[D-G] CFP: Sensorium - Philosophy and Aesthetics

[Ashley Woodward]

'Sensorium: Philosophy and Aesthetics'
A conference to be held at the University of Melbourne, Australia,
 22 - 24 June, 2005

This three-day conference will cover a range of thinkers and issues in
contemporary philosophy and aesthetics, with a particular focus on two
French philosophers, Jean-François Lyotard and Gilles Deleuze. Offers
of papers are invited from researchers in the fields of philosophy, the
social sciences, literary and performance studies, the visual arts, and
other creative disciplines interested in the work of Deleuze, Lyotard,
or in aesthetics more generally.

Confirmed Keynote Speaker: Andrew Benjamin

Stream One: Lyotard - Beyond the Postmodern Condition

The reception of the philosophy of Jean-François Lyotard in the
English-speaking world has been sporadic and far from comprehensive.
Regrettably, his influence has been largely felt through the infamous
definition that opens The Postmodern Condition, and to a lesser extent
the ironically-flavoured summary found in the 'Reading Dossier' of The
Differend. The aim of this symposium is to redress this situation by
drawing attention to the large amount of provocative and important work
done by Lyotard throughout his career. Particular attention will be
given to his early libidinal philosophy, his readings of other
philosophers, his aesthetics, and his recent work (from Postmodern
Fables onwards). Possible topics for presentations could include: art
and aesthetics; Lyotard's readings of Freud, Marx, Kant, Lévinas,
Malraux, Augustine, Adorno, or phenomenology; Libidinal Economy;
Discours, Figure; paganism; Lyotard's politics and his theorizing of
the avant-garde.

Stream Two: Deleuze and Creativity

Although many aspects of Deleuze's work have received close attention
in recent years there has been little written about his views on
aesthetics and creativity (as distinct from his views on particular
artistic creations). The aim of this symposium is to provide an
opportunity for exploring Deleuze's account of creative production in
the context of the various arts (literature, music, theatre, fine arts,
cinema and television, multimedia and cyber-culture, comics, etc.) and
of culture more generally.

Stream Three: Aesthetics

This part of the conference is open to papers from all disciplines
theoretically or practically engaging with issues in aesthetics. Both
academics and practising artists are invited to contribute papers or
works of relevance to the conference theme.

Possible topics for presentations could include:
Postmodern aesthetics; the changing role (and relevance) of art in
contemporary culture; emergent art forms; the relation between thought
and sensation; the sublime; recent movements within the respective
arts; the relationship between the marketplace and the reception and
consumption of artworks; theories of representation; etc.

We welcome papers discussing philosophers, cultural critics, or artists
who have written on the philosophy of aesthetics or debates in
aesthetics (e.g., Plato, Kant, Hegel, Marx, Nietzsche, Freud,
Heidegger, Bataille, Kristeva, Blanchot, Lacan, Derrida, Klossowski,
Baudrillard, Adorno, Benjamin, Genette, Cixous, Bourdieu, Foucault,
Virillio, De Certeau, Ricoeur, Jameson, McLuhan, Goodman, Eagleton,
Artaud, Baba, Godard, Marker, etc.)

Submission details:
Individual papers: Title and 300 word abstract for papers of 30 mins
reading time.
Panels: 2-3 speakers (30 mins each); 300 word abstract for the panel
plus up to 300 words for each paper.

  Submissions should also include the following information:
  Speakers(s) Name(s) and title(s)
  Phone number
  Postal address
  E-mail address
Institutional affiliation

Submissions of Abstracts should be sent by e-mail attachment (as Word
or rtf) to:
StreamOne (Lyotard) to Ashley Woodward <phallacy at tpg.com.au>
Stream Two (Deleuze) to Graham Jones <grajones at unimelb.edu.au>,
Stream Three (open) to Barbara Bolt <bbolt at unimelb.edu.au>.

Closing date for submissions: 31st of March, 2005.
For those who require confirmation of acceptance before that date in
order to secure funding, please request this on your submission. This
conference will be fully refereed, with select papers published.
Notification of acceptance will be emailed by 20 April, 2005.

  Details about accommodation, conference facilities, registration etc.
will be available on-line shortly.

Organising Committee:
Barbara Bolt <bbolt at unimelb.edu.au>.
Felicity Colman fcolman at unimelb.edu.au,
Graham Jones <grajones at unimelb.edu.au>
Jon Roffe <overground at imap.cc
Ashley Woodward <phallacy at tpg.com.au>

This conference is organised by the following groups at the University
of Melbourne:
The School of Art History, Cinema, Classics and Archaeology
The School of Creative Arts
Melbourne School of Continental Philosophy

Further conference details can be found online at
http://www.mscp.org.au