Directory of Research and Expertise

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Research Summary and Profile

Research interests:

History

Summary of research interests and expertise:

Dr Ruth Slatter is Lecturer in Historic Environment & Knowledge Exchange Manager at the Institute of Historical Research.  

Ruth is an interdisciplinary historian who specialises in participatory histories and the study of peoples’ everyday uses and experiences of the historic built environment. 

Dr Ruth Slatter is Lecturer in Historic Environment and Knowledge Exchange Manager at the Institute of Historical Research. A member of the Institute’s Centre for the History of People, Place and Community, as part of her role she is the architectural editor of the Victoria County History. 

Ruth is a tutor on the MA in History, Place & Community. She convenes the Historic Places: Landscapes, Buildings & Significance module (with Dr Adam Chapman) and contributes to the Applied Public History module. 

Ruth’s research explores how people have used, experienced, and been affected by the historic built environment. To date, her research has largely focused on people’s experiences of faith spaces and international exhibitions since the early nineteenth century. In recent years, she has led the British Academy-funded project Jumpers, Umbrellas, and Plastic Bags: material culture and women’s everyday experiences of Methodism in England from 1945 and received funding from the Royal Geographical Society to explore James Smetham’s lived experiences of Methodism in nineteenth-century Stoke Newington. 

Ruth’s research is grounded in interdisciplinarity and co-production. Having studied art and design history before completing her PhD in historical geography, she uses visual, material, and spatial approaches to explore the lived experiences of ordinary individuals often overlooked in written archives. She also uses participatory methods to co-produce knowledge with contemporary communities. Recently, this has included working with Methodist congregations to co-produce histories of their buildings, collaborating with Epworth Old Rectory and Methodist Women in Britain as they crowd-source an archive of women’s experiences of Methodism, and making creative interactions with the art of the Methodist and Pre-Raphaelite James Smetham. 

Publications: 

R. Slatter, Geographical Approaches to Religion in the Past, Geography Compass. Online first: https://doi.org/10.1111/gec3.12682

R. Slatter, Sacred Squares? A non-representational study of James Smetham’s (1821-1889) everyday artistic experiences of religion, faith, and spirituality. Journal of Historical Geography, 79 (2023) 26-38, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2023.01.002

S. Denning, R. Scriven and R. Slatter, ‘Three Participatory Geographers: Reflections on Positionality and Working with Participants in Researching Religions, Spiritualities, And Faith. Social and Cultural Geography’, 23.6, (2022), 892-910, https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2020.1815826

R. Slatter, ‘Worship, social gatherings and the ‘more-than-Wesleyan’: the multiple uses and congregational experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist chapels (1851-1932)’. The London Journal, 46.2, (2021), 165-186, https://doi.org/10.1080/03058034.2020.1846925

R. Slatter, ‘Becoming chapels and everyday congregations: how the repair and maintenance of London’s Wesleyan chapels illustrates their communities’ everyday practices and experiences (1851-1932)’, Journal of Design History, 33.1, (2020), 34-49, https://doi.org/10.1093/jdh/epz032

R. Slatter, ‘Materiality and the extended geographies of religion: the institutional design and everyday experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist circuits, 1851 – 1932’, Journal of Historical Geography, 64, (2019), 60-71, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2019.01.001

R. Slatter (née Mason), ‘Material 'Becomings' and a Historical Geography of Religious Experience: Metropolitan Methodism, 1851-1932’, Area, 51.1, (2019), 14-24,  https://doi.org/10.1111/area.12345

R. Slatter (née Mason), ‘Materialities and Historical Geographies: an introduction’, Area, 51.1, (2019), 2-6, https://doi.org/10.1111/area.12518

R. Slatter (née Mason), ‘A ‘More-than-Architectural’ Approach to Faith Spaces: Wesleyan Methodist Spaces in London, 1851-1932’, Interiors: Design, Architecture, Culture, Spaces of Faith Special Issue, 6.3, (2015), 306-328, https://doi.org/10.1080/20419112.2015.1125627

R. Slatter (née Mason), ‘The Design of Nineteenth-Century Wesleyan Space: Re-Reading F.J. Jobson’s’ Chapel and School Architecture. Wesley and Methodist Studies, 7.1, (2015), 78-99, https://doi.org/10.5325/weslmethstud.7.1.0078

R. Slatter (née Mason), ‘Free from Censure: A Communion Token from the Scots Church London Wall’, Journal of the Antique Metalware Society, 19, (2011), 50-59, https://www.antiquemetalware.org.uk/2011/06/23/the-journal-vol-19-2011/ 

Publication Details

Related publications/articles:

