country House Group gathered at Carluccio’s in South Kensington for breakfast. This event was organised by me, Abigail Allan, and Caroline McWilliams to enable members of the group to network and also to feel like you had people to go into such a vast conference together with. We chatted over coffee and delicious food. After general introductions, the topic of conversation transitioned to the various research projects we are working on; it was fascinating hearing more about the diverse aspects of the country house we all study from Ancient Greek vase collections to contemporary art inspired by historical textiles. This was a great opportunity to meet group members in a more informal environment in preparation for the conference, and after breakfast, we all walked together to the V&A. Before joining the queue of our colleagues entering the museum, we took the opportunity to take this quick photo. Special thanks to Nick Cox for taking the picture. As the two days unfolded, I personally enjoyed continuing conversations about the topics surrounding the public country house brought up in the conference with members of the group over lunch, breaks, and the drinks reception. Make sure you’re on the PGECR Country House Group mailing list to find out about future meetups - email Sarah 0405529@students.ucreative.ac.uk
From left to right, Abigail Allan (Oxford University), Sarah Capel (Coventry University), Aylssa Myers (Manchester Metropolitan University), Caroline McWilliams (St Andrews University), Lydia Smith (Kings College, London), Chris Campbell (Cambridge University), Molly Groarke (Cambridge University), James Stewart (Birkbeck University)