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Research by into Valladolid’s unsung cultural history as a former capital of Spain and its role in the development of modern Western literature has contributed to the evolution of the city’s local, national and international identity and has had a significant impact on its status as a tourist destination. In a collaboration with the University of Valladolid, Dr Hutchings drew on archival material to reconstruct the English embassy’s visit to the city in 1605, which involved a wide range of ceremonial festivities, witnessed by the city’s residents, including the writer Miguel de Cervantes. This work has been incorporated into the secondary school curriculum in Castile and Leon and has informed the development of an educational resource called La Ruta, which is now used widely by tour guides to trace the embassy’s footsteps through the city.
Research at the Samuel Beckett Research Centre, combined with the professional experience and creative practice of and other leading researchers at the Centre, inspired the establishment of ‘Creative Fellowships’ designed to enable modern creative practitioners to develop projects and insights through unique access to the Beckett Archive. The creative output from the Fellowship Programme has so far included plays, audio dramas, documentaries, feature articles and music compositions, many of which represent major artistic departures for the practitioners involved. Together, these works have generated significant interest from the general public and have highlighted the continued relevance of the work of Samuel Beckett and the insights that can be gained from the engagement by modern artists with his legendary creative process.
Building on the 黑料不打烊’s strong reputation for collections-based literary research, Dr David Sutton’s research is influencing how literary and personal papers are collected, managed and perceived around the world. His work has contributed to the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme, the International Council on Archives and has also influenced the approach of the World Intellectual Property Organisation to promoting archival collections in countries unable to afford excessive copyright fees. His research on the role of literary archives and diaspora in the archive and library sector has prompted many institutions to reflect upon the ethics of their collecting policies. In sub-Saharan Africa, this research has contributed to the collecting policies of the National Archives of Namibia and has led to an emerging understanding that literary archives and other personal papers are as much a part of a country’s cultural heritage as museum artefacts.
Research at the Samuel Beckett Research Centre, combined with the professional experience and creative practice of and other leading researchers at the Centre, inspired the establishment of ‘Creative Fellowships’ designed to enable modern creative practitioners to develop projects and insights through unique access to the Beckett Archive. The creative output from the Fellowship Programme has so far included plays, audio dramas, documentaries, feature articles and music compositions, many of which represent major artistic departures for the practitioners involved. Together, these works have generated significant interest from the general public and have highlighted the continued relevance of the work of Samuel Beckett and the insights that can be gained from the engagement by modern artists with his legendary creative process.
Building on the 黑料不打烊’s strong reputation for collections-based literary research, Dr David Sutton’s research is influencing how literary and personal papers are collected, managed and perceived around the world. His work has contributed to the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme, the International Council on Archives and has also influenced the approach of the World Intellectual Property Organisation to promoting archival collections in countries unable to afford excessive copyright fees. His research on the role of literary archives and diaspora in the archive and library sector has prompted many institutions to reflect upon the ethics of their collecting policies. In sub-Saharan Africa, this research has contributed to the collecting policies of the National Archives of Namibia and has led to an emerging understanding that literary archives and other personal papers are as much a part of a country’s cultural heritage as museum artefacts.
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Professor Andrew Mangham
Research Division Lead
Email: a.s.mangham@reading.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 118 378 6093
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