Sensory Decay Symposium (online)

2 November, 2023 at 12 AM-3 November, 2023 at 12 AM

Netherlands
Online

An international online forum from the ‘Sensing the Past’ Research Group (University of Amsterdam). Registration is free!

Sensing decay in a constructed environment is a multisensory experience. The stages of decay can be transitory and ever-changing. The sensory complexity of decay may be added to or confused by concurrent processes of remaking, rebuilding, and renewal. The symposium aims to consider how we can isolate and record the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells of decay within the continuum of deterioration. In tandem, we seek to recognize how particular sensory aspects of decay may prompt cultural responses and actions – this could include the aestheticization of architectural ruins, for instance. Our senses also provide tools to analyze the presence of decay and its temporal stages, for example, in material heritage conservation. A particular methodological challenge is how we, as sensory analysts across disciplines, can record our own often numerous but fast decaying experiences as avenues to questioning and interpreting the past, such as in experimental archaeology.

Join us for this 2-day symposium exploring the role of decay and its interaction with the senses in historic environments.  Sessions include: Individual Experience and Sensory Decay, Engaging the Senses in Evolving Cultural Landscapes, Sniffing Out Decay, and an Open Session.