The theme of the conference, which was held June 7-10 at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, was Interdisciplinary/Multidisciplinary Woolf.
Organized by Ann Martin, the event included the following plenary speakers:
Some collaboration has to take place in the mind . . . before the art of creation can be accomplished. Some marriage of opposites has to be consummated. The whole of the mind must lie wide open – A Room of One’s Own
We have come together…to make one thing, not enduring—for what endures?—but seen by many eyes simultaneously. – The Waves
This conference invites explorations of Virginia Woolf’s work from a range of different disciplinary perspectives and practices. We welcome proposals on any aspect of Woolf studies, and especially papers or performances that:
respond to Virginia Woolf and her texts from interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary approaches;
respond to the inter- and multidisciplinary work carried out by Virginia Woolf and her circle; and/or
respond to the implications of Virginia Woolf’s work by applying its themes and claims to other disciplinary, institutional, social, or cultural contexts.
Proposals may reflect (but need not be limited to) methodologies and knowledge from disciplines such as: Queer Studies, the Digital Humanities, Native Studies, Literary Studies, History, Translation Studies, Art and Art History, Drama, Psychology/ Psychoanalysis, Business Administration, Media and Communications, Music, Political Science, the Study of Sexualities, Postcolonial Theory, Children’s Literature and Studies, Editing and Publishing, Creative Writing, Religious Studies, Economics, Film, the Study of Teaching and Learning, Cultural Studies, Sociology, Ecocriticism, Health, Women’s and Gender Studies, Anthropology, Disability Studies, Law…
Submissions from artists, writers, community activists, administrators, “common readers,” independent scholars, teachers, academics and students are welcomed.
For paper proposals, please send a 250-word abstract as a Word attachment. For panel proposals, please submit a 250-word description of each paper to be presented by the three panel participants along with the proposed panel title. Because we will be using a blind submission process, please do not include your name on your proposal. Instead, in your covering email, please include your name(s), institutional affiliation (if any), paper title(s), and contact information.
Alexandra Harris, University of Liverpool and author of Romantic Moderns: English Writers, Artists and the Imagination from Virginia Woolf to John Piper, which won the Guardian First Book Award last year. Harris also has plans in the works for two other books.
According to the conference website, the theme is “inspired by Woolf’s efforts to cross, undermine, and sometimes reassert disciplinary and other boundaries in her body of work. Conference organizers welcome scholars, teachers, students, readers, activists, community groups and artists who respond to Woolf and her circle from diverse points of view. Of particular interest are interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches to Woolf, whether in the form of research, pedagogy and creative work or community or institutional activities.”
A call for papers will be circulated this summer, and more details about the program and events will be posted soon.
For more information, contact organizer Ann Martin.
