Little scholarly attention is paid to peripheral figures in Late Antique, Byzantine and Western Medieval larger contexts, even though they are perennial and raise theoretical questions regarding the way in which they should be read. Their diversity challenges the understanding that they possess a single, shared significance. How then in the face of this variety should their presence be apprehended?

Anthony Cutler teaches courses in Late Antique, Early Christian, and Byzantine art. He also teaches graduate courses on theory, iconology, and methods of research. He has taught at Penn State since 1967 and is firmly convinced that the practice of research, leading to publication, is an integral part of teaching. The author of numerous books and articles, he has established himself as an international expert on ivory carving with such works as The Hand of the Master: Craftsmanship, Ivory, and Society in Byzantium (Princeton University Press). His most recent book is Byzantium, Italy and the North: Papers on Cultural Relations (Pindar Press).

The Forsyth Lectureship on Medieval Art, established in memory of medievalists George H. Forsyth, Jr. (Professor of Fine Arts and Director of the Kelsey Museum of Ancient and Medieval Archaeology at the University of Michigan) and William H. Forsyth (Curator, The Metropolitan Museum of Art), is intended to sponsor a lecture by a distinguished scholar of medieval art to be presented at multiple venues.