Leeds Beckett University - City Campus,
Woodhouse Lane,
LS1 3HE
Leeds Beckett public talk to address 'urban history in an urban world'
Dr Shane Ewen, Senior Lecturer in Social and Cultural History at Leeds Beckett, will use examples from his new book: What is Urban History?, to explain urban history’s position in the wider world, and how, by using a combination of traditional and innovative research approaches, it can increase our understanding of global urban culture, from London to Shanghai.
The talk, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 12.30pm on Wednesday 9 December at Leeds Town Hall. It is the fourth instalment in the Leeds Cultural Conversations series, a collaborative venture by the Centre for Culture and the Arts (CCA) at Leeds Beckett and Leeds City Council, and sponsored by academic publisher, Palgrave Macmillan.
Dr Ewen said: “I am thrilled to be able to talk about the history of cities in such an iconic civic building. Leeds Town Hall was built to celebrate Leeds’s status as an international city in the mid-19th century, and my lecture will explore some of the ways that historians can research the history of big cities, like Leeds, in an overwhelmingly urban world.”
Dr Ewen, an urban historian, has been teaching at Leeds Beckett University since 2006, specialising in 19th and 20th century urban space, environmental crisis, disasters and municipal government. He added: “My talk, much like my book, is aimed at a wide audience – from people who are new to the field who want a better understanding of the evolution of urban history, to academics who want to brush up on key themes and features. Urban history is a thriving global sub-field of historical research and helps us to better understand the world.”
Dr Susan Watkins, Director of The Centre for Culture and the Arts at the University, added: “Dr Ewen’s research area is incredibly interesting given the seismic shift in urbanisation over the last century, most predominantly in developing countries. His talk will help to explain the historical factors that have caused such a momentous change.”
The LCC series sees some of the centres leading academics deliver lunchtime talks in some of the city’s most iconic buildings. Previous talks, presented by Dr Katy Shaw, Dr Andrew Lawson, Dr Emily Zobel Marshall and Professor Franco Bianchini, have attracted much public interest and evoked lively debates and thought provoking conversations.
The next instalment in the series, entitled ‘The real Fagin: The life and crimes of William Sheen’ presented by Dr Heather Shore, Reader in History, will take place in the new year on Wednesday 13 January. For more information on the series please visit www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/LCC.
What is Urban History? published by Polity Books, is available to buy now.
The full list of talks in the series is:
Doing urban history in an urban world - Dr Shane Ewen, Senior Lecturer in Social and Cultural History. Wednesday 9 December 2015 12.30, Sullivan Room, Leeds Town Hall.
The real Fagin: the life and crimes of William Sheen - Dr Heather Shore, Reader in History. Wednesday 13 January 2015 12.30, Albert Room, Leeds Town Hall.
Pride of place: LGBTQ histories and heritage - Professor Alison Oram, Professor of Social and Cultural History. Wednesday 10 February 2016 12.30, Albert Room, Leeds Town Hall.
Women, visibility and playful acts - Dr Liz Stirling, Dr Casey Orr, Jo Hassall, Laura Robinson. Wednesday 9 March 2016 12.30, Albert Room, Leeds Town Hall.
Cooking without a clock: women, domesticity and timekeeping in nineteenth century Europe. - Dr Rachel Rich, Senior Lecturer in European History. Wednesday 13 April 2016 12.30, Denny Room, Leeds City Museum.
Eastern European ‘show trials’ of the 1950s: the Slansky case - Dr Kelly Hignett, Senior Lecturer in History. Wednesday 11 May 2016 12.30, Court Room, Leeds Town Hall.