INSAP: The Conferences on
"The Inspiration of Astronomical Phenomena"

Vincent Van Gogh, "The Starry Night"

The Rationale Behind "INSAP"

There have been scholarly discussions over just about every aspect of the graphic, literary, performance, and plastic arts (e.g., the role of the dog/cat/mouse in contemporary cartoons). However, as we three (G.V.C., R.M.S. and R.E.W.) came to realize some years ago (after some literature searching), there had never been a conference over the many and variegated cultural impacts of the perceptions about the day- and night-time sky. Certainly there had never been such a conference providing a mechanism for a broad sampling of artists, historians, philosophers, and scientists to get together, compare notes, and to have the chance to ask those questions of one another about each other's work which may have been stewing away for decades. This lack, in the face of a burgeoning technological era which more and more isolates the general public from an understanding of "what are those guys (scientists) doing now?", cried for redress. Thus, the idea for a triennial (or so) series of scholarly discussions over The Inspiration of Astronomical Phenomena was born practically as full-grown as Botticelli's Venus, stepping daintily out of her shell.

The first INSAP Conference took place in Italy. Thanks to the interest and support of this idea by Dr. G.V. Coyne, S.J., the first conference was held at the retreat house, "Mondo Migliore", on the Rocca di Papa above the Lago Albano, across the lake from the Vatican Observatory at Castel Gandolfo. The discussions ran from 27 June to 2 July 1994. The "hot-link" below provides the easiest means to access the INSAP I Webpage. In the INSAP I page are tables of contents for the publications in which a representative sample of the topics discussed have been published. There are, also, a number of pictures relevant to the conference which might be of interest.

The Vatican Observatory, Castel Gandolfo


Go to the Webpage for the First INSAP Conference

The effect of the original conference has been felt by its attendees ever since, so much so that there have been frequent inquiries made to the organizing committee as to when a second such gathering would take place. The answer to that question was: 7 - 14 January 1999 on the Island Republic of Malta.

Sicily and its environs	The Maltese Archipelago
Map courtesy National Geographic Society 1975; with permission.	Map courtesy National Geographic Society 1975; with permission.

To the right, St. John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta.

Why Malta?

After R.E.W.'s visit there in late-January/early-February 1997, it was obvious that the long time-scale of Maltese culture was precisely the tapestry against which a second INSAP Conference would be seen to best advantage. As a commercial, intellectual, and political nexus in the Mediterranean World, Malta as a venue for the next INSAP offers to us a wide variety of scholarship which is seldom represented in conventional Western cultural gatherings: namely, a means of entry into the different points of view generated by Eastern Rite Christian and Islamic scholarship.

Go to the Webpage for the Second INSAP Conference

The INSAP III Conference in Palermo, Sicily

The Third INSAP Conference Invited to Palermo

During the Malta Conference, Prof. Salvatore Serio, Director of the Palermo Observatory, invited the third-in-the-series of INSAP Conferences to take place in Palermo, Sicily, and to participate in the Observatory's commemorative ceremonies of the 200^th Anniversary over Fr. Giuseppe Piazzi's discovery of the first minor planet (or "asteroid") MP-1 (Ceres - the patron goddess of Sicily). The INSAP Standing Committee was honored and happy to accept Prof. Serio's gracious offer.

To the right, the Palermo Conference hotel, the Hotel La Torre in Mondello.

Go to the Webpage for the Third INSAP Conference

 

 

The INSAP IV Conference in Oxford, Great Britain

The Dreaming Spires of Oxford ...

The Fourth Conference took place at Magdalen College, Oxford University, Great Britain, from 3-9 August 2003.

Go to the Webpage for the Fourth INSAP Conference

 

 

 

The INSAP V Conference in Chicago, IL (USA)

The Fifth Conference of the INSAP Series was held at the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum, Chicago, Illinois, June 26 - July 1, 2005.

Use the following link to access the Adler/INSAP V Website: the Fifth INSAP Conference.

 

Links to the Personal Pages of INSAP Artists

Many of the artists who have displayed their artwork in one or more of the INSAP Conferences have constructed Websites in which they present galleries of selections from the totality of their work. Use the following link to access a page of links to the artists' Websites: INSAP Artists

E-mail to members of the standing International Executive Committee (IEC)

Prof. Francesco Bertola bertola@pd.astro.it
Dr. Marvin Bolt mbolt@adlernet.org
Dr. Nicholas Campion ncampion@caol.demon.co.uk
Dr. George V. Coyne, S.J. gcoyne@as.arizona.edu
Dr. Chris Impey impey@zeno.as.arizona.edu
Prof. Ronald P. Olowin rpolowin@stmarys.ca.edu
Prof. David W. Pankenier dwp0@lehigh.edu
Dr. Richard L. Poss rposs@u.arizona.edu
Dr. Valerie Shrimplin vshrimplin@dsl.pipex.com
Dr. Rolf M. Sinclair rolf@santafe.edu
Dr. Gary N. Wells wells@ithaca.edu
Prof. Raymond E. White

This page modified on: 7 August 2007