"In this public lecture, Edmund De Waal discusses place and displacement in poetry and the visual arts. His talk draws from his own family history and his practice as an artist and a writer. Professor Sir Keith Burnett, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield, said: “Edmund is an acclaimed artist and author, but more importantly he has the greatest empathy for the people and journeys which make up our history. ‘On the Eve of Departure: Homelessness, Exile and Art’ is part of the University’s annual Festival of Arts and Humanities and the city’s wider Year of Making 2016 - a festival to demonstrate that making is in the city’s DNA, from advanced manufacturing to arts, music and theatre. "