TORCH's digital-led growth continues

Over the last year, TORCH’s online audience has increased by over 400% with almost 200,000 views from a global audience. Our digital programming is set to continue as we build our reach worldwide.

This term the popular Big Tent! Live Events have attracted diverse audiences, and we’ve experimented with new methods of interactivity in our Adventures in Digital webinar. Knowledge Exchange Fellows and Networks have created engaging and unique social media campaigns, such as #WhiteRoseRealTime and #EnglishTunebook.

Humanities Cultural Programme

The Big Tent! Live Event series has continued to host fascinating conversations on a variety of subjects, ranging from Translation and Retranslation with Sasha Dugdale and Dr Oliver Ready, to environmental theatre with Katie Mitchell, Professor Fiona Stafford and Dr Catherine Love.

HCP funded projects led to exciting new creations, such as the beautiful and moving CHRYSALIS videos and Queer Rural Connections’ series of Instagram conversations with queer artists.

• Dr Samantha Ege’s lecture-recital was highly praised for its vigour and elegance, bringing the music of Black Chicago Renaissance Women to new ears. With over 780 views on the TORCH YouTube, and over 113,000 views on Classic FM’s Facebook Page, the event celebrated these vibrant works for International Women’s Day. Dr Ege’s work to restore a Florence Price composition included in the recital was even featured in a BBC news article.
• The CHRYSALIS project begun to release a series of six videos exploring the theme of transformation, fusing classical music played by the Oxford Alternative Orchestra with intricate film work and choreography from dancers in six countries. Videos released so far take place in Burkina Faso, New Zealand and Americas.

Knowledge Exchange

Our Knowledge Exchange Fellows and their partner organisations have been embracing the digital world with podcasts, hashtags, and livestreams.

• The White Rose Project, which aims to raise awareness of the history of the White Rose, an anti-Nazi German resistance group, created a moving social media campaign charting the dramatic events leading up to the trial of three members of the group and their execution just four days later. #WhiteRoseRealTime culminated in a reading of the resistance pamphlets, translated as part of the project by current Oxford students.
• Marie-Antoinette: A Life in Objects saw Professor Catriona Seth trace Marie-Antoinette’s story in a series of podcasts, moving through the Wallace Collection, Waddesdon Manor, and finally the Conciergerie, where she spent her final days before being executed at the age of 37.

International

Despite the challenges caused by the pandemic, we have continued our international work as far as possible, including our Global South Visiting Fellowship, which is currently open for applications.

• The Modern Greek Studies and Beyond: Local Cases, Global Debates series has explored major issues such as biopolitcs and ecocritical approaches, drawing an audience of over 4,400 viewers tuning in from 10 countries.
• The Oxford-Berlin Creative Collaborations bring together ideas and research from Oxford and Berlin and run a series of podcasts. Recent episodes have featured the work of TORCH collaborators such as Professor Kate McLoughlin and Professor Amanda Power discussing major themes such as silence and the environment.

Networks and Programmes

Our Networks and Programmes have continued to flourish in the digital world, and we were delighted to announce two new networks this term: Art, Biodiversity and Climate, and Writing Technologies.

• Highlights among events included Oxford Queer Studies’ conversation between writers Jay Bernard and Lola Olufemi, and the Race and Resistance Programme discussions on Black academia.
• An in-depth exploration of the many ways that Oxford is tied to Empire, the Oxford and Empire seminars have explored Oxford’s imperial legacies in relation to forced migration, the Americas, Oriental Studies and more, with a particular focus on the role of travel and translation.

We are proud to have adapted so much of our work into new online forms, and thank all of our collaborators for their patience and creativity during these times.