Enfilade

From the conference website:

Decline—Metamorphosis—Rebirth: International Conference for PhD Students
Ljubljana, Slovenia, 18–19 September 2014

Proposals due by 12 May 2014

Throughout history mankind has witnessed rises and declines of civilisations, governments and regimes, ideologies and ideas, cultural movements and artistic creativity. The periods of crisis in social as well as artistic fields are generally periods of reflection and pursuit of new ways. However, crises often bring about voices that advocate a return to old values and beliefs. Various connotations may be implied by the word decline, which in turn leads to different understandings of the concept. That is why the term itself rarely refers to something terminal—revivals of ideas, past ages and artistic movements are a common historical occurrence. In connection to these revivals and bearing in mind Heraclitus’s utterance »Ever-newer waters flow on those who step into the same rivers.«, new questions emerge: what is the effect of a new historical context on old, revived ideas, and what is the dialectical relationship between their manifestations in different periods of time?

The international conference Decline—Metamorphosis—Rebirth is intended for PhD students and recent PhD graduates from different fields of humanities and social sciences, who are invited to participate. Proposed topics for interdisciplinary analyses are:
• understanding and interpretation of concepts of decline, transformation/metamorphosis and rebirth in different periods and in different fields of humanities and social sciences
• artistic creation and modes of living in periods of decline, transformation and rebirth (the effect of social changes on artistic creativity, artistic and/or creative reactions on social changes)
• ways of understanding and attitudes towards historical phenomena, periods, and cultural heritage in different periods of time
• decline, transformation and rebirth of social systems, political structures, ideologies
• artistic and social contexts and the role of historicisms, neo- and post- styles in art
• decline, transformation and rebirth as iconographical motifs
• metamorphosis of iconographical motifs, ways in which they are perceived in new contexts
• forgotten, rediscovered or »rehabilitated« artists
• crisis, transformation, and rebirth in an individual artist’s oeuvre
• revival (Nachleben) of concepts and content within art historical periods

Abstract in English of maximum 400 words should be send, with the title of the paper, name and contact information (address, phone number, e-mail) until 12th of May 2014 by e-mail to phdconference2014@gmail.com or by post to Department of Art History, Faculty of Arts, Aškerčeva 2, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia (with the note ‘Conference for PhD students’).

Paragone Studies
Musée des Beaux-Arts du Québec, 18–20 September 2014

Proposals due by 1 April 2014

Papers are invited for The 3rd Annual International Conference in Paragone Studies, to be held at the Musée des beaux-arts du Québec, just outside of the old quarter of the City of Québec in Canada. The conference’s purpose is to support the scholarly investigation of the paragone, or rivalry in the arts, as it has been manifested in all media across history. The conference will also include a round-table session featuring artists who choose to discuss how competition in the arts, past or present, has impacted their work or their professional lives. To apply, please submit a 300-word abstract using the paper or round-table presenter appropriate form on the conference website and send to paragonestudies@gmail.com. Please include a c.v.

From Le Blog de L’ApAhAu:

L’amateurisme dans l’Europe du XVIIIe siècle. Pratiques et représentations
Paris, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, 3–4 October 2014

Proposals due by 30 April 2014

Le XVIIIe siècle a souvent été décrit comme l’âge d’or de l’amateur. De cette consécration, le signe le plus visible est la création en France du titre d’« amateur honoraire » à l’Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture, dont la personne du comte de Caylus fut l’un des plus brillants représentants. Dans son abstraction, le terme renvoie moins à une fonction déterminée qu’à un goût pour l’art, lequel recouvre concrètement une configuration d’aptitudes ou de rôles (du collectionneur, du mécène, de l’esthète, du savant, du praticien) : parce qu’il combine ces différents usages du goût, le modèle académique constitue un type idéal et accompli de l’amateur, au point qu’on a pu identifier le déclin de ce modèle à la disparition de cette figure au siècle suivant.

