26–28 June 2014
Institute of English Studies, Senate House, London
Call For Papers
Keynote Speakers:
Tyrus Miller (University of California, Santa Cruz)
Jacqueline Rose (Queen Mary, London)
Modernism Now! is a three-day international, interdisciplinary conference organised by the British Association for Modernist Studies, designed to explore ‘modernism’ today. The conference thus aims to discuss not only the past achievements of modernism but also to consider its possible futures. In Modernism and Theory, Neil Levi has recently suggested that in thinking about modernism we consider ‘the idea of a contemporary perpetuation of artistic modernism’ and that we see ‘modernist works as events whose implications demand continued investigation.’
Modernism Now! will explore these issues in two distinct ways:
The conference aims to represent and reflect on the diversity of modernist studies today, and calls for papers assessing modernist writers, artists, texts and performances from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds, methodological standpoints, and theoretical perspectives.
Modernism Now! also wishes to explore the ongoing use of ‘modernism’ as a cultural, philosophical, and artistic category, analysing how and where modernism functions as a continuing aesthetic in the twenty-first century, across multiple disciplines, geographies, and traditions.
Topics might include (but are not restricted to):
The idea of a contemporary modernism
Modernist futures and legacies
Past and previous modernisms
Modernism as a continuing event
Current debates in world literature and global modernist studies that stretch the historical/geographical framework of modernism
The ‘nowness’ (Jetztzeit) of modernism; the new and the now
Assessments of individual writers, artists, performers, texts, works of art that explore their status and relevance today
Historical assessments of the term ‘modernism’
New trends in modernist studies e.g. periodical studies
Anachronism
Disciplinary borders and boundaries around modernism today
‘Early’ and ‘late’ modernisms; periodising modernism
Current theorisations of modernism as a social/cultural/philosophical/political category
How modernism informs the practice of contemporary artists/writers/performers
Modernism and the tradition of the avant-garde
Singular and plural modernism(s)
Proposals are welcomed for 20min papers, panels of 3-4 speakers, and focused round-tables on particular topics. Proposals should be no longer than 250 words per individual paper and should include a short biography for each speaker, including contact details.
Delegates must be members of BAMS in order to register. To become a member, go to http://bams.ac.uk/membership/
Proposals should be emailed to modernismnow@bams.ac.uk by January 31st 2014.
Conference Organising Committee
Dr Suzanne Hobson (Queen Mary, University of London)
Chris Mourant (King’s College London)
Dr Cathryn Setz (University of Oxford)
Professor Andrew Thacker (Nottingham Trent University)