1. The Portfolio of Villard de Honnecourt (2 sessions)
- Organizer: Carl F. Barnes, Jr.
Jean Gimpel spearheaded the introduction of the Villard portfolio to a wider range of people, notably through the founding of a society in France (1983), which served as inspiration for the founding of AVISTA (1984), and via publication of a new facsimile of the portfolio (Paris, 1986). Topics conceerning any aspect of the contents of the portfolio itself (text, drawings, codicology, etc.) are welcome.
- 2. Practical Geometry (1 session)
- Organizer: Marie-Thérèse Zenner
Practical geometry was recognized as a major subject of the Villard portfolio in the mid-nineteenth century by J.B.-A Lassus. Jean Gimpel and architectural historians have considered the documentary evidence left by Villard, Mathes, Roriczer, and Hanns Schmuttermayer. Yet these works have rarely been considered within the context of contemporary methematical works on geometry. Topics concerning specific texts on (practical) geometry or on the historical context of mathematical knowledge and its possible application in design projects are welcome. The time frame is open and may include texts from Vitruvius through Francesco di Giorgio.
3. Gothic Architecture (1 session)
- Organizer: Stephen Murray
Topics in materials, technology, and design are invited, particularly those that relate to the interests of Jean Gimpel as expressed in his writings, Les bâtisseurs de cathédrales (1958) and La révolution industrielle du Moyen Age(1975), as well as more recent historiography in this field. Topics which take into account the drawings or context of the Villard portfolio are also welcome.
4. Medieval Technology (1 session)
- Organizer: Kelly DeVries
All topics in civil or military technology are welcome, especially those which were of long-term interest to Jean Gimpel, namely the use of visual models for communication, the application of medieval technology to the needs of the developing world, and the technology and environmental aspects of medieval water systems. Topics that take into account the drawings or context of the Villard portfolio are also encouraged, as are topics on the historiography of the mechanical arts and the history of guilds.
5. Medieval Science (1 session)
- Organizers: Charles Stegeman and Marie-Thérèse Zenner
Topics in any of the medieval sciences are welcome, particularly those of special interest to Jean Gimpel from his earliest writings through the time of his death in 1996, for example, the introduction and impact of Greco-Arabic sciences in Europe. Topics that take into account the role of visual diagrams used for experimental science or for explaining and disseminating scientific theory are encouraged as are topic addressing the geographic importance of Picardy and Lotharingia in the scientific movement.
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