Gimme shelter Global discourses in aesthetics University of Amsterdam October 8-10, 2009 Dutch Aesthetics Federation International Association for Aesthetics

Globalisation is far more than an economic process; it affects social and cultural dimensions of life. Not only money and goods, but also people wander around and so do images, sounds and texts. The corollary of these globalisation processes is the tendency to seek shelter, as it were, in the supposed stability of traditionally defined identities and beliefs. It can be questioned whether traditional cultures were ever closed and homogeneous, territorially defined wholes; through contemporary media, however, the geographical boundaries between cultures seem to dissolve rapidly in favour of other, less clear-cut ones defined by religious, political or life-style preferences. Internet, in particular, has enabled dissemination of professional and amateur cultural production and consumption on an unprecedented scale, providing new venues of cultural exchange but also fostering new types of cultural conflict. Local cultures are increasingly being affected by global processes, but the global might acquire different meanings in different localities.

In this context, the discourses of aesthetics and philosophies of art need to face some central questions. How do artistic practices and aesthetic experiences change in response to these developments and how are these changes adequately articulated theoretically? When reflections on the significance of art and aesthetic experiences can no longer pretend to be universal, is there still a possibility to lay claim on a wider validity than merely that of one’s particular culture? What type of vocabulary allows for mutual ­ dialogical or even polylogical ­ exchanges and understandings when different traditions meet, without obliterating local differences? Is there a possibility for a creative re-description of globalization? And is there a meaning of ‘the global’ that cannot be reduced to universalism and unification? Can we seek shelter in a legitimate way?

In the last decade, the IAA has developed into a truly international forum. In 2003 the International Congress was held in Rio the Janeiro with participants from 35 counties and five continents; the 2007 International Congress in Ankara counted participants from 42 countries, many of them from Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The IAA has made ‘intercultural aesthetics’ to one of its core topics and this DAF conference will continue this emergent tradition.

We invite contributions from scholars, artists, teachers and other workers in the cultural sector. Papers will be 20 minutes maximum. Please send an abstract of 300 words to Renée van de Vall, email r.vandevall@lk.unimaas.nl, before March 1 2009.

The Dutch Aesthetics Federation is a collaborative platform consisting of the Centrum voor Filosofie & Kunst, the Dutch Society for Aesthetics and the Nederlands Genootschap voor Esthetica.