Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SciFair (Science at the Fair: Performing Knowledge and Technology in Western Europe, 1850-1914)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-04-01 bis 2024-09-30
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, travelling fairgrounds played a crucial role in informing people about the latest scientific developments. The EU-funded Science at the Fair project performs pioneering research on the role itinerant show people played in the dissemination of information about scientific and technological advances at fairs in western Europe between 1850 and 1914.
It was a time when modern means of communication were not yet available and only a minority of the population could read and travel. Large groups of people depended on travelling shows and exhibitions for information: in anatomical cabinets, zoological and anthropological museums, as well as scientific theatres, fairground performers showed 'wonders of nature' and spectacular scientific developments. The project is based on the hypothesis that fairs during this period were not only local folk events but also hubs of international exchange. Itinerant entertainment played a pivotal and modernizing role in the circulation and popularization of science and knowledge amongst people across the social spectrum, relying on efficient international networks.
A multilingual and multidisciplinary team of researchers analyses practices of science performance across national frontiers and maps transnational networks of western European travelling shows and displays. The team not only studies explicit didactic discourses but also examines how implicit knowledge and social values of health, gender, nation, class or race were challenged or reinforced. By analysing the fair as a performative event, the project will advance a conceptual shift in media historiography to a historiography of media performance and thus contribute to our understanding of the fairground’s social and cultural role in knowledge circulation. The project will also contribute to the recognition by UNESCO and safeguarding of funfair culture as intangible European cultural heritage.
It was a time when modern means of communication were not yet available and only a minority of the population could read and travel. Large groups of people depended on travelling shows and exhibitions for information: in anatomical cabinets, zoological and anthropological museums, as well as scientific theatres, fairground performers showed 'wonders of nature' and spectacular scientific developments. The project is based on the hypothesis that fairs during this period were not only local folk events but also hubs of international exchange. Itinerant entertainment played a pivotal and modernizing role in the circulation and popularization of science and knowledge amongst people across the social spectrum, relying on efficient international networks.
A multilingual and multidisciplinary team of researchers analyses practices of science performance across national frontiers and maps transnational networks of western European travelling shows and displays. The team not only studies explicit didactic discourses but also examines how implicit knowledge and social values of health, gender, nation, class or race were challenged or reinforced. By analysing the fair as a performative event, the project will advance a conceptual shift in media historiography to a historiography of media performance and thus contribute to our understanding of the fairground’s social and cultural role in knowledge circulation. The project will also contribute to the recognition by UNESCO and safeguarding of funfair culture as intangible European cultural heritage.
During this reporting period, the team initiated mapping, inventorying and digitizing primary sources, alongside collecting and processing secondary literature.
Digitization of Key Sources:
The SciFair project drove efforts to digitize precarious fairground-related materials across Europe, safeguarding significant collections including anatomical wax models, posters, postcards, flyers and historic letters sourced from private collections and institutions. Noteworthy collections digitized include anatomical wax models and posters from a private Antwerp collection, historic fairground flyers and posters from a Brussels antique shop, and graphic and postcard troves from Essen's former Markt-und Schaustellermuseum.
Showpeople Unions Research:
The project significantly advanced the digitization of showpeople unions' periodicals, providing a corpus of journals from France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands, totaling over 25,000 pages. Analyses of these sources informed publications on showpeople unions’ impact on international funfair networks and the roles of women in the business.
Archival Research Projects:
Comprehensive archival research projects were undertaken in different collections over 5 countries by PhD students and Postdocs, examining the circulation of knowledge, media and visual culture. Investigation into anatomical wax models, X-ray photography and early visual media and objects led to numerous conference presentations and publications. These projects facilitated comparative analysis to identify trends in fairground technology and explore European fairground culture. The development of a theoretical framework for analysing performing science and objects at 18th- and 19th-century fairgrounds will result in two edited book volume publications.
Database
A tailored database allows the team to manage significant amounts of data from different sources, geographical regions and families. The database will make accessible a multitude of unique and hard-to-find resources, thus contributing to the preservation of this unique European heritage. The project also contributed to the UNESCO application on funfair culture as intangible cultural heritage, an international application submitted by Belgium and France in March 2023 in close cooperation with the fairground communities in France and Belgium.
Collaboration with Museums:
Collaborations with museums and heritage institutions, particularly Teylers Museum and GUM Museum, enriched research opportunities and facilitated science communication initiatives. These collaborations resulted in presentations at Science Festivals, temporary exhibitions, and ongoing talks for future exhibitions.
