Welcome! I am a historian at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. I specialize in the history of the eighteenth-century world, particularly the British Empire and the many indigenous societies it encountered. I also have interests in visual history, anthropological history, experimental uses of biography, and issues surrounding higher education and the humanities. On this site you’ll find links to my historical writing, reflections on my historical reading, and discussions of various historical engagements (oh, and an unlikely page on swimming).
Recent Posts
Rethinking Foundational Histories
A little booster I wrote for our exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery last summer (only now online). Includes cartoon image of me at end as well! “The National Portrait Gallery rehangs its permanent galleries at least twice a year. This summer, the Robert Oatley gallery, which typically displays the ‘earliest works from the NPG … Continue reading Rethinking Foundational Histories
Colonialism and the Age of Enlightenment
A Lecture for the Kaldor Art Project 2018: Anri Sala I just noticed that a mini-lecture I did for this fabulous Art Group is up on vimeo. We were all given a brief to help explicate the art work for that year, Anri Sala’s intriguing meditation on the so-called clash of Enlightenment (represented in Mozart’s … Continue reading Colonialism and the Age of Enlightenment
Travels Through Time: 1776
I had a lot of fun doing this podcast with my friend Peter Moore. He came up with the idea for this series for the well-known British magazine, History Today. I was thrilled to be the third cab off the ranks after guests such as Michael Palin; apparently Simon Schaffer is up next. Peter’s idea was … Continue reading Travels Through Time: 1776
Facing New Worlds at the NPG
Over on my other website, you’ll find updates on this collaborative project with the National Portrait Gallery. Currently on show is the first exhibition from our endeavours: Facing New Worlds in the Robert Oatley Gallery. Get along to see it before April 2019! (Click this post heading to get hyperlinks.)
