DFG-Centre for Advanced Studies Imaginaria of Force
Call: 29.09.–03.10.2019 Course of study »Imaginarien der Kraft: Kunst, Literatur, Wissenschaft«, Warburg-Haus, Hamburg
15 April 2019
From a historical as well as a contemporary perspective, the term "force" (Kraft) is associated with a wide variety of concepts and notions: dynamis, energeia, vis, virtus, potentia, impetus, formative force, imagination, vital force, driving force, persuasive power, (super-)natural forces, or mental energy are only a few prominent terms for forces that have been called into play in both scholarly and everyday contexts, where they continue to be virulent to this day.
Polar conceptions of motion and stasis, proximity and distance, action and reaction, stimulus and effect, affect and control are by no means the only form of approximation employed since antiquity in and beyond scientific disciplines in order to reflectively come to terms with forces. Also in the arts and in aesthetic theory, conceptions of force play an essential role. Following Christoph Menke, for instance, force constitutes the foundation of an anthropological aesthetics exploring both the 'nature' of humans and their subjective ability (to express themselves) as well as their artistic creation in the sense of the workings of 'dark forces'.
However, this still tells us little about the manner in which the term and a programmatic aesthetics of force are historically developed and translated into concrete literary and artistic forms.
Therefore, the course of study is dedicated on the one hand to the various conceptions of force that can be observed in the arts, literature and other fields of knowledge. Particular attention will be paid to their relationship to natural philosophical respectively scientific doctrines of force in their respective historical manifestations.
In search for connections and breaking points between various patterns of imagination and thought in scholarship and the arts, for instance, models of management and control, waste and balance, release and containment are up for debate. On the other hand, the course of study deals with artistic and literary representations of force, which can only be perceived sensorially through its effects. On this basis, also the question of how to evaluate the tense relationship between represented force and the force of representation shall be addressed. How are forces staged in the media, in which forms and colors are they showcased, and which affects and effects seem decisive in the context of their production and reception?
The course of study entitled »Imaginarien der Kraft: Kunst, Literatur, Wissenschaft«, which will take place from 29 September to 3 October 2019 at the Warburg House, is organized by the CAS "Imaginaria of Force" (University of Hamburg). Apart from joint analyses of images, texts, and objects, the course of study will focus mainly on the participants' own research. Accordingly, project presentations will be complemented by joint discussions in plenary sessions and completed by a keynote lecture as well as an excursion.
The course of study is aimed primarily at advanced Master's students and doctoral candidates in art history, literary and cultural studies, as well as in the history of knowledge and science, whose research is in accordance with the above-mentioned areas of interest and questions concerning the conceptual and representational spectrum of force. German will be the working language, however, in individual cases project presentations may also be given in English.
Applications including an outline of the proposed project (max. 1½ pages, DIN A4), as well as an academic CV should be submitted to imaginarien.der.kraft"AT"uni-hamburg.de by May 20, 2019. In all probability, travel and accommodation expenses can be covered.
