Program 2021&2022

                                        4th Conference Program 2022

                                                               Aarhus University

23 June 2022

09H30 Welcome and Opening Speech

Tijen Tunali, Art History, Aarhus University. Founder and Organizer of the Conference

 “Contemporary Art’s Use-Value in the Urban Public Space.”

10H00 Keynote 

Henrik Kaare Nielsen, Professor, Aesthetics and Culture, Aarhus University

“Aesthetic Experience and Critical Reflection: Democratic Potentials of Artistic Interventions in Public Space.”

Session 1: Site-Specific Arts and Diverse Political Publics

Chair: Friederike Landau, Cultural Geography, Radboud University.

11H00 Eva Branscome, Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London.

“Staging London’s Modern Housing Estates for Diversity and Inclusion.”

11H20 Aggela Mandilari, Art History, University of Patras.

“In-Situ Art and the Experience of the Urban Space.”

11H40 Ana Gariso, Communication Sciences, Nova University of Lisbon.

 “Graffiti and the Use Value of Urban Space.”

12H00-12H30 General Discussion

                                    Lunch Break 12H30-13H00                                       

Session 2:  Art Activism and the Contested Public Space

Chair: Anna Dempsey, Art History and Media Studies, University of Massachusetts.

13H00 Friederike Landau-Donnelly, Cultural Geography, Radboud University.

 “Riding the Memory Train: Black Resurgence in Vancouver’s Politics of Public Art.”

13H20 Liam O’Farrell, Artist, University of Sheffield & Katrín Oddsdóttir. Law, University of Iceland.

 ‘Where Is the New Constitution?’ A Case Study of Street Art and the Politics of Protest in Iceland.”

13H40 Anna Dempsey, Art History and Media Studies, University of Massachusetts.

 “New Orleans’ Public Art Interventions: Challenging the Dominant Cultural Narrative.”

14H00-14H30 General Discussion

                                         Coffee Break 14H30-15H00                                       

Session 3: Public Space and Contestations of Power

Chair: Henrik Kaare Nielsen, Aesthetics and Culture, Aarhus University.

15H00 Craig Peariso, Art History, Boise State University.

 “(Just) Do It!: Audiences, Actions, Agency?”

15H20 Martin Fowler, Fine Arts, University of Cumbria.

 “Dissident Art-Making Against The Capitalist Common Sense.”

15H40 Konstantinos Pittas, Politics and International Studies, University of Cambridge.  

“The Art of re-Assembling: Prefiguring Democracy in and Through Space.”

16H00-16H30 General Discussion

                              24 June 2022 

10H00 Keynote 

Josepha Wessels, Associate Professor, Arts and Communication, Malmö University.

“Street Art and Graffiti in Sudan: An Overview of Revolutionary Murals from the Sudanese Revolution of 2019."

Session 4: Public Arts and Politics of the Urban Space

Chair:  Josepha Wessels, Arts and Communication, Malmö University

11H00 Liora Belford, Department of Theatre Studies, Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

 “Jerusalem: The Politics of Acoustic Spaces and Listening Territories.”

 11H20 Nian Paul, Regional Development, Jawaharlal Nehru University.

“Public Art and the Politics of Public Spaces: A Case of Public Art Programmes in Delhi.”

 11H40 Lina Michelkevičė Institute of Art Research, Vilnius Academy of Arts.

 “Art in Public Space and Conflict: ‘Legitimate’ and ‘Illegitimate’ Contestations.”

12H00-12H30 General Discussion

                                 Lunch Break 12H30-13H00                                       

Session 5: Art, Architecture and the Politics of Heritage

Chair: Caterina Preda, Political Science, University of Bucharest.

13H00 Laima Nomeikaite, Communication and Arts, Roskilde University.

 “Street Art and Evental Heritage in Norway: From Failure to Discovery.”

 13H20 Claudia Vlad, Cultural Heritage Studies, University College Dublin.

"RIWAQ: Cultural Heritage and Transnational Governmentality in between Nationalism and Globalization in East Jerusalem and the West Bank." 

 13H40 Moham Wang, Critical Studies, California Institute of the Arts.

 “The Pagado in Flux: A Critical Visual History of San Francisco China Town.”

14H00-14H30 General Discussion  

                                   Coffee Break 14H30-15H00                                       

Session 6 Mural Activism: Visual War on the Walls

Chair: John Lennon, English, University of South Florida.

15H00 Hinda Seif, University of Illinois at Springfield, “Mexicana Chicago: Visibilities, Erasures, and Art.”

15H20 Milos Moskovljevic, City University of Hong Kong, Department of Media and Communication. “War on the Walls: (Re-)imagining Past and Future Collective Memories through Graffiti and Murals in post-Yugoslavia.”

15H40 Juan Carlos Guerrero-Hernandez, Art History, Stony Brook University.

"Viral Street Art in Bogota:  Contesting State Violence and Engaging Citizenry."

16H00-16H30 General Discussion

25 June 2022 

10H00  Artist Keynote 

Emre Çetin Gürer, Photographer/Lecturer, Academic Writing Program, Koç University, Istanbul.

