Image: Crucifixion. Relief carving in Cratcliffe Rocks hermitage, Derbyshire. Photo: Robert Mills.

Wild Forms: Hermits and Medieval Rock Art

Join Bob Mills for this in-person Art History Festival talk at UCL on medieval hermits and the wild art they inspired.

Medieval hermits sometimes chose to live in caves situated in rocky or wilderness settings. As well as being a practical solution to the need to find shelter in inhospitable places, this reflected their desire to withdraw from human affairs and to become one with nature. The caves that hermits inhabited were often adorned with images carved directly into the living rock. This talk sheds light on extant examples of the phenomenon in central and northern England. Filtering these understudied artworks through the prism of medieval conceptions of wildness, it reveals some of the unexpected ways in which art and nature were intertwined in the period.

Art History Residency

Launched in 2020, the AAH Art History Residency offers researchers the opportunity for concentrated time to develop their work at Wigwell Lodge in Derbyshire. Bob’s research during the residency focused on imagery of wildness in England and northwest Europe c.1200 to 1500.

Speaker biography

Bob Mills is Professor of Medieval Studies in the History of Art Department at UCL. He has longstanding interests in gender and sexuality in the Middle Ages and has published widely on these themes. Other abiding interests include saints, animals, monsters and the Gothic Revival. Prof. Mills is currently completing a study of wildness in medieval art. This talk draws on research undertaken during his term as the AAH/Ampersand Foundation’s 2024 Art History Resident.

Location: Institute of Advanced Studies, Common Ground (G11), South Wing, University College London, (UCL), Main Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT.