29/06/2026 - 02/07/2026

Beyond the Canon

Anomalies and transgressions in the art of ancient Egypt

This course offers an academic and critical analysis of ancient Egyptian art through the study of those manifestations that deviate from the canonical models traditionally defined by historiography. Contrary to the conception of Egyptian art as a rigid, normative system with limited creativity, the program focuses on identifying and contextualizing anomalies, transgressions, and exceptional formal solutions that demonstrate dynamics of change, adaptation, and artistic experimentation.

The chronological journey, spanning from the Predynastic Period to the Greco-Roman Era, allows for an examination of the persistence and transformation of these phenomena within diverse historical, political, religious, and cultural contexts. Furthermore, the course offers students the opportunity to address issues and case studies rarely covered in standard teaching, as well as to learn about recent lines of research and projects in the fields of Egyptology and Art History. In this way, it fosters a methodologically rigorous and up-to-date approach to the study of Egyptian art, geared towards a more complex and nuanced understanding of its creative processes and conceptual frameworks.

 

Program

 

Monday, June 29
10:00–12:00 h. Image and writing at the service of power: the visual and textual construction of royalty in ancient Egypt
Shih-Wei Hsu. Ramón y Cajal Fellow, Centre for Human and Social Sciences, Department of Ancient Near Eastern Studies, CSIC.

12:00–14:00 h. Transgressing “decorum”: expressiveness and affection in Amarna art
Inmaculada Vivas Sainz. Contracted Professor, Department of Art History, UNED. Member of the C2 Project.

 

Tuesday, 30 for June
10:00–12:00 h. When the normal seems anomalous: market scenes in the Old Kingdom
Andrés Diego Espinel. Senior Scientist, Centre for Human and Social Sciences, Department of Ancient Near Eastern Studies, CSIC.

12:00–14:00 h. Shaping the canon: Swimmers in the desert and fantastic animals in Egyptian rock art
Antonio Muñoz Herrera. Egyptologist and postdoctoral researcher at the C2 Project, Complutense University of Madrid.

 

Wednesday, July 1
10:00–12:00 h. Invisible and marginalized: images of inequality in ancient Egypt
Beatriz Jiménez Meroño. Honorary Professor, Department of Ancient History, Medieval History and Paleography and Diplomatics, Autonomous University of Madrid.

12:00–14:00 h. Frontality and perspective: illogic and visual play in the art of ancient Egypt
Gema Menéndez Gómez. Assistant Professor, Department of Art History, UNED.

 

Thursday, July 2
10:00–12:00 h. Iconography of Kushite women in the royal court and in the cult of the deity: the case of Aashyt
Begoña Gugel Gironés. Egyptologist and member of the Two Zero Nine Project, University of La Laguna.

12:00–14:00 h. Hic sunt dracones: hybrids and limitless beings in Egyptian art
Francisco Luis Borrego Gallardo. Contracted Professor with a PhD, Department of Ancient History, Medieval History and Paleography and Diplomatics, Higher Center for Studies of the Near East and Ancient Egypt, Autonomous University of Madrid.

Enrollment

This event has ended
Date:
29.06.2026 - 02.07.2026
Schedule:
10 to 14h
Price:
32 € - € 124
DIRECTED BY:

Gema Menéndez Gómez

Coordination
Francisco Luis Borrego Gallardo