Conference convenor:

Dr Hamid Keshmirshekan, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS)

Speakers across the two-day conference include:

Dr Charlotte Bank, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
Dr Isabelle de le Court, Independent scholar
Professor Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University
Professor Iftikhar Dadi, Cornell University
Dr Hamid Keshmirshekan, SOAS
Vasif Kortun, Research and Curatorial Advisor, Mathaf, Doha
Driss Ksikes, HEM Research Center, LCI Education, Rabat
Professor Siobhan M Shilton, University of Bristol
Serubiri Moses, Hunter College, City University of New York
Dr Ismail Nashef, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies
Professor Silvia Naef, University of Geneva
Dr Sarah Rogers, Middlebury College
Professor Kirsten Scheid, American University of Beirut
Dr Nada Shabout, University of North Texas
Dr Wendy Shaw, Independent scholar
Professor Sarah Wilson, The Courtauld Institute of Art

CONFERENCE

Reinterpreting History and Memory: Contemporary Art of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)

12-13 October 2024, 9am-5pm

British Academy, London

 

British Academy Conferences bring together scholars and specialists from around the world to consider and evaluate new research in the humanities and social sciences.

This conference will explore how history and memory is reflected through contemporary art in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA), and art’s association with broader social and intellectual practices. It will examine the possibility of challenging the present through the reinterpretation of history, exploring the enduring and collective impact of recent traumatic memories. The focus will be on art closely linked with activism, both within the region and among the global diaspora, examining the strategies used by artists to critically reimagine both the distant and recent past; a past that no longer exists but continues to haunt the present. The conference also explores how these artworks challenge and address current affairs in the context of historical narratives. By bringing together academics and professionals from diverse disciplines, the conference will provide an interdisciplinary framework for studying contemporary art, shedding light on the connection between art discourse, politics, and culture in the MENA region today.

 

Full program and info here