Date	Details
01-Nov-2023	The Methodist Women’s Collection: a feminist archive Chapters Slatter, Ruth and Worthen, Hannah (2023), The Methodist Women’s Collection: a feminist archive. In ed. Thomas Dobson, Our Justice Journeys: Three Centuries of Striving for a Better World (Oxford: Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History).
01-Apr-2023	Geographical Approaches to Religion in the Past, Geography Compass Journal articles Slatter, Ruth (2023) Geographical Approaches to Religion in the Past.Geography Compass, 17(4), pp.1-17.
01-Apr-2023	Sacred Squares? A non-representational study of James Smetham’s (1821-1889) everyday artistic experiences of religion, faith, and spirituality Journal articles Slatter, Ruth (2023) Sacred Squares? A non-representational study of James Smetham’s (1821-1889) everyday artistic experiences of religion, faith, and spirituality. Journal of Historical Geography, 79, pp. 26-38.
04-Dec-2020	Worship, social gatherings and the ‘more-than-Wesleyan’: the multiple uses and congregational experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist chapels (1851-1932) Journal articles Slatter, Ruth (2021) Worship, social gatherings and the ‘more-than-Wesleyan’: the multiple uses and congregational experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist chapels (1851-1932). The London Journal, 46(2), pp.165-186.
03-Feb-2020	Three Participatory Geographers: Reflections on Positionality and Working with Participants in Researching Religions, Spiritualities, And Faith. Social and Cultural Geography Journal articles Denning, Stephanie, Scriven, Richard, and Slatter, Ruth (2022) Three Participatory Geographers: Reflections on Positionality and Working with Participants in Researching Religions, Spiritualities, And Faith. Social and Cultural Geography 23(6), pp.892-910.
01-Feb-2020	Becoming chapels and everyday congregations: how the repair and maintenance of London’s Wesleyan chapels illustrates their communities’ everyday practices and experiences (1851-1932) Journal articles Slatter, Ruth (2020) Becoming chapels and everyday congregations: how the repair and maintenance of London’s Wesleyan chapels illustrates their communities’ everyday practices and experiences (1851-1932). Journal of Design History, 33(1), pp. 34-49.
01-Apr-2019	Materiality and the extended geographies of religion: the institutional design and everyday experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist circuits, 1851 – 1932 Journal articles Slatter, Ruth (2019) Materiality and the extended geographies of religion: the institutional design and everyday experiences of London’s Wesleyan Methodist circuits, 1851 – 1932, Journal of Historical Geography, 64, pp. 60-71.
09-Nov-2018	Materialities and Historical Geographies: an introduction Journal articles Slatter (née Mason), Ruth (2019) Materialities and Historical Geographies: an introduction. Area, 51(1), pp.2-6.
15-May-2017	Material 'Becomings' and a Historical Geography of Religious Experience: Metropolitan Methodism, 1851-1932 Journal articles Slatter (née Mason), Ruth (2019) Material 'Becomings' and a Historical Geography of Religious Experience: Metropolitan Methodism, 1851-1932, Area, 51(1), pp. 14-24.
26-Apr-2016	A ‘More-than-Architectural’ Approach to Faith Spaces: Wesleyan Methodist Spaces in London, 1851-1932 Journal articles Slatter (née Mason), Ruth (2015) A ‘More-than-Architectural’ Approach to Faith Spaces: Wesleyan Methodist Spaces in London, 1851-1932. Interiors: Design, Architecture, Culture, Spaces of Faith Special Issue, 6(3), pp. 306-328.
01-Jan-2015	The Design of Nineteenth-Century Wesleyan Space: Re-Reading F.J. Jobson’s’ Chapel and School Architecture Journal articles Slatter (née Mason), Ruth (2015) The Design of Nineteenth-Century Wesleyan Space: Re-Reading F.J. Jobson’s’ Chapel and School Architecture. Wesley and Methodist Studies, 7(1), pp.78-99.

Research Projects & Supervisions

Research projects:

Details
200 years of James Smetham. In collaboration with the Oxford Centre for Methodism and Church History, artists, curators and researchers (2019 – 2023).   Exhibition in Bewdley Museum (September - October, 2023). Public-art workshops. Online exhibitions. Digitalisation programme. Online course.
Jumpers, umbrellas and plastic bags: material culture and women’s everyday experiences of Methodism in England from 1945 British Academy Small Research Grant (as PI, £9926.13 over 16 months, September 2019- December 2020).  Using the Methodist Women's Collection at Epworth Old Rectory to explore women's everyday experience of Methodism in Britain since 1945.
Spaces of nineteenth-century congregational faith: James Smetham (1821-1889) and Methodism in Stoke Newington Funded by a Royal Geographical Society Small Research Grant (as PI, £1400 over 12 months, May 2019 – May 2020).  Exploring James Smetham's experiences of Methodism in nineteenth-century north London.

Current PhD topics supervised:

Dates	Details
From: 01-Oct-2023 Until: 01-Oct-2024	The Classical Campus: Architecture and Privilege at Elite New England Boarding Schools Justin Muchnick
From: 01-Oct-2021 Until: 01-Oct-2026	Exploring ‘the domestic’ in contemporary hospice architecture: a critical examination of the architecture and design of in-patient palliative care facilities in England Lucia Crowther. Funded by a Wellcome Trust PhD Scholarship.

Past PhD topics supervised:

Dates	Details
From: 01-Jan-2018 Until: 01-Oct-2022	The impact of women on family dynastic ambitions and legal change in England, 1550-1800 <p>Stormm Buxton-Hill (University of Hull)</p>
From: 01-Jan-2018 Until: 31-Mar-2020	Reading the academic library <p>Lee Fallin (University of Hull) </p>
From: 01-Jan-2018 Until: 01-Oct-2022	Agricultural heritage of Saltaire <p>Ruth Quinn (University of Hull) </p>

Available for doctoral supervision: Yes

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