Elites, Collecting, and Art Circulation in Modern Europe
May 20-21, 2026
Artes is extremely pleased to share this current ‘Call for Papers’ in relation to an international conference in Madrid on behalf of :
Àngel Campos-Perales
Assistant Professor
Department of Art History
Faculty of Fine Arts
Complutense University of Madrid
Please see details below:-
Center for Human and Social Sciences, CSIC, Madrid.
Members of European courts in the Early Modern period recognized themselves within a shared culture, derived from a way of being and conversing inherited and characteristic of a distinguished sphere.
Works of art, antiquities, and other objects associated with luxury consumption participated in this prestigious sociability. Thanks to these exchanges, artists traveled on the recommendation of, or were commissioned to serve, foreign courts, while markets for artworks with international destinations were fostered. Celebrations, receptions for illustrious members, and all the trappings of power relied on agents and experts who temporarily materialized artistic solutions, later disseminated to other courts through the contacts and travels of their participants. All of this required a complex logistical network, with a framework established within the diplomatic apparatus, but often also based on informal relationships or political positioning interests among aristocratic families and their respective servants.
This congress is interested in all the people who made this cultural and artistic expansion possible, their points of convergence and divergence, as well as the political and/or emotional instrumentalisation of artistic creations and their creators, with the ultimate goal of contributing new narratives to the European cultural heritage of the Early Modern period.
Panel 1. The Ephemeral as a Cultural Agent: Festival, Ceremony, and Representation. Beyond the exchange and circulation of artistic objects, the festival (courtly and urban) functioned, from the Middle Ages and throughout the Early Modern period, as a stage for the exchange of ideas, not only political, but also regarding changes and innovations in taste and new artistic trends.
The contribution of case studies that approach ceremonial practices from the perspective of contact and exchange between courts, institutions, or powers will be valued, emphasising the festival as a space for contact and exchange.
Panel 2. People, Works, and Ideas in Circulation. This panel proposes a reflection on the processes of circulation in the Early Modern period, understood as dynamic phenomena involving people (travellers, artists, diplomats), as well as artistic objects and ideas in constant movement between different regions of the world.
We invite you to submit proposals for papers that address the mobility of artworks, artistic exchanges, cultural diplomacy, or the circulation of knowledge, from a perspective that transcends geographical and disciplinary boundaries.
Panel 3. Advisors and Opinion Makers. In the Early Modern period, knowledgeable and expert figures became widespread, advising members of the less educated elite on acquisitions or commissions from artists. This section also welcomes contributions on dynamics of emulation among aristocratic families or affiliation with a particular political position through the use of similar or identical artistic promotions.
Panel 4. The Logistics of the Travel of Artworks. This section focuses on topics related to the material conditions of the commission and receipt, packaging, the most suitable means of transport for the physical nature of the gift, the people involved in transport, methods of presentation and safekeeping of the artworks, material losses and mechanisms for replacing lost items, etc.
Proposals should include a title, an abstract (300 words), and a brief CV.
Submissions will be accepted in Spanish, Italian, and English. Presentations will consist of 20 minutes, followed by a discussion period at the end of each session.
Participation and attendance at the conference are free of charge. The organisers will not be able to cover participants’ travel or accommodation expenses.
Deadline for submitting proposals: February 28, 2026
Email: artedelaedadmoderna@cchs.csic.es
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