Daniele Rugo: the Image of Genocide - tomorrow and the day after tomorrow (Inaugural Lecture Series)

As part of our 60th Anniversary celebrations, we are thrilled to welcome you to our new series of Inaugural Lectures. The opening lecture of this series will feature Professor Daniele Rugo.

The genocide perpetrated on Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023 has been accompanied by a vast body of images. Given Israel’s complete ban on international reporters, most of these images have been produced by Palestinian journalists and citizens. Attempts by perpetrators of crimes against humanity to prevent the creation of visual evidence are well known. However, no other genocide in modern history has been so extensively documented by its victims as the Gaza genocide.

Images of extreme violence, captured and circulated in real time, have reached millions globally via social media. Yet this proliferation of images has not brought the genocide to an end. Have images of violence therefore become useless? Drawing on the making of my most recent documentary film, Life Support (2026), this lecture examines the continued significance of images and proposes new ways of understanding their function and temporality.

Professor Rugo hopes you will join him for a drinks reception after the lecture.

What is an Inaugural Lecture?

An Inaugural Lecture marks a significant milestone in any academic career. Join us as we celebrate the extraordinary careers and research excellence of our academic colleagues, recently joined or promoted to Professor.

In these special open lectures, our professors welcome family, friends, colleagues and members of the public for a memorable evening unpacking their research expertise and offering insights from their career journey.

The Inaugural Lecture Series showcases a wide range of subjects and professorial expertise. These beacons of Brunel’s research community are leaders in their wider field, presenting their expertise, free and open to all.

All ages are welcome - we request that those under 18 are accompanied by an adult.