Dr Steven Adams

Steven's research interests centre around the visual and material culture of the French Revolution and the early nineteenth century, and the construction of artists' professional identities in early nineteenth-century France. He has also written widely on landscape painting, landscape and gender and the formation of the art market in early nineteenth century France, and the art market's relation to to the formation of modernist conceptions of art.   

Central to virtually all of these interests is the marked disjuncture between established canonical art historical narratives, especially those that sustain modernism and its histories, and the often disruptive archival traces encountered through primary research. These interests have led to the problematisation of the historical identity of well known painters such as Renoir and the recovery of artists that were once household names and who have all but  disappeared form the historical record.

Steven has also written extensively on shifting concepts of spatiality in Revolutionary France and the Empire. He is also interested in critical methodologies in the fine arts and in the ideas underpinning practice-led research.

Steven would be interested in supervising reserach projects at doctoral and masters level on French visual culture in the early modern period, landscape and phenomenology and practice led research in the fine and applied arts         

Steven teaches the research skills module Research & Enquiry on the School of Creative Arts' Masters Programme. 

Steven has supervised a range of research students in the fine and applied arts and in art and design history and theory. He has examined research students in England France and the United States.

Steven contributes to the University's Generic Programme for Research Students and subject specific research training in the School of Creative Arts and is a regular contributor to the University's Reserach Student Supervisor Training Course.    

Steven is also Head of Research Degrees for the Social Sciences Arts and Humanities Research Institute.