Hunar and Axon: Creative Explorations Special Issue

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In 2022, Hunar delivered the Art/Conflict conference at the University of Technology Sydney. We were lucky to have a range of thought provoking and moving talks which bridged traditional academic research, community arts practices, and creative approaches to activism. To build on these discussions, we are collaborating with peer-reviewed open-access journal Axon: Creative Explorations to collate a Special Issue on the theme of Art and Conflict, to be published in late 2024. 

The Art and Conflict Special Issue of Axon: Creative Explorations invites both traditional approaches to arts and aesthetics, and practice-led research from academics and non-academics. We encourage submissions that make connections between artistic practices and diverse contexts of violence and conflict, with indicative topics including the following: 

• The uses of art and arts spaces within conflict and post-conflict zones to build or sustain community 
• The role of art and artists in creating publics and counter-publics for engagement with issues around conflict and State violence 
• Participatory art as a tactic for inviting alternative connections to or responses to conflict and violence 
• Practice-based knowledge production and alternative epistemologies around arts and art theory, especially from artists impacted by personal or collective experiences of conflict and violence 
• Postcolonial and decolonial approaches to arts and aesthetics, especially in relation to historical and ongoing legacies of colonial violence 
• Curatorship, transforming institutions, and organisational challenges in the GLAM sector in relation to stakeholders in communities affected by violence and conflict 
• Trauma-informed aesthetic theory and arts practice 
• The ethics of artistic and/or media representations around violence and conflict 
• Feminist approaches to representations of violence in aesthetic theory and/or art practices 

Format of Submissions 

We encourage collaborations between artists and academics, or between those working in universities and those in other institutions or roles with a connection to art and conflict. In keeping with the guidelines for Axon submissions, authors are welcome to take a creative approach to their topic, or to mix more than one genre of writing, or to incorporate images or other graphic work. Final revised articles, papers, essay and interviews (including endnotes) will be a maximum of 6,000 words in length. You can find out more about the guidelines for the format of full articles (or equivalent works) on the Axon website here. 

Submission and Publication Timeline 

Please submit your proposed work, including name, affiliation (if applicable), and submission title and abstract (250-300 words) to submissions@hunarsymposia.com. If you intend to submit a creative work as part of the submission – e.g. visual art, photography, poetry – please let us know when you email and provide any indicative links or context. 

Timeline 

11th September 2023: Call For Papers opens. 

22nd October 2023: CFP closes. 

29th October 2023: Contributors notified of outcome. 

30th April 2024: Full papers due for peer-review cycle. 

Late 2024. Special Issue publication. 

About Axon 

Named after the microscopic, yet essential neuronal connectors in the body, which transmit messages throughout the nervous system, Axon is committed to research, investigation and publication. A peer-reviewed international journal, Axon focuses on exploring the creative process. Axon’s editorial process employs an expert double-blind peer review. You can find out more about the mission of Axon: Creative Expressions here. 

Hunar contact 

Should you have any further questions about submitting to this Special Issue, please contact submissions@hunarsymposia.com