Dépassant ce cadre d’analyse centré sur les beaux-arts et le cas français, on se fondera ici sur une compréhension extensive du terme, qui s’étendra aux domaines artistiques autres que les arts plastiques (théâtre, architecture, musique, arts des jardins, etc.) voire au champ esthétique en général (incluant à ce titre le paysage) et l’on abordera cet objet d’étude dans une perspective comparatiste, ouverte sur les particularités lexicales et sémantiques qui caractérisent sa conceptualisation dans les différentes langues et cultures européennes.

On s’interrogera sur les antagonismes et les évolutions qui travaillent la définition de l’amateur, au sein d’un champ de forces où s’affrontent des intérêts divergents. Pour être d’institution récente, la figure de l’amateur académique n’en reste pas moins partiellement tributaire des structures et des valeurs propres à cette sociabilité aristocratique au sein de laquelle s’est constituée une tradition du loisir cultivé et qui définit, depuis le XVIIe siècle, le cadre de la pratique de l’amateur des belles-lettres. Or la campagne que les « gens de lettres », Diderot en tête, vont mener contre Caylus et ses confrères à partir du milieu du XVIIIe siècle, contribue à élargir l’horizon de communication dans lequel se déploie l’activité de l’amateur. Dénonçant la restriction du domaine de juridiction en matière esthétique aux relations entre particuliers à l’intérieur de cercles d’initiés, les critiques d’art revendiquent leur rôle « dans la formation d’un espace public et civique du goût » (Charlotte Guichard, Les amateurs d’art à Paris au XVIIIe siècle, 2008). Ils promeuvent une nouvelle vision de l’amateurisme sous l’espèce du critique d’art, qui prétend former le goût général en s’exprimant en tant que personne particulière, sans être un professionnel ni un praticien. (more…)

Rienzi’s 15th Anniversary Symposium | Creatures of Comfort, 1650–1950
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 19–21 September 2014

Proposals due by 1 May 2014

Rienzi, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston’s house museum for European decorative arts, celebrates its 15th anniversary as a public collection with the symposium, Creatures of Comfort, 1650–1950. By examining the period from 1650 to 1950, how and why did the concept of comfort evolve and become an important part of European and American cultures? What objects, inventions, aesthetic or cultural changes improved ones’ physical or emotional well-being simply by making life more comfortable?

Rienzi houses a significant European collection of paintings, sculpture, furniture, porcelain, and silver from the mid-17th to mid-19th centuries. Built in 1953 as a residence and now a house museum, Rienzi evokes the fine European country houses of the 18th century with formal, yet comfortable, furnishings, entertaining and private spaces, and rooms specifically designed for the enjoyment of family and friends. Rienzi also retains many modern amenities such as central air conditioning, a dishwasher, an elevator and other luxurious essentials that defined the ultimate comforts in America in the 1950s.

The Creatures of Comfort, 1650–1950 symposium offers academics and emerging scholars an opportunity to explore the ever-changing role of comfort in European and American cultures. The symposium will take place at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, from Friday, September 19, 2014, through Sunday, September 21, 2014.

We invite masters, doctorial students and emerging scholars to submit a 400-word abstract outlining a twenty-minute presentation, along with a current CV by May 1, 2014. Please direct all submissions to rienzisymposium@mfah.org. Selected participants will be notified by July 1, 2014. Participants will be offered a $600 travel and lodging stipend. All presentations will be given on Saturday, September 20, and Sunday, September 21, at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

Possible themes of investigation may include, but are not limited to: interiors, design, architecture, dining, privacy, leisure activities, etiquette, gender, costume, travel, technology, and economics.

