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Rust, Regeneration and Romance Conference

10 July 2013–14 July 2013, 12:00 am–12:00 am

Ironworks

Event Information

Open to

All

Location

Ironbridge, UK

The University of Birmingham's Ironbridge International Institute for Cultural Heritage and the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust are hosting a conference in July entitled Rust, Regeneration and Romance: Iron and Steel Landscapes and Cultures in July 2013. 

This conference's general theme will be iron and steel landscapes in ancient and modern cultures through a multi-disciplinary approach. Academics and professionals from all fields are invited to participate in open discussion on the subject of iron and how it has shaped both our environments and ourselves over the millennias. The theme will focus on the relationaships that communities, regions, and nations share with iron and steel through its functional uses, its creative and artistic uses, and its symbolic uses.

The conference will be held in the inconic Ironbridge Gorge Museum, considered one of the birthplaces of the industrial revolution. Of particular interest to the organisers are how governments and communities deal with both the expansion and decline of the iron and steel industries, but also how heritage preservation and regeneration can shape social and political life. Other themes to be covered by the conference will include:

  • Understanding iron and steel landscapes - historic and contemporary perspectives
  • Human - technology relationships
  • Challenges in the presentation and interpretation of iron and steel heritage
  • Touring and tourism in iron and steel landscapes
  • Histories and ethnographies of iron and steel communities - labour relations and working environments
  • Architectural tropes surrounding mining and fabrication
  • Representations of iron and steel cultures in the 'popular' media
  • The 'cultural industries' (arts, sport, tourism, etc.) in the regeneration of iron and steel communities
  • Languages of steel cities - dialects and territories
  • Symbolic economies of iron and steel - iconography, art and design

Abstracts of 300 words should be sent to ironbridge@contacts.bham.ac.uk by the 31st of January 2013 deadline. Submitters should make sure to include a clear title and full contact details.

For more information, please visit the conference website.