41st Annual Medieval and Renaissance Forum:

Scent and Fragrance in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance

Keene State College

Keene, NH, USA

Friday and Saturday April 17-18, 2020



Call for Papers and Sessions

We are delighted to announce that the 41st Medieval and Renaissance
Forum: Scent and Fragrance in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance will
take place on Friday, April 17 and Saturday April 18, 2020 at Keene
State College in Keene, New Hampshire.



We welcome abstracts (one page or less) or panel proposals that
discuss smell and fragrance in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.



Papers and sessions, however, need not be confined to this theme but
may cover other aspects of medieval and Renaissance life, literature,
languages, art, philosophy, theology, history, and music.



This year’s keynote speaker is Deirdre Larkin, Managing Horticulturist
at The Cloisters Museum and Gardens from 2007 to 2013, who will speak
on “Every Fragrant Herb: The Medieval Garden and the Gardens of The
Cloisters.”



Deirdre Larkin is a horticulturist and historian of plants and
gardens. She holds an MA in the history of religions from Princeton
University and received her horticultural training at the New York
Botanical Garden. She was associated with the Gardens of The Cloisters
for more than twenty years and was responsible for all aspects of
their development, design, and interpretation. Ms. Larkin was the
originator of and principal contributor to the Medieval Garden
Enclosed blog, published on the MMA website from 2008 through 2013.
Ms. Larkin lectures frequently for museums, historical societies, and
horticultural organizations. In 2017, she was a Mellon Visiting
Scholar at the Humanities Institute of the New York Botanical Garden,
where she researched the fortunes and reputations of medieval European
plants now naturalized in North America. Her gardens in upstate New
York serve as a laboratory for further investigations in the field.

Students, faculty, and independent scholars are welcome. Please
indicate your status (undergraduate, graduate, or faculty),
affiliation (if relevant), and full contact information (including
email address) on your proposal.


For the first time this year, all graduate students will be eligible
for consideration for the South Wind Graduate Student Paper Award. The
winner of the South Wind Graduate Student Paper Award will be
announced at lunch on Friday, April 17, 2020.



We welcome undergraduate sessions, but ask that students obtain a
faculty member's approval and sponsorship.



Please submit abstracts, audio/visual needs, and full contact
information to Dr. Robert G. Sullivan, Assistant Forum Director at
sullivan@german.umass.edu.



Abstract deadline: January 15, 2020



Presenters and early registration: March 15, 2020



As always, we look forward to greeting returning and first-time
participants to Keene in April!