Shandy Hall trip and Thanks

On Friday we held the final Spaces in Theory meeting at Shandy Hall. We began with a tour of the house kindly led by the engaging and knowledgeable Patrick Wildgust, taking in the house's recently discovered sixteenth century wall paintings, the famous bust of Sterne produced by Joseph Nollekens, and Sterne's souvenir china cow (!) Patrick then led us into a discussion of the relationship between Sterne and Elizabeth Draper, the subject of Shandy Hall's current exhibition.

The exhibition puts Sterne and Draper's relationship into context, featuring Sterne's letters and Eliza's forged replies, reproductions of the gifts that passed between the two and artistic responses to their relationship and separation. In addition it introduces the art of eighteenth-century letter writing.

After enjoying the exhibition we then had the privilege of visiting the bedroom created for, but never used by, Eliza. An eerie and emotional space, the room features an installation by Carolyn Thompson which explores the truths and fictions surrounding Sterne and Draper's relationship."Folie a Deux" is an elaborate coverlet created using eighteenth-century techniques and embroidered with copies of Sterne's letters.

There is still time to catch this wonderful exhibition which runs until June 29th.

Finally, we would like to say a big thank you to everyone who helped with and participated in the reading group over the last year; we've had a fantastic time.

- Laurie and Helen.

Readings for Shandy Hall trip (18th May)

We've chosen some short readings to accompany the final Spaces in Theory meeting at Shandy Hall this Friday:

• Paul Munden, "Obsession", "Grass", and "DIY" in Asterisk*, illus. by Marion Frith (Sheffield: Smith/Doorstop, 2011), pp.14-17; 42-43.
• Laurence Sterne, Journal to Eliza, ed. by Wilbur Cross (New York: Taylor, 1904).
• Laurajane Smith, Uses of Heritage (London, Routledge, 2006). Subsection from Chapter 2 ("Heritage as a Cultural Process") entitled "Place", pp.74-80.

For those joining us, here's a brief itinerary:

We'll depart from outside Londis at 1pm, to arrive around 2.30 pm. We'll look around the exhibition in the gallery space then view the installation in Eliza's room in Shandy Hall. After that, we'll have a discussion in the gardens if it's sunny, or perhaps the Old Kitchen, followed by a walk around into the village to see the church, village pub and/or tea rooms. We'll leave around 4.30 pm and return to campus at around 6pm. And a gentle reminder: transport is free but entry to Shandy Hall costs £4.50.

If anybody is not on the mailing list and would like copies of the texts just email us, as usual, at spacestheory@hotmail.co.uk.

See you on Friday!

Spaces in Theory trip - Literary Houses: Theory and Practice

We're excited to announce that on Friday the 18th of May we will be holding the reading group at Shandy Hall, the literary house where Laurence Sterne lived and wrote his most famous works. Attendees will also be able to view the Precious Cargo exhibition, which explores Sterne’s epistolary relationship with Mrs Eliza Draper as she sailed back to India on an East India vessel.

We hope the location, the readings (to be confirmed) and the exhibition will inspire discussion and debate on such themes as literary pilgrimage and tourism, Empire, site-specific writing, artists/writers in residence, and the interpretation of historic spaces and places through art installations and curatorial practice.

Places are limited, so we ask that all postgraduates and staff book their places before Friday 30th of March by emailing spacestheory@hotmail.co.uk. There will be a small fee of £4.50, payable on the day. We will set off from Northumbria at 1pm and full travel information will be circulated before the trip.

For more on Shandy Hall and the Laurence Sterne Trust visit http://laurencesternetrust.org.uk/. Information about the Precious Cargo exhibition can also be found here: http://laurencesternetrust.org.uk/.

Summary of October Meeting

Tristram charts the plots of the first four volumes of

Tristram Shandy, 1762 (vol. 6, ch. 40, p. 152).

Thank you to everyone who turned up for Friday’s reading group, we hope you enjoyed the discussion. For the curious who didn’t make it, here’s a brief summary:

After some appropriately nomadic wandering from Lipman building to Squires building in search of a suitable room, we watched Penny Grennan’s short film A Journey Around my Life with a glass of white wine (Helen forgot the red). We then pondered the distinction between charts and maps, the influence of Laurence Sterne and Descartes on de Maistre, and the complex fusion of seriality and plot in Penny’s film. There was also a healthy debate about the economy of travel theory proposed by Georges Van Den Abbeele and how perhaps nomadic cultures (and even rambling texts) are difficult to assimilate to the A to B kind of travel that he favours. This led to a consideration of a changing or multiple sense of ‘home’. We also discussed ennui, walking, typographic margins and textual spaces, and the securing of national boundaries arising from the French Revolution. Quite a mixture!

The next meeting will be Friday 18th November, when Laurie McKee will introduce some Robin Hood texts which we will be comparing to Derrida’s theory of hospitality. Red wine will be available, and keep your eyes peeled for a confirmation of the room, as our usual one seems to be missing a computer. If you want to plan ahead even further, the 2011/12 schedule can be found here. Laurie’s extracts will be circulated in early November.

In the meantime, keep checking our ‘Useful Pages’ tab - it's regularly updated with related links and CFPs.