Assaf Pinkus, Professorship of Medieval Art History
Faculty of Historical and Cultural Studies
Contact Assaf Pinkus
"Since the beginning of my career I have been fascinated by the strong communicative power and emotional intensity of medieval art as well as its surprising diversity and aesthetic pluralism. I have contextualised these aspects with imagination and intuition, introducing the concepts of living images and visual aggression, among others, to explore the non-religious perception of medieval art. More recently, my focus has been on the study of somaesthetics, giants and scale, and the formation of subjectivity. I see the examination of medieval art as a ‘safe space’ in which current challenges and identities can be reflected upon and reconsidered." (Assaf Pinkus)
Research areas:
* Gothic art in German-speaking countries, France and Italy
* Visual practices and narratology
* Art experience, reception, performance and somaesthetics
* Intuition and imagination
* Image theory
* Materiality and medium
* Modern and contemporary pilgrimage art in the Holy Land
Curriculum Vitae:
1998-2002 Promotion, Art History Department, Tel Aviv University
2004-2006 Postdoctoral Fellow, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
2007 Senior Lecturer (tenured), Tel Aviv University
2009-2011 Chair Person, IMAGO – The Israeli Association for Visual Culture in the Middle Ages
2012-2016 Co-Head and Founder of the History and Theory of Photography Studies Program
2012-2016 Director of the University Gallery of Art
2012-2016 Chair of the Art History Department, Tel Aviv University
2013 Associate Professor, Tel Aviv University
2013-2016 ICMA (International Center of Medieval Art), New York, International Associate and Board of Member Committee
2014-2020 Director of the Tel Aviv Israeli Art Foundation
2018-2020 Head of the Multi- and Interdisciplinary Programs in the Arts
2018 Full Professor (Ordinarius), Tel Aviv University
2018 Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf
2019 University of Glasgow
2019 Titular Member and Co-President of the Israeli Board, CIHA (Comité International d'Histoire de l'Art)
2021 Professor Honorarium, University of Vienna
2021 VIU, Ca’ Foscari University, Venice
2022 Board of Government, Tel Aviv University
2022 The Hannelore Kipp Chair in the the Study of Art, Tel Aviv University
2022 Editor-in-Chief, Tel Aviv University Press
since March 2025 Professor of Medieval Art History at the University of Vienna