Communication and Dissemination:
Research findings were communicated through the SciFair project website, newsletters, blog articles and social media, reaching a wide audience. We launched a citizen science project ‘Snapshots of the Fairground’ citizen science project online and distributed postcards during the opening weekend of Belgium's largest funfair (Sinksenfoor). Additionally, the project was introduced at numerous international conferences and participated in public events, ensuring broad outreach and engagement.
Digitization of Key Sources:
The SciFair project drove efforts to digitize precarious fairground-related materials across Europe, safeguarding significant collections including anatomical wax models, posters, postcards, flyers and historic letters sourced from private collections and institutions. Noteworthy collections digitized include anatomical wax models and posters from a private Antwerp collection, historic fairground flyers and posters from a Brussels antique shop, and graphic and postcard troves from Essen's former Markt-und Schaustellermuseum.
Showpeople Unions Research:
The project significantly advanced the digitization of showpeople unions' periodicals, providing a corpus of journals from France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands, totaling over 25,000 pages. Analyses of these sources informed publications on showpeople unions’ impact on international funfair networks and the roles of women in the business.
Archival Research Projects:
Comprehensive archival research projects were undertaken in different collections over 5 countries by PhD students and Postdocs, examining the circulation of knowledge, media and visual culture. Investigation into anatomical wax models, X-ray photography and early visual media and objects led to numerous conference presentations and publications. These projects facilitated comparative analysis to identify trends in fairground technology and explore European fairground culture. The development of a theoretical framework for analysing performing science and objects at 18th- and 19th-century fairgrounds will result in two edited book volume publications.
Database
A tailored database allows the team to manage significant amounts of data from different sources, geographical regions and families. The database will make accessible a multitude of unique and hard-to-find resources, thus contributing to the preservation of this unique European heritage. The project also contributed to the UNESCO application on funfair culture as intangible cultural heritage, an international application submitted by Belgium and France in March 2023 in close cooperation with the fairground communities in France and Belgium.
Collaboration with Museums:
Collaborations with museums and heritage institutions, particularly Teylers Museum and GUM Museum, enriched research opportunities and facilitated science communication initiatives. These collaborations resulted in presentations at Science Festivals, temporary exhibitions, and ongoing talks for future exhibitions.
Communication and Dissemination:
Research findings were communicated through the SciFair project website, newsletters, blog articles and social media, reaching a wide audience. We launched a citizen science project ‘Snapshots of the Fairground’ citizen science project online and distributed postcards during the opening weekend of Belgium's largest funfair (Sinksenfoor). Additionally, the project was introduced at numerous international conferences and participated in public events, ensuring broad outreach and engagement.
The SciFair project aims to advance the state of the art in understanding the role of fairgrounds in science popularization in several ways:
Transnational Historical Study: SciFair investigates fairgrounds as stages for science communication beyond national borders. It analyzes itinerant fairground shows across Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany, and Luxembourg, treating fairground entertainment as European cultural heritage.
Patterns of Transnational Exchange: The project considers regional differences in provincial towns, challenging national perspectives on science popularization. By doing so, it aims to nuance and adjust biased focuses on major cities like London and Paris.
Performative Dimensions: SciFair delves into the explicit scientific and didactic aspects of fairground shows, as well as the implicit knowledge conveyed. It explores how these performances shape social values related to health, gender, nation, class, and race.
Media Performance Historiography: The project introduces a conceptual shift by emphasizing showmanship and media performance. It sheds light on the multifaceted qualities that showpeople combine to effectively convey scientific messages and contribute processes of knowledge circulation and transmission through performance.
Data Collection and Accessibility: SciFair compiles research data in a centralized database, following international FAIR principles. This effort contributes to preserving European fairground history as intangible cultural heritage.
Transnational Historical Study: SciFair investigates fairgrounds as stages for science communication beyond national borders. It analyzes itinerant fairground shows across Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Germany, and Luxembourg, treating fairground entertainment as European cultural heritage.
Patterns of Transnational Exchange: The project considers regional differences in provincial towns, challenging national perspectives on science popularization. By doing so, it aims to nuance and adjust biased focuses on major cities like London and Paris.
Performative Dimensions: SciFair delves into the explicit scientific and didactic aspects of fairground shows, as well as the implicit knowledge conveyed. It explores how these performances shape social values related to health, gender, nation, class, and race.
Media Performance Historiography: The project introduces a conceptual shift by emphasizing showmanship and media performance. It sheds light on the multifaceted qualities that showpeople combine to effectively convey scientific messages and contribute processes of knowledge circulation and transmission through performance.
Data Collection and Accessibility: SciFair compiles research data in a centralized database, following international FAIR principles. This effort contributes to preserving European fairground history as intangible cultural heritage.