The keynote address will be given on Friday, September 19, 2014 by Dr. Joan DeJean, Cultural Historian and Trustee Professor of Romance Languages at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research includes the cultural history and the material culture of late 17th- and early 18th-century France. She is the author of ten books on French literature, history, and material culture, including, The Essence of Style, How the French Invented High Fashion, Fine Food, Chic Cafes, Style, and Sophistication, The Age of Comfort: When Paris Discovered Casual and the Modern Home Began, and her most recent publication, How Paris Became Paris: The Invention of the Modern City.

For those of you working in the long seventeenth century. From SE17:

33rd Annual Conference | Society for Interdisciplinary French Seventeenth-Century Studies
University of Western Ontario, London, Canada, 16–18 October 2014

Proposals due by 30 March 2014

Conference Organizer / Organisateur du colloque
Jean Leclerc, University of Western Ontario, jlecler@uwo.ca

Scholars from all disciplines are invited to submit abstracts in French or English (300 words maximum) for presentations relating to the session themes listed below. Please send abstracts by email directly to session chairs by March 30, 2014. Presentations will be of 20 minutes’ duration.

Les chercheurs de toutes disciplines sont invités à soumettre des propositions de communication (en français ou en anglais) relatives aux thèmes annoncés ci-dessous. Les propositions ne doivent pas dépasser 300 mots et sont à envoyer par courriel directement aux présidents de séance avant le 30 mars 2014. Les interventions devront se limiter à 20 minutes.

1. Economy and spending / Économie et dépenses
Chair  /  Présidente de session : Nathalie Freidel, Université Wilfrid Laurier, nfreidel@wlu.ca

2. Center and margins / Centre et marges
Chair  /  Président de session : Jean-Vincent Blanchard, Swarthmore College, jblanch1@swarthmore.edu

3. Old and New France / Ancienne et Nouvelle France
Chair  /  Présidente de session : Marie-Christine Pioffet, York University, mpioffet@yorku.ca

4. Spaces and perspectives / Espaces et perspectives
Chair  /  Président de session : Francis Assaf, University of Georgia, fassaf@uga.edu

5. Disappearances and endings / Disparitions et fins
Chair  /  Présidente de session : Charlotte Trinquet, University of Central Florida, ctrinquet@gmail.com

6. Dazzling, stunning, sublime / Éblouissement, sidération, sublime
Chair  /  Président de session : Gilles Declercq, Université Sorbonne Nouvelle, gilles.declercq@univ-paris3.fr

7. Pedagogy / Pédagogie
Chair  /  Présidente de session : Sylvaine Guyot, Harvard University, guyot@fas.harvard.edu

Further information concerning the conference will be available starting in March on the Society’s website / Des informations complémentaires seront disponibles dès le mois de mars sur le site Web de la Société.

It’s not an art history conference, but thinking about possible correlations between representations of animals and the actual trade in animals would seem fruitful. And maybe some of you are already doing that. -CH

From McGill’s Indian Ocean World Centre:

Trade in Animals and Animal Products in the Indian Ocean World
Indian Ocean World Centre, McGill University, Montreal, 23–24 October 2014

Organized by Omri Bassewitch Frenkel

Proposals due by 1 May 2014

Recently, much public attention has focussed on the lucrative yet often illegal trade in the Indian Ocean world (IOW) of animal parts, including elephant tusks, rhinoceros horns, and tiger skins. However, the trade in exotic animals and animal parts in the IOW, from Africa to China, is not a modern phenomenon. Its roots can be traced back centuries and is reflected in the traditions, folklore, medicinal practices and religious beliefs of many different societies across the IOW. It has also impacted on the environment. By exploring the long-distance trade in animals and animal products as economic, cultural, and ecological phenomenon, this conference will seek to interrogate the concept of the Indian Ocean as a ‘world’. The conference will consider the trade in all land and sea animals as well as birds.

