Janina Sara Maria Ramirez (; ' Maleczek; born 7 July 1980), sometimes credited as Nina Ramirez, is a British art historian,

cultural historian Cultural history combines the approaches of anthropology and history to examine popular cultural traditions and cultural interpretations of historical experience. It examines the records and narrative descriptions of past matter, encompassing the ...

, and TV presenter. She specialises in interpreting symbols and examining works of art within their historical context.

Education and academic career

Ramirez went to school in Slough, Berkshire. She gained a degree in English literature, specialising in Old and

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English ...

, from St Anne's College, Oxford, before completing her postgraduate studies at the Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York. She completed a PhD on the artistic and literary symbolism of birds, which led to a lectureship in York's Art History Department, followed by lecturing posts at the

University of Winchester , mottoeng = Wisdom and Knowledge , established = 1840 - Winchester Diocesan Training School1847 - Winchester Training College1928 - King Alfred's College2005 - University of Winchester , type = Public research university ...

University of Warwick , mottoeng = Mind moves matter , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £7.0 million (2021) , budget = £698.2 million (2020� ...

, and

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

. Until 2021, Ramirez was the course director on the Certificate in History of Art at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

's Department for Continuing Education. In 2021, Ramirez became Research Fellow in History of Art at Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford.

Personal life

Her grandfather was Polish. Ramirez and her

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

husband have two children. At 14, she played bass in a band with

Krissi Murison Krissi Murison (born 1981) is a British journalist. She is the editor of ''The Sunday Times Magazine'' and the former editor of the ''NME''. Murison attended The Abbey School in Reading from 1993–2000, before studying English Literature ...

as lead singer. Ramirez was in a punk band while at Oxford but chose finishing her degree over touring with the band.

Television career

* ''Treasures of the Anglo-Saxons'', BBC Four, August 2010 * ''The Viking Sagas'', BBC Four, May 2011 * ''Britain's Most Fragile Treasure'', BBC Four, October 2011 * ''Illuminations: The Private Lives of Medieval Kings'', 3-part series, BBC Four, January 2012 * '' Chivalry and Betrayal: The Hundred Years' War'', 3-part series, BBC Four, February 2013 * ''Architects of the Divine: The First Gothic Age'', BBC Four, October 2014 * ''Saints and Sinners: Britain's Millennium of Monasteries'', 3-part series, BBC Four, February 2015 * ''The Quizeum'', A museum-based quiz panel show, BBC Four, April 2015 * ''The Search for the Lost Manuscript: Julian of Norwich'', BBC Four, July 2016 * ''An Art Lover's Guide'', BBC Four, May 2017 * ''In Search of Arcadia'', BBC Four, August 2017 * ''England's Reformation: Three Books that Changed a Nation'', BBC Four, October 2017 * ''Art on BBC: The Genius of Leonardo Da Vinci'', BBC Four, May 2018 * ''Raiders of the Lost Past with Janina Ramirez'' BBC Four, September 2019 - 1 The Sutton Hoo Hoard (broadcast 4 September 2019) * ''Handmade in Bolton'' – presenter, featuring Shaun Greenhalgh and narrated by

Waldemar Januszczak Waldemar Januszczak (born 12 January 1954) is an English art critic and television documentary producer and presenter. Formerly the art critic of ''The Guardian'', he took the same role at ''The Sunday Times'' in 1992, and has twice won the Cr ...

, BBC Four, October 2019 * ''Lost Worlds and Hidden Treasures'', 3-part series, Apple TV, May 2021

Publications

* * * * * * *

References

External links

*
Janina Ramirez
at United Agents
Janina Ramirez – BBC Blog
*
Dr Janina Ramirez: Art Detective – Laluma Podcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramirez, Janina 1980 births 21st-century English historians Living people Academics of the University of Oxford Academics of the University of Warwick Academics of the University of Winchester Academics of the University of York Alumni of St Anne's College, Oxford Alumni of the University of York English art historians Women art historians English people of Polish descent English television presenters