“A Photographic Inquiry into Temporary Monuments in Philadelphia’s Public Spaces.”

Session 7: Art, Monuments and Urban Memory

Chair: Maciej Kowalewski, Sociology, University of Szczecin.

11H00 Presenter reported sick

 11H20Manuela Badilla RajevicSociology University of Valparaíso, Chile. & Alexander Ulrich Thygesen, German and Romance Languages, Aarhus University.

“Feminist and Dissident Anti-Monuments: Challenging Urban Memory Struggles Between Mexico City and Santiago.”

 11h40 Puja Basu, History, University of Delhi.

“Guides and the Art of Storytelling: A Critical Study of the Urban Life of the Monuments in India.”

                                            Lunch Break 12H30-13H00                                       

Session 8: Urban Communities and Social Art Practice

Chair: Tijen Tunali,  Art History, Aarhus University. 

13H00 Giovanna Bordin, Elisabetta Tosso, António Carvalho, Architecture and Urban Studies, Polytechnic University Milano.

 “Creative Activism and Tactical Urbanism: Social Change Through Milan Through Colorful Squares.”

 13H20 Mehreen Mustafa, Architecture and Planning, Activist.

“Mapping the Impact of Public Art in the Creation of Convivial Culture: A Case Study at Sher Shah Colony, Lahore.”

 13H40 Laura Lamas-Abraira& Alba Colombo Social and Cultural Anthropology, Open University of Catalunya, Xavier Villanueva, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Autonomous University of Barcelona.

 “Culture on Resilience Dancing as Social Struggle in Barcelona’s Public Space.”

14H00-14H30 General Discussion

                                     Coffee Break 14H30-15H00                                       

Session 9: Spatial Aesthetics and Neoliberal Urbanism

Chair: Alla Myzelev, Art History, the State University of New York at Geneseo

15H00 Yimeng Yang, Urban and Regional Policy, Northeastern University. “Making Urban Commons: The Participatory Art Project of 'Everyone’s East Lake'"

 15H20 Dorothy Barenscott, Art Theory and Film Studies. Kwantlen Polytechnic University of Vancouver.

“The Role of Art and Spatial Aesthetics in the Rebranding of Las Vegas”

 15H40 General Discussion

16H15-16H30 Conclusion of the Organizer

3rd Conference Program 2021

28 April 2021

09H30 Opening Speech

Tijen Tunali, Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies-AIAS Marie Sklodowska Curie COFUND Research Fellow, Founder and Organizer of the Conference.

“Can Art Activism in the Urban Public Space Flourish under Authoritarian Capitalism?

10H00 Keynote 

Konstantinos Avramidis, Architecture and Landscapes, University of Cyprus.

“From the Walls of Athens to the Pages of an Atlas: Thoughts on a Design Method of Transcribing Inscriptions.” 

                              Coffee Break 10H50-11H00 

Session 1: Street Art Resistance against Authoritarianism in the Middle East

Chair: Isabel Carrasco Castro, Aesthetics, Boston University Madrid

11H00 Awatef Ketiti, Communication Studies, Universitat de València, “Street Art as a Transforming Agent of Public Space in the Arab World: Case Study of Two Street Art groups in Tunisia.”

11H20 Rassa Ghaffari, Sociology, the University of Milano-Bicocca, “Between Official Propaganda and Street Art: Counter-representation of the Female Figure on the Iranian wall.”

11H40 Narciss Sohrabi, Human Geography, Université Paris Ouest‐ Nanterre, “The Influence of Tehran Activism at the Public Domain: a Discourse Analysis of Graffiti.”

12H00-12H30 General discussion

                                         Lunch Break 12H30-13H00

Session 2: Art, Protests and Activism of the Uprisings in Africa

Chair: Sara Borrillo, Middle East and North Africa Studies, University of Naples ‘L'Orientale.’ 

13H00 Dominique Laleg, Theory and History of Art, University of Basel, “Creative Space in Uprising Algeria.”

13H20 Adeolu Oluwaseyi Oyekan, Philosophy, Nelson Mandela University, South Africa,“#EndSars: Police Brutality, Artists and Resistance Mobilization in Nigeria.”

13H40 Ahmad Al Naji, Peace and Conflict Studies, Malmö University, and Josepha Wessels School of Arts and Communication, Malmö University, “Street Art and Graffiti of the Sudanese Revolution of 2019 as Medium for Social Change.”

14H00-14H30 General Discussion

                                            Coffee Break 14H30-15H00

Session 3: The Arts and Aesthetics of Youth Activism in the Urban Social Movements

Chair:  Amal Eqeiq, Comparative Literature and Arabic Studies, Forum Transregionale Studien, Berlin

15H00 Maurice Rafael Magaña, Mexican American Studies, University of Arizona, “Social Movements and Rebel Aesthetics: Street Art, Youth Activism, and Urban Space in Mexico.”

15H20 Kyle Benedict Craig, Anthropology, Northwestern University, “Graffiti and Street Art in Amman, Jordan: Youth Politics Beyond 'Resistance Art.'”

