CFP: Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series, deadline 1 December 2023

The Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series (VIAHSS) is pleased to announce the launch of our Call for Proposals for the 2024 program of VIAHSS. We are now inviting proposals for paper presentations on topics related to the history of art, architecture, and visual culture of any time period from the Islamic world for spring and fall of 2024. We welcome submissions from current graduate students, faculty, curators, and independent scholars.

The virtual seminar series will take place on Zoom from mid-January onwards. Each session will include a 20-30 minute presentation followed by a 20 minute discussion in a constructive and friendly manner. In addition to individual proposals we are also open to workshop proposals, which might include moderated discussions of pre-circulated papers, roundtables, discussions with practicing architects or artists, or other formats.

If you are interested, please send an abstract detailing your topic (not more than 500 words) and your CV or resume by Friday, December 1, 2023, to Dr. Alexander Brey (alexander.brey@wellesley.edu) and Rachel Winter (winterr6@msu.edu) with the phrase “VIAHSS 2024 proposal” in the subject line. Please include information about your location and time zone in your email as we will have to find a time that works well for most participants. You may also express a preference or dispreference for a specific month based on your anticipated activities in the spring.

About Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series (VIAHSS):

Founded at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in May 2020, the Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series (VIAHSS) has brought together a diverse community of researchers from around the world through its virtual seminars and workshops, thereby filling a new niche in academic discourse.

While travel has resumed and in-person events have begun again, the need for a forum which brings together international and intergenerational audiences in an inclusive and supportive fashion still continues to exist. We believe that this is the time to encourage researchers to connect in different ways and to include and pay attention to voices that have been heard less.

We hope to expand our understanding of Islamic art history and discuss those geographical areas and time periods that have previously been defined as marginal.