THE MERL SEMINARS: LOOKING AT LADYBIRD BOOKS
Like the English countryside, Ladybird Books often conjure up a world of nostalgia and heritage. Their purpose and their visual content link them firmly to childhood experience. This short series of talks by University of Reading experts runs in parallel to a major display of original Ladybird Books artwork currently hosted by our Arts Council […]
MARTIN SIMPSON: SONG MAPS AND RIDGEWAYS: SONGWRITING AND LANDSCAPES
We welcome back our popular collaboration with the Department of English Literature for a third exciting seminar series, Writing the Rural. This year’s talks are chaired jointly by Dr Paddy Bullard and by our current Research Fellow, writer Suzy Joinson. Their guests include the usual inspiring mix of writers and literary thinkers, as well as […]
WRITING IN A TIME OF ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS
We welcome back our popular collaboration with the Department of English Literature for a third exciting series, Writing the Rural. This year’s talks are chaired jointly by Dr Paddy Bullard and by our current Research Fellow, writer Suzy Joinson. Their guests include the usual inspiring mix of writers and literary thinkers, as well as folk musician […]
GRACEFUL CLODS: SOIL IN EIGHTEENTH CENTURY POETRY
We welcome back our popular collaboration with the Department of English Literature for a third exciting series, Writing the Rural. This year’s talks are chaired jointly by Dr Paddy Bullard and by our current Research Fellow, writer Suzy Joinson. Their guests include the usual inspiring mix of writers and literary thinkers, as well as folk musician […]
LANDSCAPE OF PLAY: DESIGN FOR CHILDREN’S PLAY
This year’s Friends of the Landscape Library and Archive at Reading (FOLAR) Symposium deals with design of children’s play and considers its future. There will be opportunities for discussion with question time after each talk and a general conversation with the speakers at the end of the day. Speakers Carley Sefton, Chief Executive, Learning Through […]
WRITING THE RURAL
We welcome back our popular collaboration with the Department of English Literature for a third exciting series, Writing the Rural. This year’s talks are chaired jointly by Dr Paddy Bullard and by our current Research Fellow, writer Suzy Joinson. Their guests include the usual inspiring mix of writers and literary thinkers, as well as folk […]
FRONTIERS: EXPLORING THE EDGE
Frontiers is a multi-site exhibition curated by third year Museum Studies students, showcasing the University of Reading’s diverse collections. Frontier: To be a frontier, or as a frontier; to border on or upon. Frontiers are seen as a physical border, but they can also act as conceptual borders of knowledge, actions, and discovery. Each subject […]
MORE THAN HUMAN
Join us for an evening of drinks, live music, activities and talks on the theme of plants, animals and machinery Live music – Cocktails by Milk Reading – Silent Disco This Late explores the non-human countryside, showcasing research and creative practice from the University of Reading and beyond. Join us for an evening of weather, […]
A CONVERSATION WITH MARIA MCKINNEY
Meet Maria McKinney, the artist behind Sire., the new photographic and sculptural intervention in our galleries. Find out how her powerful visual commentary weaves together folk traditions, genetics, livestock, and fertility. Discover why The MERL and its ‘absolute units’ played an important role in her research processes. Join us for a colourful conversation set to […]
MARIA MCKINNEY: SIRE.
Sire. by Maria McKinney is an innovative exploration of the themes of selective breeding and genetics in contemporary cattle farming, directly informed by The MERL’s collections of livestock portraiture and straw craft. The exhibition consists of nine largescale photographic portraits, taken at an Irish stud farm, that depict bulls wearing eccentric, multi-coloured sculptures mounted on […]