CfA – Postgraduate summer course on “Urban governance and civic participation in words and stone. Urbanism in Central Europe 1200-1600” at Central European University (CEU) in Budapest, Hungary, July 19 – July 28, 2021
Application deadline: February 14, 2021
This course aims to examine the notion of civic participation through a critical lens and against a longer historical perspective. It will seek its origins in political thought and explore its forms of expression in written and visual media. The geographical focus of study will be Central Europe which provides a rich wellspring of sources and a fascinating field for interdisciplinary research combining art history, social history, pragmatic literacy, and urban planning. This course will place a strong emphasis on the issues of preservation, protection, and the value of conceptual and built heritage for modern societies.
The aims and methods of this course are closely aligned with current scholarly trends. Cities and towns have been the subject of historical, archaeological and architectural investigations, as well as studies on political thought. These studies have generated debates on the creation and growth of towns; on the role of seigniorial power, civic initiatives and external forces in these processes; and on the role of migration, colonization and cultural transfer in the spread of urbanization – just to name a few. The contribution of this course to the ongoing debates will be to link closely the administrative and spatial/architectural aspects, and to place Central Europe centre stage in a broader comparative perspective
Accepted participants will have sight visits in Budapest and go on a 3-day fieldtrip to Prague (4 nights’ accommodation and travel will be covered for them).
Financial aid is available.