Presenting Byzantium in the Modern World, lecture by Helen Evans (The Metropolitan Museum of Art), Fordham University, Lincoln Center Campus, October 23, 2018, 6:00 pm

Today, as the study of the past is questioned, it is critical to consider ways to present Byzantium so that the relevance of its art, religion, and culture are recognized in the modern world. Exhibitions using the visual voice of the empire and its related cultures can demonstrate the inaccuracy of Edward Gibbon’s long-lasting, negative definition of the state. This talk considers modern presentations of Byzantine art with special emphasis on American contributions to effectively defining the lasting importance of the empire the Romans ruled from Constantinople from 330 to 1453.

Helen Evans is the Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator for Byzantine Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Her exhibitions—including Byzantium and Islam (2012), Byzantium: Faith and Power (2004), and The Glory of Byzantium (1997)—have explored the importance of Byzantine art and its connections beyond its borders.

2018 Orthodoxy in America Lecture