London Branch Seminar

  • 28th May 2025
  • 5:30 pm - 7:15 pm
  • UCL IOE 20 Bedford Way, WC1H 0AL, Room 739, London
  • Online Event, Seminar

A Portrait of the Artist’s Pursuit of Self-Knowledge and Its Significance for Education
Noemi Bartolucci (UCL IOE)

( Also streaming on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81813506541 )

The visual arts offer a distinctive way of engaging with the enduring question of self-knowledge. By challenging philosophy’s longstanding alignment of truth with introspection and rational inquiry, rooted in Socratic thought, this discussion frames the self as unstable, transitional, and accessible through its expressions, drawing on Klaus Mollenhauer. With the rise of self-portraiture in the early-modern period, Rembrandt’s self-portraits become a sustained meditation on the limits of self-understanding. Revisiting the Ancient Quarrel between philosophy and poetry reveals affinities between philosophy and literature, while positioning the visual arts as uniquely equipped to explore the complexities of self-relation, offering valuable insights for education.

Noemi Bartolucci is a PhD candidate in Education, Practice and Society at UCL’s Institute of Education. Her research focuses on the philosophy of education, exploring the historical development of Bildung and its role in self-knowledge, self-examination, and transformation beyond formal education. She examines these themes through literature, particularly the Bildungsroman genre, and the arts. Her recent article, “The Place of Memory: Bildung in the North-American African diaspora” (2024), was published as part of a special issue in the Journal of Philosophy of Education. Formerly a high school teacher in South Korea, Noemi now works as a Postgraduate Teaching Assistant at the IOE.

For further inquiries: Yuxin Su (yuxin.su.16@ucl.ac.uk).

Please note that this seminar series is run by academics on an entirely voluntary and unpaid basis, on top of existing teaching and other work commitments. While we endeavour to make these events as inclusive and welcoming as possible, we cannot undertake any extra work regarding the presentation, dissemination or planning of the talks or make adjustments to the existing programme.