Appel à communication : « Erased, Replaced, Omitted, Denied : American Art and Negation (Paris, 31 mars-1er avril 2015)

The journée d’études, organized under the auspices of the Terra Foundation for American Art, is co-sponsored by the Institut national d’histoire de l’art in partnership with Université Paris Diderot-Paris VII, Université Paris-Ouest Nanterre La Défense and François-Rabelais Université de Tours.
The program will be held at the Institut national d’histoire de l’art in Paris, France.

Art historical negation removes the past in ways historical, intellectual, visual and physical, through acts which can be accidental or purposeful, political or aesthetic, personal or institutional. This conference seeks to rediscover what has been lost, forgotten or suppressed in the construction of an American art history. In revealing these losses, this conference is interested in reconstructions and recoveries that challenge a unified narrative or simple chronology ; put another way, in the construction of the existing narratives, what has been removed and why ? How does reintroducing these incidents affect our understanding of American art ? Why have artists erased (or attempted to erase) their work or their biography ? How does the obliterated or erased object have a legacy and what is added to the work in its absent state ? How have institutions and museums dealt with erasures and influenced our understanding of this history ? Of particular interest are papers which address historiographic or biographical erasures, institutional practices of suppression or aesthetics of emptiness, obfuscation, silence or deletion.

Submissions in French or English will be considered.

Proposals should take the form of a short abstract (150-200 words), an abbreviated CV of no more than two pages, and a brief statement of affiliation which explains your background in this subject. Please submit proposals by December 20; candidates will be notified by January 7.

Please submit materials to Sarah Archino at saraharchino@gmail.com.