A wide range of relevant issues will be given consideration, but prospective participants are asked to give special consideration to the following themes:
• Trade in exotic animals
• Trade in animal parts
• Trade in animal products
• Impact of the trade on the environment of the source regions
• Finance and structure of the trade
• Prices and profits
• Demand and consumption patterns
• Legal and religious prescriptions governing the hunting/collection and consumption of animals and animal parts

Papers should be in English or French. Deadline for submission of abstracts (title and 1–2 paragraphs) is 1 May 2014. The review process will be completed by 1 June 2014. Papers should be a maximum of 9,000 words (including footnotes). We anticipate that selected papers will be published in a volume to appear in Palgrave Macmillan’s Indian Ocean World Studies series. A registration fee of $200 USD ($60 USD for students) is payable by 1 September 2014. The late registration fee (after 1 September 2014) is $250 USD and $100 USD for students. Registration is payable by cash, personal cheque or money order. Credit card payments are not accepted. All those interested in participating should complete the conference registration form and return it by email to the IOWC (iowc@mcgill.ca). All queries should be sent to the conference organizer, Omri Bassewitch, omri.bassewitchfrenkel@mail.mcgill.ca.

Edited Volume | The Eighteenth-Century Bird in Literature, 1660–1830
Proposals due by 1 July 2014

A great deal of scholarly effort has been made over the years to gather together, analyze, and anthologize eighteenth-century bird poetry, paintings, and other material cultures that describe and represent birds in this period. Very few publications, however, have attempted to bring together the wide range of different approaches that scholars have adopted. This new project, The Eighteenth-Century Bird in Literature, 1660–1830, accordingly aims to further extend the discussion of the eighteenth-century bird and bring incisive, new critical approaches to the topic of birds and the representations of birds in eighteenth-century literature and cultural life. The editors are particularly interested in ways in which a deeper understanding of the bird in eighteenth-century cultural life shapes our twenty-first century notions of birds, our behaviors towards birds, and towards the environments that birds inhabit.

Chapters may include (but are not limited to) engagement with additional perspectives on eighteenth-century birds. These are just a few suggested topics:
• The eighteenth-century bird in the visual arts of the period
• Natural histories and the eighteenth-century bird
• Print cultures and the eighteenth-century bird
• Animal welfare and animal rights discourses around eighteenth-century birds
• Figurative birds
• The languages of eighteenth-century birds
• The exotic, the local, and the eighteenth-century bird
• The eighteenth-century bird as pet
• Ecocriticism and the eighteenth-century bird
• Science, culture, and the eighteenth-century bird
• Animal studies and the eighteenth-century bird
• Co-evolutions: the eighteenth-century bird and other animals (human and non-human)
• Eighteenth-century bird habitats, land-use transformations, and cultures
• Migrations, diasporas, and the eighteenth-century bird

We ask that anyone interested in contributing to this volume submit a one page CV (including previous publications) and an abstract of no more than 500 words by July 1, 2014 in docx or pdf format. Please send abstracts and direct any questions to the volume editors: Anne Milne (anne.milne@utoronto.ca), Brycchan Carey (brycchan@brycchancarey.com) and Sayre Greenfield (sng6@pitt.edu).

Call for Participation from The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art:

Graduate Summer Seminar | British Print Culture in a Transnational Context, 1700–2014
The Paul Mellon Centre for British Art, London, 21–25 July 2014

Applications due by 10 March 2014

In July 2014, the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art will offer a week-long graduate student seminar focusing on British print culture. This is open to doctoral candidates who are working on related topics, or whose research would benefit from a deeper knowledge of the subject. There is a substantial body of literature on British prints that takes the form of survey publications, monographic studies of individual printmakers, and studies of individual techniques, and a number of scholars and doctoral students are currently undertaking research related to these topics. However, the broad field of British print culture still remains relatively underexplored, and its importance for those working in other areas of British visual culture tends to be underestimated. Two related areas, in particular, have been neglected and offer rich possibilities for further study: the reproductive print and the transnational aspect of the British print. The now canonical division between reproductive and ‘original’ prints has tended to elevate the latter category at the expense of the former, and the long-held perception of the status of professional engravers working in Britain as inferior to the artists whose work they translated has obscured appreciation of the collaborative relationships between artist and engraver, and so inhibited our understanding of the complexities of British artistic production. Secondly, Stephen Bann’s research on Anglo-French exchange in nineteenth-century reproductive printmaking has provided an important model for investigating the transnational nature of the British print trade, the various different manifestations of which include: British engravers working elsewhere in the world; foreign engravers working in Britain; the circulation of British prints around the world; the appropriation of imagery from non-British prints in Britain and vice-versa; and indeed the emergence of global modes of representation transmitted by way of prints throughout the former British empire.

