In the self-conception of the historical discipline, the written and printed word has long held a privileged place. Historical sources as well as scholarly publications are predominantly understood as textual artifacts. Yet in practice, both the analysis of empirical material and the communication of historical knowledge rely on a dynamic interplay of multiple media modalities. Sources may appear as images, audio or video recordings, physical objects, or 3D reconstructions. The increasing proliferation of (digital) images and novel visual formats calls for adapted methodological approaches – relevant not only to visual history. Often, images must be contextualized alongside textual sources in trans- and intermedial frameworks in order to yield meaningful insights.

Visualizations of data also play a growing role in historical scholarship – both as analytical tools and as forms of scholarly expression. They follow distinct conventions of representation and require competencies in visual literacy to be interpreted effectively. The multimodal interplay becomes especially apparent where visualizations represent textual data and are embedded in complex text-image constellations, particularly in digital publishing environments. Moreover, new formats – hypertextual, interactive, and visually designed – are being developed to convey polyphonic narratives about historical phenomena in ways traditional text formats cannot.

Despite the diversity of these domains, they all point to a shared insight: the interaction between text and image significantly shapes how historians perceive and express their work. Yet this interaction is rarely examined through explicit, comparative knowledge of the semiotic, epistemic, and practical functions of different modalities. Which modality contributes what to the construction of scholarly knowledge? What approaches exist for combining the linear logic of text with the spatial logics of visualizations into productive, multimodal ensembles? How can we build interdisciplinary, analytically grounded expertise about the affordances and limitations of hybrid formats – and integrate it into historical practice?

This one-day workshop seeks to explore possible answers and syntheses on a theoretical level. To do so, we must sharpen our understanding of these modalities and assess their significance for both source analysis and the evolving forms of scholarly communication.

Please register with Christian Wachter: christian.wachter[at]uni-bielefeld.de