Book launch with Professor Paul Elliott: Enlightenment Sociability and Provincial Culture: Erasmus Darwin, Joseph Wright and Friends

Professor Paul Elliott is launching his new book, Enlightenment Sociability and Provincial Culture: Erasmus Darwin, Joseph Wright and Friends, at St Peter's Church on Friday 13 November. It's part of the Autumn Derby Book Festival, so it's one of a few things on across the city that month.

The book maps the history and geography of Enlightenment art, science, literature and medicine, and its central argument is that the relationship between the physician Erasmus Darwin and the painter Joseph Wright — and the wider literary and philosophical networks they both belonged to — has received far too little recognition. It's a look at how two very different professional worlds overlapped in the provinces.

There's a concrete friendship at the heart of it: Darwin treated Wright for his health problems and suggested themes for his paintings, while their discussions shaped Wright's philosophy and psychology. Together they built the social and professional circles that sustained their work, aided by the formidable networks they each already had. The book traces those connections and the way they worked together, rather than just looking at them as two separate figures who happened to live in the same place.

The launch runs from 12:00pm to 1:00pm at St Peter's Church (DE1 1SN), and tickets are £8. It's a lunchtime slot, so it's one you can fit into a working day rather than a whole evening.