Dr Rui Oliveira Lopes

rui.lopes@ubd.edu.bn

Assistant Professor, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences



                    

Rui OLIVEIRA LOPES is Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam. Before joining FASS/UBD he was Lecturer in Art History at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon teaching European, Asian, and Islamic Arts focusing on the artistic interactions. He was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow to conduct research on the religious arts in Asia.

Received his Ph.D. in the History of Art in 2011 from the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon, completing a dissertation on the confluence of Christian art in India, China and Japan between the 16th and the 18th centuries. His research is focused on the visual aspects of the sacred narratives in the arts of the Asian civilizations, the artistic and cultural interactions between Asia and Europe, the museum as a place for intercultural dialogue, the role of western museums in promoting and protecting Asian (in)tangible cultural heritage.

EDUCATION

PhD in Art History (Faculty of Fine Arts University of Lisbon, Portugal) (2006–2011)
MA in Theories of Art (Faculty of Fine Arts University of Lisbon, Portugal) (2003–2006)
BA in History (University of Lisbon, Portugal) (1999–2003)

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Art History, Museum Studies, Art Curatorship, Heritage Studies, Folk Art & Contemporary Visual Culture, Anthropology of Art, Religious Art, Artistic and Cultural Exchanges

FUTURE PROJECTS

Global Encounters and the Arts in Southeast Asia. From the Bronze Age to European Colonialism Globalization and the Arts in Southeast Asia. The Rise of a New Art World

This project discusses the artistic and cultural exchanges in the context of trade, migrations, and circulation of knowledge across the South China Sea. It examines artistic experience and its role in the transmission of knowledge, in the adaptation of transcultural discourses, and in the formation / transformation of cultural identities. The arts in Southeast Asia have been analysed and studied under the perspective of isolated geographies and cultural identities and only sporadically understood under the context of a global art history. Throughout the centuries, the South China Sea served as a platform for intercultural dialogue not only for surrounding cultures but also for distinct European powers with distinctive modes of cultural interaction. The understanding of the arts in Southeast Asia in a global perspective requires a fundamental reconceptualisation of the objects, material culture, themes, and methods under a "de-centralized” art history crossing the historical and the contemporary.


Applications Invited
one PhD and one MA candidate

Architectural Heritage in Brunei Darussalam: Safeguarding, Identity and Sustainability

The UNESCO 1972 World Heritage Convention, ratified by Brunei Darussalam in 2011, recognises the universal value of cultural heritage momuments, groups of buildings, and historical sites from the point of view of cultural history, design, science and technology. Historical buildings are not simply human made structures, but rather an expression of cultural identities, principles of governance, religious beliefs, and also stands as a carrier of collective memories. An architectural heritage should be interpreted as an ‘artefact’ in relation to the formative process of cultural expressions. This research project intends to understand the cultural, stylistic and historical significance of architectural heritage in Brunei Darussalam in order to ensure its safeguarding and sustainability. For this project we focus on the use of digital technologies to support the surveying and archival analysis of architectural heritage in Brunei Darussalam. Through the methods of digital humanities, this project endeavour is focused on the documentation (geometric, architectural, historical) through 2D and 3D drawings, creating digital and interactive maps for geo-spatial, contextual, and phenomenological navigation to locate architectural heritage. This project aims to make an inventory of architectural heritage in Brunei and use digital humanities to create an interactive and open access platform designed for education, conservation, cultural management, safeguarding awareness, social responsibility, and tourism development.


Applications Invited
one PhD and one MA candidate

Higher Education and Creative Employment

Over the last decades, in tandem with the fast growing creative economy and a better understanding of the economic, social and cultural impact of the CCI, many universities have been establishing tailored academic programmes, faculties, schools and institutes, to respond to a demand for creative workforce. However, with a growing number of technical tools made available, the democratisation of knowledge (through online tutorials / how to), and the informal nature of the CCI ecologies some of the questions that can be raised are: what is the employment rate of creative graduates with a related job position? How are higher education institutions responding to employers needs? Are creative employers preferring to employ candidates with a CCI related degree or anyone with technical skill / experience will do?


