Americas Research Seminar

(supported by the Humanities Research Centre)

Professor Linda Biesele Hall, Department of History, University of New

Mexico, will talk on

Dolores del Río: Beauty, Celebrity, and Power in Two Cultures

Wednesday 23 May 2012, 17:00, H3.03

All Welcome

Dolores del Río’s dazzling beauty in her late teens and early 20s led to her discovery

and enormous success in U.S. films, beginning in 1925 and lasting into the early

1940s. She became an instant celebrity, and careful handling of publicity positioned

her as white rather than indigenous. Her popularity and the power that resulted

from it helped legitimate ideas of Mexicans as acceptable romantic partners for

Anglo stars, as she regularly appeared in such roles, despite the fact that the era was

replete with concerns about miscegenation between whites and indigenous and

African-America peoples, whatever their ethnicity. Indeed, she was billed as the

female Valentino, the dark female romantic counterpart to that early 1920s male

film phenomenon. On her return to Mexico in the early 1940s, she found that her

renown in the United States led to great pride in her achievements among Mexicans

and gave her a position of power to participate in, to influence artistically, and to

gather around her the best talents for the Mexican Golden Age of film. Different

notions of beauty and celebrity and power in Mexico, as opposed to the United

States, made it possible for her to establish herself as one of Mexican cinema's

greatest stars.

Spring Programme 2012

'The Local and the Global: Rethinking the History of "British" India’, Public Lecture by Prof Emeritus David Arnold. 24 May 2012, 4pm, MS.04, Followed by a festive celebration of the Centre's 5-year anniversary

The ‘Warwick Network for Parish Research’ invites you to explore parish history, culture and heritage at its anniversary symposium:

‘Parish Studies Today’

Tenth Warwick Symposium on Parish Research

25 –27 May 2012 (Friday evening to Sunday afternoon)

Scarman House, University of Warwick

In 2012 we mark the 10th anniversary of the Parish Symposium by teaming up with the British Association for Local History and the Centre for the Study of Christianity and Culture for a weekend of parish-related research and initiatives. ‘Parish Studies Today’ will bring together individuals and groups interested in parish history, culture and heritage to showcase the great variety of work pursued in the field across Britain and Europe from the Middle Ages to the present day. We offer a unique opportunity for collaboration and exchange of ideas between academic and independent researchers, preservation organizations and local communities in the comfortable surroundings of a modern conference centre.

Parallel sessions will feature a diverse range of research and project presentations, panel discussions and methodological workshops. A fair of project displays and promotional stalls will run alongside. Topics of investigation include:

· parish communities past and present

· efforts to interpret & preserve parish art, archives, architecture and material culture

· relationships between parishes, monasteries and local authorities

· digital reconstructions of period church interiors

· recent research projects conducted in Continental Europe

· poor relief and local charities

· acoustic dimensions of post-reformation parishes

· local magic and healing practices

· and much, much more

We are particularly pleased to announce four plenary lectures by leading parish scholars:

• Martin Crampin (University of Wales, Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies): ‘Discovering the Visual Culture of Welsh Parish Churches in the Modern Age’
• Prof. em. Chris Dyer (University of Leicester, Centre for English Local History): ‘Have historians been too sentimental about the village community, 1334-1540?’
• Prof. John Harper (Bangor University, School of Music): ‘Exploring the experience of worship in the late medieval parish church’
• Dr Penny Roberts (Warwick, History): ‘Conflict and Violence in the French Urban Parish in the Age of the Reformation’

! A provisional schedule of session contents / times is attached to this message – please note that all programme items are still subject to change !

General Information

Thanks to the generous support of our partner institutions and the Humanities Research Centre of the University of Warwick, we are able to offer conference packages ranging from £80 (for registration and lunches only) to £237.50 (full residential rate with evening meals and 2 overnight stays; reduced student pricing also available). Places are limited, so please register online now at:

http://go.warwick.ac.uk/parishsymposium/2012/registration

These prices are valid until 14 March 2012, so please book now. A surcharge of £20 will be applied to non-student rates for later registrations (final deadline: 23 April 2012). Our venue is the acclaimed Scarman House Conference Centre on Warwick’s central campus, within easy reach from Coventry and Leamington Spa train / bus stations and Midlands motorways. For facilities and directions see:

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/conferences/scarman

During the registration process, delegates will have the opportunity to create a page on the new MyParish website, which will eventually showcase the wide range of parish-related initiatives beyond the Symposium. The organizers would also be very grateful if all participants could complete a brief survey of their activities and expectations.

Please note: all participants (incl. speakers) must register online before 23 April 2012 (for preferential rates: before 14 March 2012)!

As an unfunded informal organisation, the Parish Network is regrettably unable to cover the fees of all active participants on top of bearing all organizational expenses. We count on your understanding.

For further information and regular updates consult the Symposium website at:

http://go.warwick.ac.uk/parishsymposium/2012

Please print our poster and circulate this information to individuals, research groups and organisations with interests in parish research, heritage and culture.

Contact: Beat Kümin, b.kumin@warwick.ac.uk

Dear colleague

The Digital Change programme has money to pump-prime projects relevant to its theme in the arts and social sciences. If you have a research project with a digital element that might lead to a larger grant or would like to experiment with technologies in your research in some way then please complete the simple form athttp://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/gpp/digitalchange/funding_bidding/pumpprime/. The funding will cover up to £2k but this should be spent by the end of the university’s financial year (31 July).

Feel free to contact me if you would like more information or would like to run an idea by me.

The GPP is also hosting a number of events in the near future: Embracing digital tools (17 May, 12-1); Multi-author blogging (29 May, 12-1); Building a digital infrastructure (tba); and Making an Impact with digital media (tba). Further details will appear shortly on the Digital Change website at http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/gpp/digitalchange.

Mark Knights

Digital Change GPP lead