The seminar will engage with the development of British print culture, in a transnational context, from 1770 to the present day. It will offer an opportunity for consideration of the state of the field, through a series of sessions taught at the Paul Mellon Centre and at various print rooms in central London, including the British Museum, the Courtauld Institute of Art, University College London, and the V & A Museum. Students will have the chance to see and discuss a wide range of primary materials. The seminar will also offer an introduction to the different techniques of printmaking in relation to their historical development, and includes a visit to a print studio. (more…)

While it’s a symposium especially geared toward book studies, it seems like some of you working on prints would have exciting examples of “papery aberrations.” -CH

Perversions of Paper
Birkbeck Material Texts Network and the Archive Futures Network
Keynes Library, Birkbeck College, University of London, 28 June 2014

Proposals due by 30 March 2014

Perversions of Paper is a one-day symposium investigating the outer limits of our interactions with books and with paper. It considers unorthodox engagements with texts, from cherishing or hoarding them to mutilating and desecrating them, from wearing them to chewing them, and from inhaling their scent to erasing their content.

‘Perversion’ may apply to deviations from normal usage but also to our psychological investments in paper. To talk of having a fetish for books is common, but is there more to this than merely well-worn cliché? What part do books and other written artefacts play in our imaginary and psychic lives, and what complex emotional attachments do we develop towards them? Also, how might literary studies or cultural history register these impulses and acts; what kind of methodologies are appropriate?

This symposium invites reflections on perverse uses of—and relationships with—paper and parchment. We welcome proposals from a range of historical periods and disciplinary backgrounds, and from postgraduate students, as well as from more established academics. Contributors are invited to consider bookish and papery aberrations from any number of angles, including but not limited to: (more…)

Fifth Annual Feminist Art History Conference
American University, Washington, D.C., 31 October — 2 November 2014

Proposals due by 15 May 2014

This annual conference builds on the legacy of feminist art-historical scholarship and pedagogy initiated by Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard at American University. To further the inclusive spirit of their groundbreaking anthologies, we invite papers on subjects spanning the chronological spectrum, from the ancient world through the present, to foster a broad dialogue on feminist art-historical practice. Papers may address such topics as: artists, movements, and works of art and architecture; cultural institutions and critical discourses; practices of collecting, patronage, and display; the gendering of objects, spaces, and media; the reception of images; and issues of power, agency, gender, and sexuality within visual cultures. Submissions on under-represented art-historical fields, geographic areas, national traditions, and issues of race and ethnicity are encouraged.

To be considered for participation, please provide a single document in Microsoft Word. It should consist of a one-page, single-spaced proposal of unpublished work up to 500 words for a 20-minute presentation, followed by a curriculum vitae of no more than two pages. Please name the document “[last name]-proposal” and submit with the subject line “[last name]-proposal” to fahc5papers@gmail.com.

Submission Deadline: May 15, 2014. Invitations to participate will be sent by July 1.

Keynote speaker: Professor Lisa Gail Collins, Vassar College

Sponsored by the Art History Program and the Department of Art, College of Arts and Sciences, American University. Organizing committee: Kathe Albrecht, Juliet Bellow, Norma Broude, Kim Butler Wingfield, Mary D. Garrard, Helen Langa, Andrea Pearson, and Ying-chen Peng.