Talk by Prof. John Cort

The School of Arts and Aesthetics, JNU is organising a talk by Prof. John Cort on the 5th of August, 2011, Friday. The details are as follows:

Title: The Shadow of “Authenticity”: Museums, Temples and the Display of Religious Icons

About the talk:  In this talk, Dr Cort will address the issues that arise when objects made for temple contexts move into the museum. How should such objects be displayed? What do they gain, and what do they lose, if they are presented as autonomous aesthetic objects? Conversely, if they are contextualised as ritual objects, does this deny them the right to be art? Taking up issues and specific instances, Dr Cort’s seminar will engage with issues of ‘authenticity,’ meaning, and value ascribed to art in shifting institutional locations.

Dr. Cort is an eminent scholar of Indian religion whose distinguished work has focussed on the place of temples, icons, texts and traditions in Jainism. His recent book, Framing the Jinas: Narratives of Icons and Idols in Jain History (New York, OUP, 2010) discusses Jain discourses and practices concerning temple images. He is Professor and Director, Department of Religion, Denison University.

Time: 4:30 pm

Tea: 4:00 pm

Venue: SAA Auditorium, JNU

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