VISUALITY AND INTERMEDIALITY

The origins of the research group lay in an in-depth examination of the interaction of image and text. From that initial interest sprang a particular focus on the visual dimensions of religious symbol systems and the visual culture such systems contain.
The comparison of image and text paved the way for additional comparative possibilities - comparison of theological discourses with religious practices, the knowledge of religious experts with the experiences of everyday lives, and literary narrative programmes with visual media. Examination of the interaction of image and text and of visual and literary sources expands the research group's perspective on religious traditions and organisations, with its particular focus on ancient traditions, the European history of religion, and contemporary pluralistic contexts. The relationship between image and text is being analysed in individual projects on myths, votive practices, and book illustrations. Methodological and theoretical reflection on how visual sources are approached within the study of religion forms a core interest for the research group.