15H40 Roberta Garieri, Art History, University Rennes 2, “Continuous Past: Voices, Bodies and Politics in Chilean Feminist Protests (1983-2020).”

16H00-16H30 General Discussion

29 April 2021

10H00 Keynote

Vittorio Parisi, Director of Studies and Research, Villa Arson School of Visual Arts, Nice.

 “The Infested City: The Aesthetic and Political Dimension of Urban Interstices.”

                                                   Coffee Break 10H50-11H00

Session 4: Post-politics of Urban Capitalism and Artistic Critique

Chair: Elisha Maseman, Art History, The University of Auckland,

11H00  Cristina Moraru, Aesthetics and Artistic Research, National University of Arts George Enescu, “The Post-Political Urbanity: Art and Protest in Public Sphere.”

11H20 Presenter not present

11H40 Jeni Peake and Anais Carrere, Linguistics, Université Bordeaux Montaigne, "Graffiti, Gender, and Graphs: An Analysis of Gender Issues in the World of Graffiti."

12H00-12H30 General discussion

                                                Lunch Break 12H30-13H00

Session 5: Artistic Counter-strategies Against the Neoliberal Urban Development

Chair: Friederike Landau, Cultural Geography, Radboud University

13H00 Birgit Eriksson Aesthetics and Culture, Aarhus University, and Anne Mette W. Nielsen, Department of Culture and Learning, Aalborg University. “Changing the ’Ghetto’ – Art in Danish Social Housing Areas.”

13H20 Renée Tribble, Urban Planning, University of Kassel, “Urban Art as a Trigger – Art Changing Urban Agendas of Urban Development.”

13H40 Eda Gecikmez, Fine Arts, Hacettepe University and Yasemin Bahcekapili Urbanism, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, “Art and Resistance: Interactions Between Artists and Anti-Gentrification Movements in Istanbul.”

14H00-14H30 General discussion

                    Coffee Break 14H30-15H00

Session 6: Urban Communities and Social Art Activism

Chair: Alla Myzalev, Art History, the State University of New York at Geneseo

15H00 Sara Borrillo, Middle East and North Africa Studies, University of Naples ‘L'Orientale.’ "From Oppressed to Insurgent: Theatre as Artivism for a New Citizenry in the Moroccan Urban Public Space."

15H20 Mia Uribe Kozlovski, Art History, Tulane University, “Las Imaginistas’ Radical Praxis: Participatory Urbanism in Brownsville.”

15H40 Nick Gamso, Art History, San Francisco Art Institute, “The People’s Library and other Protracted Art Interventions.”

16H00-16H30 General discussion

30 April 2021

10H00 Artist Keynote

 Revue Art Collective, Delhi.

“The Art of Uneventful Everyday: On Socially Engaged Art Project in Delhi.”

                                          Coffee Break 10H50-11H00

Session 7: Public Statues and Decolonization 

 Chair: Caterina Preda, Political Science, University of Bucharest

11H00 Rhea Maria Dehn and Miriam Oesterreich, Aesthetics, Technical University of Darmstadt, “Decolonizing Monuments: Aesthetics of Social Resistance and the Post/Colonial Urban Space.”

11H20 Eva Branscome, Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, UK, “Colston’s Travels, or Should We Talk About Statues.”

11H40 Anna Dempsey, Art History, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, “What Absence Makes Visible:  The Removal of Confederate Statues as an Opportunity for Transforming the Public Square.”

12H00-12H30 General Discussion

                                                Lunch Break 12H30-13H00

Session 8: Aesthetics and Politics of  the Urban Public Space

Chair: Maciej Kowalewski, Sociology, University of Szczecin

13H00 Fiona Siegenthaler, Cultural Anthropology, University of Johannesburg, “Socially Engaged Art in Kampala: Public Space, Social Engagement and the Limits of Western Theories on Aesthetic Practice.”

13H20 Friederike Landau, Cultural Geography, Radboud Universiteit, “Managing (In) Visibility – Tracing the (Post) Politics of Public Art in Vancouver.”

13H40 Lina Michelkevice, Institute of Art Research, Vilnius Academy of Arts, “Clashes Over Soviet Relics in Vilnius: Cultural Activism as a Way to Establish Public Space.”

14H00-14H30 General Discussion

                                                                     Coffee Break 14H30-15H00

Session 9: Street Art as Dialogical Subculture 

Chair: Nick Gamso, Art History, San Francisco Art Institute

15H00 Omar El Masri, Criminology, University of Gloucestershire, “Re-imagining Spaces for Representation in the Divided City: The Cases of Urban Street Art in ‘Post’ Conflict Beirut and Belfast.”

15H20 Presenter reported sick.

15h40 Paul Lorah and Todd Lawrence, Art History, University of St Thomas, “Mapping Resistance: The Geo-Spatial Dimensions of the George Floyd Uprising in the Twin Cities.”

16H00-16H30 General Discussion

 16H30-16H45 Closing remarks by conference organizer Tijen Tunali