Program

Welcome (9:00am – 9:05am)
Justin White (Yale University)

Session 1: Defining and Redefining Ekphrasis and Its Poetics (9:05am – 10:45am) 

  • Verity Platt (Cornell University) – Temporalities of Stone, Hand, and Light in Posidippus’ Lithika (20 minutes)
  • Ruth Webb (Université de Lille) – The politics and poetics of Paul the Silentiary’s ekphrasis of Hagia Sophia: ekphrasis in/and action (20 minutes)
  • Milette Gaifman (Yale University) – Response (15 minutes)
  • General Discussion (45 minutes)

Coffee Break (10:45am – 11:00am)
Koffee Katering Coffee and Snacks

Session 2: The Poetics of Ekphrasis in the Ancient Near East (11:00am – 12:40pm)

  • Beate Pongratz-Leisten (New York University) – Textual and Pictorial Tradition Revolving Around The Warrior Deity Ningirsu/Ninurta and the Performative Power of Ekphrasis (20 minutes)
  • Jacqueline Vayntrub (Yale University) – In the Eye of the Beholder: Describing Failing Bodies in Biblical Prophecy and Wisdom (20 minutes)
  • Cory Crawford (Ohio University) – Response (15 minutes)
  • General Discussion (45 minutes)

Lunch (12:40pm – 1:40pm)
Koffee Katering Sandwiches and Salad

Session 3: Ekphrasis in the New Testament and Early Christian Literature (1:40pm – 3:20pm)

  • Meghan Henning (University of Dayton) – Apocalyptic Ekphrasis and the Afterlife in Matthew 25: Vividness, Verisimilitude, and Mixed Messages (20 minutes)
  • Robyn Whitaker (University of Divinity) – Agonistic Ekphrasis: Word versus Image in John’s Apocalypse (20 minutes)
  • Neville McFerrin (Ohio University) – Response (15 minutes)

  • General Discussion (45 minutes)

Break (3:20pm – 3:35pm)
Koffee Katering Coffee and Snacks

Closing Discussion and Remarks (3:35pm – 4:15pm)
Cory Crawford (Ohio University)
Justin White (Yale University)

If you are interested in attending the conference, please register.

The conference is supported by the generosity of:
– The Edward J. and Dorothy Clarke Kempf Memorial Fund and the MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale
– Yale Program in Judaic Studies
– The Viscusi Fund of the Department of Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations at Yale University
– Yale Divinity School
– Yale Department of Religious Studies
– Archaia: Yale Program for the Study of Ancient and Premodern Cultures and Societies