Call for Papers NORTHERNNESS: IDEAS AND IMAGES OF THE NORTH IN VISUAL CULTURE 25-27 June 2009 Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Whether it is thought of as northern Britain, northern Europe or the Arctic, the north is increasingly becoming the focus of scholarly and artistic attention. Seeking to discover why this might be and what it signifies we invite proposals for papers from scholars and practitioners in the fields of film, photography and fine art that explore: * what northernness is. * how historical experiences and preconceptions affect contemporary visual representations of the north. * the present-day currency of potentially conflicting notions of the north - for instance, as a place of industrial degradation but also as an imagined elsewhere. * how different conceptions of the north play through representations in recent and contemporary fine art and photography, film and documentary practice. * how the north is represented both from within and outside northern communities. * the effect of these representations on the subjectivities of those who actually inhabit the north. While we envisage much of the debate focusing on the north of Britain, we welcome papers which explore northernness in other regions such as Scandinavia, the Baltic states, Germany, North America, and Russia. Proposals for panels and round table discussions are also welcome. Keynote speakers confirmed include Professor Peter Davidson, University of Aberdeen (author of 'Idea of North'), Professor Mette Hjort, Lignan University, Hong Kong, (author of 'Small Nation, Global Cinema'), Professor Dave Russell, Leeds Metropolitan University (author of 'Looking North: Northern England and the National Imagination'). Abstracts (200 words approx) by November, 1st 2008 to: Dr Ysanne Holt, Reader in Art History, School of Arts and Social Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8ST. [log in to unmask] ---- Online resources for film/TV studies may be found at ScreenSite http://www.ScreenSite.org