Cultural exchanges between the courts of the Iberian Peninsula and the Habsburg Netherlands (fifteenth – sixteenth Centuries).

During the fifteenth century, the Dukes of Burgundy maintained numerous ties and staged frequent encounters with representatives of the Hispanic kingdoms across a range of cultural and political contexts. As a result a reciprocal cultural bond evolved between the court cultures of these two geographical areas. This initial phase of contact was enabled by the rise to power of Mary of Burgundy and Maximilian I of Habsburg in the Netherlands: it was stipulated that their heirs should marry those of the kings of Castile and Aragon. As a result, the marriage of Mary and Maximilian led to the emergence of a powerful composite monarchy during the second decade of the sixteenth century, one that comprised a set of distinct administrative and legal systems. It was overlaid with a coherent court ritual, combining aspects derived from both the Netherlands and Iberia, as well as the other territories that made up the Hispanic Monarchy. As a result, throughout the sixteenth century the Low Countries became one of the principal cultural centres within this monarchy, and there were frequent cultural exchanges between the Netherlandish court—firstly in Mechelen, and then in Brussels—and the monarchy’s central court.

The aim of this conference is to analyse the cultural relationships between the evolved between Iberian and the Netherlandish courts during the late fifteenth century and on throughout the sixteenth century, in order to develop a deeper understanding of the diverse forms of cultural impact that resulted, and their consequences for interaction between these regions. By taking an interdisciplinary methodological focus, embracing the latest research by historians, art historians and architectural historians, this scholarly event seeks to engage with the recent academic debate and research on the social phenomenon of cultural reciprocity. For this purpose, the conference seeks to analyse issues related to ceremonial, ritual, court structures, diplomacy, the visual arts and social relations, and likewise offer a deeper understanding of the mechanics of court culture, and the deployment of visual culture to promote Habsburg universalism across a range of European territories.

Wednesday 25.10.2023

MS Teams Day 1:

14.30 Reception
15.00 Conference Opening

15.10 - 16.30 Court structure and ceremonial
15.10 Court Cultural Exchanges on Royal Works between the Habsburg Netherlands and the Iberian Peninsula (XIV-XVIIth centuries) / José Eloy Hortal Muñoz (University Rey Juan Carlos)
15.30 From Compromise to Radicalism: The Political Ideas of Maximilian Vilain, lord of Ressegem / Jonathan Dumont (Austrian Academy of Sciences)
15.50 Some reflections on Flemish "Decorative Painters" at the Court of Charles V in the Iberian Peninsula. The case of Jan and Jacob van Battel / Ana Diéguez Rodríguez and África Espíldora García (Instituto Moll. Centre for Research in Flemish Painting)
16.10 Discussion

17.00 - 18.00 Relationships between court and city
17.00 Luxury arts of the Spanish Renaissance / Jesús Pascual Molina and Miguel Ángel Zalama (University of Valladolid)
17.20 Vicente Álvarez and his description of the princely visit of Philip II to Flanders in 1549-1550 / Raymond Fagel (Leiden University)
17.40 Discussion

Thursday 26.10.2023

MS Teams Day 2:

10.00 - 11.00 Court festivities and rituals
10.00 Winning over a Spanish Princess: Joanna of Castile's visit to the City of Brussels in December 1496 / Dagmar Eichberger (University of Heidelberg)
10.20 Emblematic resonances in the triumphal entrances of Charles V: Visual and symbolic language for the Universal Empire / Inmaculada Rodríguez Moya and Víctor Mínguez (University Jaume I)
10.40 Discussion

11.30 - 12.50 Ecclesiastical dignitaries between the North and the South
11.30 The Altarpiece of San Ildefonso commissioned in the Low Countries by Juan Alfonso de Logroño: study of panels from Museo del Prado and proposal of attribution / José Juan Pérez Preciado (Museo Nacional del Prado)
11.50 Cultural transfers at the Castilian court: Diego Ramírez de Villaescusa and Flanders / Alejandro Sáez Olivares (University Rey Juan Carlos)
12.10 The Creation, Characteristics, and Geopolitical Functions of the Post-Tridentine Apostolic Nunciature in Flanders (c. 1590-1605) / Dorota Gregorowicz (University of Silesia in Katowice)
12.30 Discussion

15.00 - 16.00 Images of power and portraits
15.00 Searching for a court painter in the Low Countries and a portrait of AmbassadorFrancisco de Rojas by Hans Memling / Oskar J. Rojewski (University of Silesia in Katowice – University Rey Juan Carlos)
15.20 The making of an Emperor – the emergence of State Portraiture. Imperial representations of the House of Habsburg, theirprecursors and aftermath / Till-Holger Borchert (Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum in Aachen)
15.40 Discussion

16.30 - 17.50 The reception of Iberian communities and traditions in the Low Countries court circles and Flemish communities in Iberian court contexts
16.30 The Grimons: a family of Flemish origin in Tenerife Island (XVth-XVIth centuries) / Elena Vázquez Dueñas (Complutense University of Madrid)
16.50 The Flemish artists by the hands of Cardinal Granvela at the court of Philipe II / Almudena Pérez de Tudela (Patrimonio Nacional)
17.10 Re-thinking Seventeenth-Century Sculptures of Baby Jesus in Habsburg Royal Convents in Madrid and Brussels / Cordula van Wyhe (University of York)
17.30 Discussion

Friday 27.10.2023

MS Teams Day 3:

12.00 - 13.30 Cultural exchange through trade and travel
12.00 Cultural transfer through knightly traffic? The travels of Jacques de Lalaing (c. 1421–53) to the Iberian Peninsula / Mario Damen (University of Amsterdam)
12.20 Back and forth between Brabant and Castile Courtly networks of the Cuemans dynasty / Olivier Kik (KIK-IRPA Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage)
12.40 Felipe Bigarny: a courtly and entrepreneurial artist in the service of the Habsburg / Eduardo Lamas (KIK-IRPA Royal Institute for Cultural Heritage)

13.00 Discussion
13.20 Closing remarks

The registration is available on the website: https://eventos.urjc.es/102914/detail/congreso-cultural-exchanges-between-the-courts-of-the-iberian-peninsula-and-the-habsburg-netherland.html