Picket lines and picket signs
Don’t punish me with brutality
C’mon talk to me
So you can see
What’s going on
Yeah, what’s going on
Tell me what’s going on
What’s Going On
-Marvin Gaye
Resistance in (a)Synchronous Futures
Resistance in (a)Synchronous Futures will interrogate how political and ecological conditions present new routes and potential futures for the study and production of art in an ethical way that centers social justice and critiques of power. In an increasingly globalized world visually connected across physical and virtual space, Visual Studies as a field is in a key position to engage on a variety of topics through intersectional and interdisciplinary approaches.
Context
The physically separating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have challenged us to reimagine social relationships, public and private spaces, and temporalities, exploring new ways of cultivating kinship across digital visual landscapes. Meanwhile, pre-existing inequalities have exacerbated the transmission of disinformation and the growing difficulties of holding power accountable. This present conjuncture forces us to reimagine our questions about the value, necessity, and structure of social and academic institutions, especially related to visual culture. What is at stake for resistant action, art, and education post-2020? What obstacles does the COVID-19 pandemic present for scholars, creatives, and activists mobilizing political action against power? How does a physically stratified world dependent on visual information form and enact effective coalition politics? What potentialities does our global predicament generate for the future of grassroots, artistic, and scholarly resistances through visual culture? In organizing this event, we want to speak directly to this cultural moment as pivotal in determining the potential futures for resistance in scholarship, art, and activism.
Artwork:
Luz de Berta Cáceres, PRESENTE!
Alicia Siu
This conference is possible with the generous support of the UCI Humanities Center and the UCI PhD Program in Visual Studies.
Join us for the afterparty (May 22, 6:30 pm pst) here:
https://live.remo.co/e/resistance-in-asynchronous-futur