Author Spotlight: Caroline Bruzelius
Meet another one of our wonderful authors: Dr. Caroline Bruzelius.
"I have contributed one article to Medieval World: Culture & Conflict issue 5 - an article on “Sicily Through the Centuries: Destruction, Change, and Renewal" (pp. 40-43). This is a short piece that focuses on the importance of historic images (prints, paintings, photographs) that are collected in The Medieval Kingdom of Sicily Image Database https://kos.aahvs.duke.edu/ as a point of departure for understanding the many moments of profound change on the island."
"My field is the history of medieval architecture in France and Italy. I am deeply engaged in the process of construction, in the “physical facts” of a building, and how a structure’s design reflects social, political, and economic considerations.
I have worked on great buildings in France (the abbey of St.-Denis, the Cathedral of Notre-Dame, among others) as well as the architecture of medieval Naples and South Italy more generally. I have also been deeply engaged in the use of digital technologies for understanding and representing change over time in cities and buildings.
I’d love for the readers of Medieval World to recognize that buildings and places, such as cities and landscapes, have an on-going “life” that is fascinating, and the result of powerful political and cultural change.
Sicily is a stunning example, because so much has happened on this island: it has been under the control and power of so many different rulers and regimes from Antiquity to the present, and each historical period has left its mark. But uncovering the “life” of the monuments and cities of an island like Sicily takes detective work - sleuthing – the past is like a mystery that people like me try to discover, understand and explain to others through writing and lecturing."
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I am enthralled not only by European History but also by those, like yourself, who dedicate their lives to learning and sharing with others the very most that can be known, at least up to our generation. I have always wanted to be a Professor of History, at some famous European University, having written a wide range of books and presentations on all the things I have learned and discovered in life, so others, such as the “real” me (now) can still benefit from much of what others, thankfully, are able to convey.