Aurélie Castillan is a PhD candidate in History of Art at the University of Edinburgh. Her research focuses on the use of Arthurian legends in northern Italian visual art for the exercise of power. Through a case study methodology spanning from the twelfth to the fifteenth century she brings to light the complex networks of Arthurian legends and their role in contemporary politics. Her thesis explores the relationship between visual art and textual sources and the dissemination of ideas and ideologies through art and architecture. She began her research chronologically with the earliest known visual representation of Arthuriana in Italy: the archivolt of the Porta della Pescheria in Modena. Dated to the early twelfth century, the sculpted archivolt, depicting a riding figure labelled Artus de Bretania heading towards a fortress with a retinue of knights, pre-dates the pan-European diffusion of the major works of literature.

Aurélie holds a BA in English Literature and Creative Writing, and an MA in Arthurian Literature with Distinction from Bangor University in Wales. She received an MSc in Global Premodern Art: History, Heritage and Curation with Disctinction from the University of Edinburgh. In 2024, she was recipient of the Arthurian Postgraduate Award from the Eugène Vinaver Trust in association with the British Branch of the International Arthurian Society.