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Join us for a guest talk and Q&A with Professor Venetia Evergeti (������ý Department of Sociology)

The Invisible Thread: Negotiating Transnational Family Care, Mobilities, and Cultural Obligations

The talk will explore the cross-border dispersal of familial care responsibilities and resources and will provide a deeper understanding of migrants’ care relationships and experiences.

In this session, we will read and discuss "Walking with narratives: Introduction to the English edition" of , Ed. Adrien Frenay, Giulio Iacoli, and Lucia Quaquarelli (Palgrave 2025).

Confirmed guest speaker: Dr Carolin Gebauer. Details to follow

If you would like your own work to be discussed, please get in touch! In the past we have discussed grant applications, article drafts, thesis chapters, and even an exhibition project. This always proves very beneficial and interesting for all involved.

“Occult Objects in India and England (1850-1940): Nuanced Perspectives”

Workshop 1 with IAS visiting fellow Dr Shaona Barik - Tuesday 7 October, 12-2pm in 58 AD 02

This workshop will take the form of a mini-exhibition curated by Dr Barik, originally exhibited at Visva-Bharati University India, followed by Q&A discussion. Dr Barik will discuss the mobilities of occult objects between India and England in this period, with specific focus upon items used in mesmerism and clairvoyance; the afterlives of these objects and the need to decolonise museum spaces; and contextualise how mesmerism travelled to England and discuss the practitioners of mesmerism. 

This workshop will take place in-person only. All welcome; attendees are welcome to come to one or both of the workshops; please email Dr Charlotte Mathieson c.mathieson@surrey.ac.uk if you'd like to attend.

“The impact of mesmerism on British and Bengali fiction, 1850s-1940s”

Workshop 2 with IAS visiting fellow Dr Shaona Barik - Tuesday 28 October, 12-2pm, in 58 AD 02

This discussion-based workshop will explore the impact of mesmerism on literary works, exploring examples from British and Bengali fiction from the 1850s-1940s. The discussion will be contextualised by themes of transnational mobilities, transcultural knowledge exchange, and dialogues between India and Britain in this period. 

This workshop will have a hybrid option. All welcome; attendees are welcome to come to one or both of the workshops; please email Dr Charlotte Mathieson c.mathieson@surrey.ac.uk if you'd like to attend.

“Mesmerism in Colonial Bengal (1860-1940): Case Studies of Seances, Cure, Magic and Performances”

Talk by IAS visiting fellow Dr Shaona Barik, Tuesday 28 October, 4-5.30pm 11 TB 00

The talk will explore how mesmerism facilitated cross-cultural exchanges between the U.K. and Calcutta during the latter half of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century. Dr Barik will discuss how mesmerism often led to the collapse of racial boundaries and colonial hierarchies, and the kind of cultural adaptations that followed or how oriental fantasies and fetishes were reinforced through the trope of mesmerism. Mesmerism’s utility in health and healing practices in colonial Bengal, leading to the development of transnational networks will be specifically addressed; and how mesmerism was utilised to construct notions about colonial bodies, often keeping intact the gaze of the colonisers and how such bodies became the sites of contestations at the same time, will be critically examined. Almanacs, Government records, advertisements in the form of posters, pamphlets, etc, will be consulted as primary resources for the purpose of the talk.

Please email Dr Charlotte Mathieson if you would like to attend c.mathieson@surrey.ac.uk

Part of the . Event booking .

Location: New House Art Space & Gallery, Fays Passage. Guildford GU1 4SQ

Dive into the history of queer fashion, from sandals and fans to flowers and top hats, in this interactive exhibition and self-guided walk.

Starting at 2pm, meet the fashion history experts at New House Art Space in Guildford. Explore queer fashion items placed around the gallery through conversations with lesbian fashion historian Eleanor Medhurst (aka Dressing Dykes) and Victorian dress specialist Dr Danielle Dove. 

Danielle and Eleanor will reveal why and when certain items or accessories were queer-coded or gendered in surprising ways. Discover how fashion items can communicate queerness, challenge gender-norms, and serve as powerful vehicles of self-expression. 

From 3pm, you are invited to go on a 1 hour self-guided walking tour of Guildford (please bring your own headphones!) with Dr Lena Mattheis’ audio-based app ListenQueer.co.uk. In small groups or by yourself, you can walk in the footsteps of Guildford’s queer and trans history icons and learn about what they used to wear. 

If you do not wish to walk, feel free to listen to the immersive audio content from New House’s cosy café. 

This event is part of the .

Part of the . Event booking .

Location: New House Art Space & Gallery, Fays Passage. Guildford GU1 4SQ

Join an evening of creative readings, performances, and short talks, devised by young, displaced people, and try different dishes showcasing their culture and heritage.

Performances will explore what it means to move across lines and create community by going beyond visible and invisible boundaries. You will be encouraged to reflect on what it means for you to cross lines by participating in interactive workshop activities and guided conversations.

We will explore together how, in a world of borders and well-defined boundaries, moving across lines can be an opportunity to challenge stereotypes and build more welcoming communities.

This interactive event is developed in collaboration with The Big Leaf Foundation and emerges from the work of ������ý’s Mobilities research centre.

The event is designed for adults and young adults, and accompanied children are welcome to attend.

This event is part of the .

Urban Mobility Cultures: Creative and Narrative Approaches to Moving in the City

In collaboration with our international partner MoHu Centre (University of Padua), this two-day research event showcases current interdisciplinary research on urban mobilities and cultures.

For more information, see the poster .

Join us for a reading group session with invited guest Dr Ben Robbins (University of Innsbruck), who works on Networks of Anglophone LGBTQ+ Exile Writers from 1900 to 1969 ().