The Graduate Visual Culture Association of Queen’s University
Context and Meaning XVIII: Pay Attention

We are pleased to announce the 18th annual Context & Meaning Graduate Student Conference, taking place at Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, from Friday, February 1stto Saturday, February 2nd 2019. We are seeking papers that address this year’s theme, “Pay Attention.” The conference will provide an inclusive and broadly defined forum that facilitates academic discussion while encompassing an abundant range of topics. We would like to encourage discussions about how sensory devices and selectivity are used to stimulate interest across different times, cultures, and mediums within Visual Culture Studies.
Some potential themes and ideas to consider may include:

  • Technical examination and discoveries in art history
  • How patronage governs taste and viewer interpretation
  • Innovation, ideological bias, and material history in conservation
  • Representation/underrepresentation in museum practices
  • How artists draw attention to cultural and political issues such as gender, sexuality, and marginalization
  • Controversy and provocative subject matter in different artistic practices

We encourage applications from graduate students working in Art History, Art Conservation, Studio Art, Digital Humanities, Cultural Studies, Museum Studies, Religious Studies, Gender Studies and students from various Humanities fields whose research responds to this year’s theme. This conference is open to both historical and contemporary topics. Submissions are welcome from current graduate students, as well as those who have completed their graduate studies within the last year. We seek to assemble a diverse group of scholars in order to foster interdisciplinary discussions. Presenters will be allotted 20 minutes to deliver their papers, followed by a 10-minute discussion period.
If you are interested in speaking, or performing at Context and Meaning XVIII, please email an abstract of no more than 300 words with the title of your paper, along with a separate document that includes a 250-word bio, to gvca@queensu.ca. Please ensure that your name and the title of your paper are included in your letter of introduction and on your abstract. The deadline to submit an abstract will be: Friday, November 16th 2018.Thank you to all who apply!
Graduate Student Conference Committee
Shannon Welsh, Amelia Glancy, Abby Berry, Hannah Darvin
gvca@queensu.ca
Graduate Visual Culture Association
Department of Art, Ontario Hall
Queen’s University
Kingston, ON K7L 3N6 Canada