The body, along with its visual representations, has been a central communicative vessel
throughout history. The fluidity of bodily movement allows for instant transformative changes from one
pose to the next, which can be interpreted according to a specific set of meanings. This highly
constructed performance articulates cultural understandings of the Self and society at large.
The interaction of the body with clothing or other materials complicates the dynamic visual language of
physical movement. Entwined in careful choreography, the two elements merge into a third entity.
Separately, the body and its materials invoke certain associations, but together the two combine to form
a distinct set of meanings. Devoid of familiar postures a nd orientations, the body’s new movements and
dimensionality are suggestive of something beyond the mundane. This interaction is crucial to the
creation of a performative act, a representation that is dependent on the relationship between both
components.
Submissions

Contributions are invited to consider this intersection further. While they are not
restricted to a specific time period or discipline, proposals for presentations should be no more than 20
minutes in length. Possible entry points/themes include, but are by no means limited to, the following:
● Clothing and Adornment: Clothing and other forms of adornment such as jewellery through
recorded and pre-recorded history .
● The Performing Arts: Materials working on or with the moving body in theatrical or
performative spaces.
● Sculpture and Dimensionality; Mapping the human body, texture, corporeality, and
three-dimensionality.
● Taboo and Fetishization: Participation, exclusion, pleasure, and pain.
● Power and Authority: Agency, control, and the law.
● Gender: Identity, sexuality, and power.
Conference Details

Taking place on the 3 rd of November 2018 at Lindisfarne Centre, St. Aidan’s College,
Durham University , this one-day interdisciplinary conference invites papers, interventions, statements.
and performances from scholars and practitioners of all disciplines that are interested in exploring this
theme. We particularly encourage approaches which are interdisciplinary and transational.
Apply | Please submit a 250-300 word abstract (followed by 5 keywords describing the main themes of
your submission), along with a short biography for consideration to
bodiesreformedconference@gmail .com by the 31 st of June 2018. Proposals should include your title (if
any), name, academic affiliation, and full contact details, including email address. Early career
researchers are particularly welcome.
For inquiries and further information, please contact the conference committee at the address provided.
Proudly supported by the Centre for Visual Arts and Culture and the Leverhulme Trust.