Applications Invited
one PhD and one MA candidate

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Lopes, R. O., Owais Ahmed Malik, Asiyah Az-Zahra Ahmad Kumpoh, Keasberry, C., Ong, W. H., Chin, W. L., Liu, Y. (2019). "Exploring digital architectural heritage in Brunei Darussalam: Towards heritage safeguarding, smart tourism, and interactive education". 2019 IEEE Fifth International Conference on Multimedia Big Data (BigMM), Singapore, 383-390.

Lopes, R. O. (2018). "L’art dans les missions jésuites en Chine. Une edition illustrée du XVIIe siècle de la ‘Méthode de prière du Rosaire"’. Histoire de l’art, 82, 141–154.

Lopes, R. O. (2017) "Words for images and images for words. An iconological and scriptural study of the Christian prints in the Chengshi moyuan 程氏墨苑", Word and Image. A Journal of Verbal/Visual Enquiry, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 87–107

Lopes, R. O. (2016) “A new light on the heavenly bodies. Indian shadow puppets: from still paintings to motion pictures”, Religion and the Arts, vol. 20, no. 1-2, pp. 160-196. DOI: 10.1163/15685292-02001008.

Lopes, R. O. and Blair, S. (2016) “Editors’ Introduction: Religion and the Arts of Global Asia”, Religion and the Arts, vol. 20, no. 1-2, pp. 1–3. DOI: 10.1163/15685292-02001001.

Lopes, R. O.; Alves, M. G.; Lamoni, G. (eds) (2015) Global Trends in Modern and Contemporary ‘Islamic’ Art. Lisbon: CIEBA/FBAUL (Artistic Studies Research Centre / Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon), Global Art Monograph Series. ISBN: 978-989-8771-28-5.

TOP PUBLICATIONS

Lopes, R. O. (2018). "L’art dans les missions jésuites en Chine. Une edition illustrée du XVIIe siècle de la ‘Méthode de prière du Rosaire"’. Histoire de l’art, 82, 141–154.

Lopes, R. O. (2017) "Words for images and images for words. An iconological and scriptural study of the Christian prints in the Chengshi moyuan 程氏墨苑", Word and Image. A Journal of Verbal/Visual Enquiry, vol. 33, no. 1, pp. 87–107

Lopes, R. O. (2016) “A new light on the heavenly bodies. Indian shadow puppets: from still paintings to motion pictures”, Religion and the Arts, vol. 20, no. 1-2, pp. 160-196. DOI: 10.1163/15685292-02001008.

Lopes, R. O. (2014) “Securing the harmony between the High and the Low: power animals and symbols of political authority in ancient Chinese jades and bronzes”, Asian Perspectives, vol. 53, no. 2, pp. 195-225. DOI: 10.1353/asi.2014.0019. (Scopus-listed journal)

Lopes, R. O. (2014) “Meeting another China: exhibiting Chinese [folk] art and popular culture in the Orient Museum”, World Art, Vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 237-261. DOI: 10.1080/21500894.2014.9.

Lopes, R. O. (ed.) (2014) Face to Face. The transcendence of the arts in China and beyond – Historical Perspectives. Lisbon: CIEBA/FBAUL (Artistic Studies Research Centre / Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon) Global Art Monograph Series. ISBN: 978-989-8300-49-2.

Lopes, R. O. (2014) “The formation of artistic identities in the context of intercultural dialogue between China and the World”. In R. O. Lopes (Ed.), Face to Face. The transcendence of the arts in China and beyond – Historical Perspectives (pp. 10–40). Lisbon: CIEBA/FBAUL.

GRANT DETAILS

UBD:ORI:URC:RG(334):U01. “The Value of Cultural Heritage and Appropriate Museology in the Formation of Collective Identity. Art, Museums and (In)tangible Cultural Heritage in Brunei Darussalam”. Project Leader: Dr Rui Oliveira Lopes. Funds: $BND 9,933.00. January 2016 to May 2018.

