The Activating Fluxus research team is excited to extend an invitation for the submission of paper proposals to our panel at the 112th College Art Association Annual Conference. While the conference’s in-person event will be hosted in Chicago from February 14–17, 2024, our panel will be conducted virtually. Authors interested in contributing are encouraged to submit their abstracts by August 31, 2023.

Session title: ACTIVATING FLUXUS, EXPANDING CONSERVATION
Session will present: Virtually
Chairs: Hanna Barbara Holling and Aga Wielocha, Bern Academy of the Arts
Organiser: College Art Association

Fluxus of the 1960s and 70s defied conventional notions of art and creativity by emphasizing artistic practice’s transient, playful, and participatory aspects. However, the multidimensionality of Fluxus has been flattened out in the rush to exhibit, historicize, and theorize its objects. This session explores the potential of Fluxus events, objects, and ephemera as active material embodiments that challenge established hierarchies in museums and collecting institutions.
Scholars, artists, and practitioners are invited to present papers that address Fluxus forms of activation, including reconstruction, adaptation, and reinterpretation of works leading to new concepts. The central question is: How can we activate Fluxus today without reducing it to static artifacts? How do we redefine a work’s identity and embrace its inherent capacity for change? Can a Fluxus work serve as a thinking device to critically recalibrate the meaning of conservation and care?

By exploring these questions, we hope to generate discussions on the creative and critical potential of Fluxus beyond its historical context. We aim to rethink conservation’s role in relation to ephemeral and participatory art, and push the limits of its technical focus. Emphasizing Fluxus’s multidimensionality, we seek to invigorate its legacy and open new avenues for artistic and intellectual exploration.

Key dates
August 31: Deadline to submit proposals.
September 18: Session chair deadline to finalize sessions, inform participants via email invitation. Accepted submitters will receive an email to access their own SC after September 25.
October: Conference registration opens, and full conference schedule is posted.

How to submit
Instructions for submission are provided here: https://caa.confex.com/caa/2024/webprogrampreliminary/meeting.html
You can submit your abstract through the link available on the CFP official page here: https://caa.confex.com/caa/2024/webprogrampreliminary/Session12826.html