Niamh NicGhabhann Coleman

Dr.

Accepting PhD Students

20082025

Research activity per year

Personal profile

Research Interests

My current research focuses on Roman Catholic architecture in Ireland between 1828 and 1936, and I am currently working on a monograph on this topic (under contract with Liverpool University Press.) I led the Religious Spaces in Transition project, which focused on new and changing uses for religious architectural heritage in Ireland and internationally (funded by the Irish Research Council under the New Foundations scheme), and I also convene the MCHRI - Material and Cultural Heritages of Religion in Ireland research network. My research interests also include the dynamics of urban public space and festivity; the history of respectability in Irish culture; the histories of public space; Irish art history; public history; and interdisciplinary research practices. I also write on aspects of contemporary art.

Research MA and PhD supervision: My current PhD research students are working on nineteenth-century architectural history, Irish festival cultures, and aspects of the creative economy. I have been lucky to supervise PhD theses on the subjects of audience engagement; creative pedagogy; measurement and value in the visual art gallery; and on a range of issues relating to festival, festive practices, public space and identity. I welcome new research proposals on these and related topics, and am very happy to support postgraduate or postdoctoral researchers in developing their funding applications.

Teaching Interests

My teaching currently focuses on aspects of cultural history, at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

I am current module lead for:

HI6191 Graduate Seminar in Irish Cultural History;

HI4277 Art, Nation, and Empire;

HI4103 - Imagining Ireland: from early modern to modern,

HI4142 - Games of Thrones: gender, power, and identity, Ireland and the wider world, 1500-1950 (co-lead).

I lead the micro-cred module on Art and Architectural History, which is open to all those who are interested in developing their knowledge and research skills around art and architectural history. This module can also be taken as part of the MA History programme.

For more information please visit: https://www.ul.ie/gps/courses/history-of-art-and-architecture-survey-module-hi6231

In 2020, I developed and led AH4007 Introduction to Public Humanities for students on the BA Arts programme at UL. 

Biography

I am an Associate Professor in the Department of History at the University of Limerick, where my teaching focuses on aspects of cultural history.
My research is focused on the histories and heritages of religious architecture, as well as the performance of identities in public space through festival, ritual, procession, or everyday interactions. I am currently working on a monograph titled Ambition and Magnificence: Roman Catholic Architecture in Ireland, 1829-1936, and this is under contract with Liverpool University Press as part of their Reappraisals in Irish History series. I am a member of History of Emotions in the Built Environment (HEBE) research network. HEBE is committed to considering the ways that the history of emotions can help us to better understand the built environment. It aims to facilitate inclusive cross-sectoral discussions between and across discipline and practice.
 
I graduated with a degree in Art and Architectural History and English Literature from Trinity College Dublin in 2007, and after a valuable year with the National Gallery of Ireland education department and the Irish Museums Association, I completed my PhD at TCD under the supervision of Professor Roger Stalley as the doctoral fellow on the Irish Research Council-funded 'Reconstructions of the Gothic Past' project. I was a postdoctoral researcher on the Monastic Ireland project (a collaboration between UCD, Fáilte Ireland, and the Discovery programme), which developed digital resources for accessing Irish medieval built heritage.
 
In 2013, I joined the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick as the founding director of the MA Festive Arts programme. In 2020, I joined the School of History and Geography at UL.
From 2018-2021, I was the Assistant Dean, Research for the Faculty of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at the University of Limerick.
I am an experienced supervisor, and welcome expressions of interest from research students in the areas of Irish art and architectural history; religious architectural history; antiquarianism; the history of exhibitions and cultural institutions; aspects of festivity; heritage and cultural policy, and the creative industries.
 
I am a committee member of the Catholic Historical Society of Ireland, and a former committee member of the Society for the Study of Nineteenth-Century Ireland. From 2019-21, I was Vice-Chair and then Chair of the Irish Humanities Alliance.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
  • SDG 4 - Quality Education
  • SDG 5 - Gender Equality
  • SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
  • SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Keywords

  • NA Architecture
  • Irish Architecture
  • Architectural Histories
  • Religious Architecture
  • Material and Cultural Heritages of Religion
  • Catholic Architecture
  • Irish Art
  • History of Collections
  • Imperial Histories
  • Transnational Histories
  • Cultural History

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