“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes.”
Marcel Proust, ‘In Search of Lost Time’
Living Literature 2017 celebrated Marcel Proust’s ‘In Search of Lost Time‘. A number of researchers, including Sarah Churchwell (School of Advanced Study, University of London), Erika Fulop (University of Lancaster) and Anna-Louise Milne (University of London Institute in Paris) presented an immersive encounter of Proust’s classic novel.
Members of the public learnt how taste, smell and memory are linked through sensory experiments designed by Professor Barry Smith from the Centre for the Study of the Senses, Michelin starred chef Jozef Youssef, and historical perfumier Sarah McCartney from 4160 Tuesdays. Audiences were surrounded by the scents, fashions and music of the belle époque, with food and cocktails inspired by ‘In Search of Lost Time’, readings and pop-up talks on love, jealousy, queer identity, art, society and politics. The programme also included a magic lantern show by performers Mirror Mirror, a performative reading by literary Professor, Dominic Janes, and an intimate performance of composers that inspired Proust’s fictional Vinteuil sonata by Paul Archbold.
For details of our 2016 event ‘Living Gatsby’, click here.
