Visualizing Peace in the Global Middle Ages, 500-1500, session at the 111th College Art Association Annual Conference, New York, February 15–18, 2023

Many today see peace as the absence of war, but to the medieval world peace was far from a pale, negative concept – a lack of violence. Rather it was celebrated as a rich, vibrant ideal. Yet premodern war and violence have attracted much more attention than peace and cooperation, both in the public media and among scholars. One major area of interest, however, has been the intellectual history of peace. Publications have focused on Confucian ideas about peace (and their impact on the modern world) and on such European movements as the Truce of God and Peace of God. Other studies have explored the role of women in forging peace through gift-giving.

This session fosters broad thinking about the premodern and global cultural heritage of peace, which is too often neglected. One reason for this neglect is ideological: those who gained from warfare sought to glorify it. Another factor is that medieval peace may manifest itself in ways that are not immediately recognizable to us today. We welcome papers that discuss visual representations of peace, as well as the ways in which the material culture and the built environment contributed to the cessation of war or the safeguarding of peace. We encourage papers that explore the relationship between justice and peace or examine how images of premodern peace either still affect our discussions today or open the door to a new way of thinking. We welcome papers that analyze the regional diversity or global connectivity of images of peace.

Session organizers
Jitske Jasperse
Diane Wolfthal