Studer-Karlen, Manuela

My current research focuses on the significance of images as an expression of social structures and cultural dynamics in the Byzantine Empire. The main focus is on the connection between liturgical sources and works of art, which provide insight into the interactions between text, image and space. A central concern is the investigation of processes of transfer and mobility of artistic motifs in the context of diverse encounters between Byzantium and other regions, which can be traced using historical, social, ethnographic, written and material sources. These are visible in architecture, objects and illuminated manuscripts that document strategies of adaptation, intercultural interaction and divergence. These perspectives on historical exchange processes also open up new insights into how we deal with cultural heritage today and the significance of intercultural encounters in a globally networked society.

• Visual cultural history and transformation processes in late antiquity
• Iconography and typology of early Christian sarcophagus sculpture
• Imperial representations and iconography of power in Byzantium
• Interaction of text, image and space in the architecture and decoration of Byzantine churches
• Byzantine liturgy and its visual cultural dimensions
• Georgian art and culture in the medieval context

• 2005-2010 PhD, Histoire de l’art paléochrétien et byzantin, Université de Fribourg
• 2008-2010 Teaching assistant, Histoire de l’art paléochrétien et byzantin, Université de Fribourg
• 2010-2013 Doctoral assistant, Histoire de l’art paléochrétien et byzantin, Université de Fribourg
• 2012 Summer Fellowship, Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Byzantine Studies, Harvard University, Washington
• 2014–2016 Research Associate, Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), Marie Heim-Vögtlin Grant
• 2012–2018 Habilitation in Christian Archaeology and Byzantine Art History at the Faculty of History and Cultural Studies, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
• 2017 Franz Josef II von Liechtenstein Prize (University of Fribourg) for the work ‘The Iconographic Programme of Byzantine Churches and Liturgy: Studies on Christ Anapeson’
• 2018 Academic Research Grant from the Onassis Foundation. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
• 2013–2021 Lecturer and Research Fellow in Late Antique and Byzantine Art History, Medieval Art History, University of Fribourg
• 2021–2025 Assistant Professor SNF, Institute of Art History, University of Bern
• since October 2025 Professorship in Byzantine Art History, University of Vienna