Principal Investigator. Art in a Global Perspective. This is a Faculty Research Cluster established with the aim to discuss the issues of world art and global art, connecting art histories and analysing the relevance of art in negotiating cultures. (2011 – 2015) Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon. Under this cluster I lead the following projects:
Face to Face. The Transcendence of the Arts in China and Beyond (2011 – 2015) (Funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology, Jorge Welsh Oriental Porcelain & Works of Art, Confucius Institute of the University of Lisbon, and Observatory for China. Total Funds: EUR 65.000). Outcome: 1 international conference held in Lisbon; 1 international workshop held in Lisbon (conceived and co-organized with Franziska Koch, Cluster of Excellence Asia and Europe in a Global Context); 2 edited books and 1 special issue for the Journal of Contemporary Chinese Art (Intellect Publishers); 1 contemporary art exhibition and 1 contemporary art catalogue.
Permanent Seminar on Global Art (2013 – 2015). A lecture series on the studies of global art.
Contemporary ‘Islamic’ art and the global art scene (2014 – 2015) (Funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology – EUR 6,000) A research project launched with the idea to discuss the definition of ‘Islamic art’ in the context of contemporary artistic practice and the rise of new geographies in the contemporary art scene. It also discusses the relevance of migration and (dis)location in the process of cultural negotiation by means of artistic practice. Outcome: 1 international workshop; 1 book; papers presented in international conference).
The Gesamtkunstwerk. A Concept for All Times and Places (2014). A research project initiated with the purpose to analyse the expanded field of Gesamtkunstwerk throughout time, distinct geographies of art and artistic forms. Outcome: 1 international conference.
Principal Investigator. The Art of Leather Puppetry in India. Shadows of Karnataka in the Orient Museum collection (2013 – 2014) Joint project with the Centre for Atomic Physics for the study of shadow puppets in the collections of the Orient Museum.
Project Leader. Art and Genre (2012) (Funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology – EUR 6,000). Outcome: 1 international conference; 1 book.
Project Leader. Art and Society (2010) (Funded by the Foundation for Science and Technology – EUR 6,000). Outcome: 1 international conference; 1 book.

CONSULTANCY

Art History; Cultural History; Asia-Europe Exchange; Heritage, Museums and Collections Management; Curatorial Practice and Exhibitions Management; Publishing; Creative Industries; Art Market

Art History consultant for the Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum, Taiwan | 2018

Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports | 2016 – 2017
Curator for the exhibition Negotiating traditional culture and contemporary artistic practice (Art GAllery Gallery, 18 May 2017 – 31 July 2017)
Museum collection research on Borneo material culture (August 2016 – December 2017)

Orient Museum, Lisbon | 2007 – 2015
Museum collection research focusing on the mythological narratives in the arts of Asian Civilizations (Jan 2012 – May 2015)
Assistant Curator and Art history consultant for the exhibition Chinese propaganda posters. Art in the service of politics in display at the Orient Museum (January to September 2013)
Art history consultant and author of several entries for the permanent collection exhibition catalogue (2007 – 2008)

Iberian Museum of Archaeology and Art | 2009 – 2014
Art History consultant for Asian Art and Archaeological collection, both Chinese and Indian, in particular Chinese bronze ritual vessels (Shang, Zhou and Western Han Dynasties), Neolithic jades (Hongshan Culture) and indo-Portuguese ivory.
Member of the exhibition committee for the following exhibitions: Antevisão do Museu Ibérico de Arqueologia e Arte – Antevisão I (2009); Antevisão do Museu Ibérico de Arqueologia e Arte – Antevisão II (14 June – 31 October 2010); Antevisão do Museu Ibérico de Arqueologia e Arte – Antevisão IV (14 July – 31 October 2012)

Museum With No Frontiers | 2006 – 2009
Assistant Curator and Researcher for the project Discover Baroque Art permanent collection of the Virtual Museum and temporary exhibition about ‘Travels and Exotic’.
Assistant director and coordination of Museum With No Frontiers – Portugal for the project Discover Baroque Art.

STARTUP

Portugal / China. Cultural Encounters – Co-Producer of Peking Opera Grand Tour Myths and Legends from China
September 2013 | Observatory for China, Portugal

Producer of East / West Cultural Festival
February 2010 | Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lisbon