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Exploring Metamodernism

The Metamodern in Literature, Art, Education,

and Indigenous Cosmologies:

An Interdisciplinary Symposium

Hosted by Auckland University of Technology and the Metamodern Creatives

Thursday 26th – Friday 27th January 2023

Brightside

(next to Mojo cafe)

WZ building

AUT

31 Symonds Street

Auckland

Keynote speakers (in alphabetical order):

Dame Fiona Kidman, DNZM, OBE, Academy of New Zealand Literature, Chevalier of the Legion of Honour (France), Ordre des Arts et des Lettres;
Dr Albert Refiti, Associate Professor, Faculty of Art and Design, Auckland University of Technology;
Marco Sonzogni, Director of Translation Studies, Victoria University of Wellington;
Rachel Spronken-Smith, Higher Education Development Centre, University of Otago;
Jillian Sullivan, Academy of New Zealand Literature, Central Otago Environmental Society;
Dr Matthew Stevens, Programme Coordinator, Master of Digital Transformation, Media Design School.
Dr Valentina Teclici, CEO, Scripta Manent Publishing House, Napier, New Zealand Society of Authors and Poetry Society.

This symposium invites contributions from the fields of Literature, Art, Education, and Indigenous Cosmologies, relating (but not limited) to responses to the questions highlighted below. THE METAMODERN is a broad term that defines the meditation on the times that we inhabit, especially their transformational potential at individual and collective levels.

In an increasingly complex and challenging world one is faced with recurring questions and issues that require successive redefinitions:

How can we create better processes for personal development?
How can we recreate the processes by which society is governed, locally and globally?
How can the inner dimensions of life gain a more central role in society?
How can modern, postmodern and post-postmodern people live together productively?
How can politics be adjusted to an increasingly complex world?
What is the unique role of humanity in the ecosystems of nature?

Our open call is to ask whether you or your colleagues may be interested in presenting a paper and/or supporting the organization of the symposium.

We will attempt to publish a selection of articles and texts in a special issue of Eon, a scholarly journal that is part of DOAJ (Directory of Open Access Journals) and CEEOL (Central and Eastern European Online Library).

Organized in association with AUT and www.metamoderncreatives.com

“…to move beyond critique into vision and method.”

(Rowson. J. Metamodernity: Dispatches from a Time Between Worlds )

Metamodernism synthesizes the best from modernism and postmodernism: the modernist interrogations of the roots and validity of traditions, challenging rationalism and useless rules or systems, the insistence on imagination and inspiration – coexist side by side with the postmodern openness to dialogue, its multiculturalism and inclusiveness of the other (women, minority groups, indigenous people), challenging hierarchies and metanarratives, merging of art forms, interest in Everyone’s life and the context of his/her existence. [Alexandra Dumitrescu]

The theoretical insight and creative potential of the metamodern are greeted with enthusiasm by growing numbers of academics and researchers in - among others - literary, artistic, sociological, philosophical and (in more recent years), theological circles. With its (contestable) European roots, tracing back to the late 70’s, the Metamodern Movement (MM) is gaining traction. Now, two schools of thought are surfacing (as illustrated in a recent google-doc list[1], published in The Sideview, 2020), that of the Dutch school (cultural metamodernism) and that of the Nordic School (political metamodernism). Brent Cooper’s list reveals a significant number of published papers, articles and commentary – 250 to be exact – that have contributed to Metamodern (MM) theory and critical debate since its inception.

It is revealing to note that to date, little interest has surfaced in the pre-2010 definitions of the metamodern as a paradigm of transformation - centered around self-realization, motherly attitudes (belonging to individuals irrespective of their gender), and an ethics of care - rather than as a late avatar of postmodernism. However, as we approach 2023, signs of the new paradigm are beginning to surface, particularly, among creative practitioners that are women. In a recent article by New Zealand art historian, curator and Adam Art gallery director Christina Barton titled Mother Lode (Art Now, 8 October 2021) notes a distinct “turn” in the New Zealand art scene, suggesting “something is afoot in the art world that is affording our artistic 'mothers' new attention”. Referring to such practitioners as Robin White, whose lifelong practice has revealed a tireless resilience “true to an alternative set of values”, Barton hints at a “coming-of-age for women [and indigenous] artists, as curators, dealers, and critics alike, come to realize their value, for the reason they resonate with their own ethical outlooks.”[2] A “resilient truth” is surfacing.

Earlier this year a metamodern position (see below) was made-visible to Boermans, thanks to a gifted book, The Metamodern Era by Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi (1976), the mothermother initiative and the installation of a process-based exhibition, titled Iteration 12[3] ( Boermans and Mayn).

“Mother mother is a project that fosters creative connections, providing space for exhibiting artists to make contact with those they admire, who they wish to thank, reach out to, or simply acknowledge. The project taonga is the artist’s invitation to the next artist. This generational process is inspired by storytelling and knowledge sharing in the spirit of our m/others before us. The exhibition aims to activate curatorial practice, challenge normative modes of gallery representation for the benefit of woman artists in Aotearoa.” [Natalie Tozer]

Boermans defines a metamodern (art) practice as one that explores a loosely defined frame that is not static; it is in constant motion. It is a participatory act with intention. It is about entering a space that beckons interaction between self and (an)other. It involves ‘segments’ of creative separation, dialogue and responsive connection. It is curious, playful and giving. A metamodern work is, in itself, a “positioning” that extends over time, permitting seeds of thought to pass back and forth in empathetic exchange. It asks of the participant(s) to simply “enter-in”, to a space of trust and mutual respect, whereby processual “being” explores fields of change and exchange in “fluid open spaces and transient breathing architectures”. (Yates 2009)

Registration Feess

In-Person Attendance - $200 NZD

In-Person Student Attendance - $140 NZD

Online Attendance - $120 NZD

Online Student Attendance - $100 NZD

Please be advised, in case of financial hardship, partial subsidy of the participation fee is available; a small koha is kindly requested, to cover IT support and other organising expenses.

[1]https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/1/d/e/2PACX1vS7fyFHmjdDAo5eofTk6d67DDtWZGKnyW1pZhAQVDYcPTq2400ykgkScdnAox0UHeSLyhCliqrCPf6g/pubhtml

[2]https://artnow.nz/essays/mother-lode?fbclid=IwAR3G5jkBaKDb5ii7ei_9nk8U4ONYPD60s18I1Q1bmwBCZF9S-85szuXTc4c

[3] Iteration 12 involved an articulation of space and interaction between two (artists). To conceive the installation as a metamodern work is to understand it as a “coming-into-being”. Iteration 12 navigated a space of collaborative exchange that was guided by a response-driven process. It refused judgment or planned intent, asking its participants to suspend all preconceived thoughts or outcomes. The metamodern work was about shedding the self (identity) to realize the value (of process); a realization that only became apparent upon completion of the installation. Iteration 12 focused upon “instances” (of creation), rather than (combined) directions of the individual(s). It displayed an acute sensitivity to participatory movement. In this sense, it was performative. It disrupted and provoked, gently, creating a final body of work dissolved into one (body). To define a metamodern position is to experience it through a relational cosmological lens, as realized through the collective-making process of Iteration 12.

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