PriArc examines the relationship between architecture, print culture, and uses of the past in modern Europe and beyond.

Printing the Past. Architecture, Print Culture, and Uses of the Past in Modern Europe (PriArc) is an international, multidisciplinary research project funded by the Humanities in the European Research Area Program (HERA). Looking primarily at architectural debate from the 18th to early 20th century, we study the ways in which new notions of the past were negotiated and constructed through architecture. This negotiation took place not only in stone but on paper, not least in the illustrated press emerging from the 1830s onwards, spreading architectural texts and images to new audiences in Europe, European colonies, and USA.
Montage entitled 'The Most Famous Buildings in the World', showing a variety of well-known architectural landmarks from across the globe

PriArc

Printing the Past. Architecture, Print Culture, and Uses of the Past in Modern Europe (PriArc) is an international, multidisciplinary research project funded by the Humanities in the European Research Area Program (HERA). PriArc examines the relationship between architecture, print culture, and uses of the past in modern Europe and beyond. Looking primarily at architectural debate […]
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Transference

With the French revolution and the Napoleonic wars, not only the geographical but also the temporal map of Europe was redrawn. The new “historical-mindedness” of the 19th century is particularly noticeable when looking at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. With students coming from all over the world, the École’s influence spread over Europe, Eurasia and the Americas, continuing well into the 1960s. […]
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Legitimization

The new awareness of historical specificity emerging around 1800 entailed an increasing recognition of the geographical and chronological contingency of human culture and sparked new questions regarding historical development. When the past could no longer be seen as stable, uniform and universal, it seemed all the more urgent to understand the nature and causes of historical change. […]
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Preservation

Cultural heritage is a modern invention, emerging in the aftermath of the French revolution. It involved preserving actual monuments, of course, but surprisingly often, the rescue operation took place on paper, sparking questions regarding matter and discourse, durability and ephemerality, copy and original, which are still at the core of contemporary conservation and preservation efforts. […]
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Projection

The rise of popular print culture in the 19th century came during a period of massive civic upheaval, when infrastructural projects of unprecedented size and complexity were ripping through the physical and social fabric of urban metropolises. PriArc’s UCL-led initiative, Projection, seeks to understand the operation of this narrative of progress, mediated through printed visions of architecture and institutional collection strategies, in the past and in the present. […]
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Images of Egypt. The curators’ take

SEPTEMBER 20-DECEMBER 20, 2018
Historical Museum, Oslo

In July 1798, General Bonaparte invaded Egypt with an army of soldiers, engineers and scholars. One month later, Admiral Nelson destroyed the French fleet in the Battle of the Nile. Situated between Europe and India, Egypt now became the Middle East for European empires. Since then, images of Egyptian landscapes and monuments have circulated as […]
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Touring Belgium, Conference and tour

NOVEMBER 22-25, 2018
University of Ghent

Touring Belgium, A Nation’s Patrimony in Print ca 1795-1914 is a three-part PriArc event, starting with a one day PhD symposium and an open call-for-papers-conference at Ghent University, followed by a two-day tour of Belgium, visiting cities and places such as Ypres, Veurne, Ostend, and Waterloo. The tour studies uses of the past in many […]
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Sarcophagus of Seti I, 2017

The monolithic alabaster sarcophagus of Seti I, discovered in the Valley of the Kings by the explorer Giovanni Belzoni in 1817, was brought to London in 1821. In February 1824, it was purchased by the English architect Sir John Soane for the sum of £2000. This facsimile is produced by Factum Arte as part of […]
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David Hockney, The Magic Flute, 1977

In 1977, British artist David Hockney created a series of set designs for The Magic Flute for a performanceat Glyndebourne House in East Sussex, UK. In Outside the Temple, Hockney introduced images from the Déscription de l’Égypte to portray Sarastro’s kingdom and palace.The profile of Ramesses, figuring lower left, and the face resting against the […]
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Paul Iribe, Paw from a sphinx, 1923

Hollywood director Cecil B. DeMille made the first iteration of his biblical epic The Ten Commandments (1923) in the sand dunes of Guadalupe, California. The film set, erected by some one thousand workers, was designed by famed art deco fashion designer Paul Iribe. When the filming was over DeMille had the whole site bulldozed. Soon, the […]