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SUMMARY:“Stay in your shell\, that will be of use to you:” The miniatu
 re shell collection in Petronella Brandt’s dollhouse - Professor Hanneke
  Grootenboer\, University of Oxford
DTSTART:20190604T164500Z
DTEND:20190604T181500Z
UID:TALK123754@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Dr Anthony Pickles
DESCRIPTION:Petronella Oortman’s dollhouse (1680-1716\, Rijksmuseum\, Am
 sterdam) features a miniature cabinet of curiosities containing a collecti
 on of shells\, all real baby versions of specimen of the East Indian archi
 pelago. A serious attempt at assembling an art collection\, Oortman’s do
 llhouse was set in a cabinet with glass doors\, and was likely a fairly ac
 curate version of her own Amsterdam residence. This paper will look into t
 he Russian-doll effect of an actual residence housing a dollhouse-cabinet\
 , housing a miniature cabinet of curiosities\, housing shells\, which are\
 , after all\, vacant houses of sea creatures. In the context of 17th centu
 ry metaphors of shells as standing in for excessive luxuries\, as well as 
 Steward and Bachelard’s theories\, I suggest that Oortman’s miniature 
 shells were contemplative objects allowing her to philosophize about the p
 lace of her home in the world.
LOCATION:Gatsby Room\, Wolfson College
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