18 February 2009

NEW BOOKS - Creative Nation, and Reading Down Under (New Delhi, SSS Publications)

1. Creative Nation: Australian Cinema and Cultural Studies Reader

Edited by Amit Sarwal and Reema Sarwal

Preface by John Ramsland
New Delhi: SSS Publications, 2009

ISBN No. 81-902282-0-X

Pages: XLIX + 600; Dimension: 5.5" X 8.5" (Hardbound)

Price: US$ 45.00 (payment by redit card via PayPal (if buying one copy only):

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=3147704)

(plus US$10 postage and handling charges per book)


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Reading Down Under: Australian Literary Studies Reader

Edited by Amit Sarwal and Reema Sarwal

Preface by Bill Ashcroft
New Delhi: SSS Publications, 2009

ISBN No. 81-902282-1-8

Pages: lxxvi + 634; Dimension: 7" X 9" (Hardbound)

Price: US$ 55.00 (payment by credit card via PayPal (if buying one copy only):

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=3148251)

(plus US$15 postage and handling charges per book)


>> Visit the publisher's website: SSS Publications.

CALL FOR CHAPTERS - National Narrative and Country Branding: the US and China from a Comparative Perspective

Call for Book Chapters: National Narrative and Country Branding: the US and China from a Comparative Perspective

We are planning a book of essays that present fresh perspectives on the production of narratives about China in the United States (or about China-US relations) and about the United States in China. Obviously, this book would contribute to an already extensive literature, but there are always extraordinary episodes that change the process. We are in a post-Olympic, economic meltdown moment, and in a context with seemingly large scale political change. Who are the dominant actors and players, such as public intellectuals, media professionals, NGOs, the governments, business sectors, tourists and educators that tell such narratives and shape such perceptions and opinions? What are some of the most important processes in shaping stories and perceptions? What are the differences and similarities in terms of how actors shape perceptions and tell stories in both countries about each others?

We are calling for contributors to write book chapters that are historical, theoretical or include specific case studies. These could be about specific governmental efforts to alter public consciousness at home or in its counterpart on these questions. Ultimately, we seek varied voices on how national narrative toward the US in China and that toward China in the US are produced and reproduced by different players in social, political, economic, and cultural arenas in the context of increasing global information flows. The book should be about how the US and China produce and reproduce each other through various societal segments, including but not limited to educational programs, cultural exchange, economic sectors, the governments, non-governmental organizations, tourism and the media.

Now is an important moment to examine national narratives about the US in China and about China in the US. There are two overarching forces that motivate and shape this volume. The first is the continued rise of China as a global superpower, especially in the wake of the Olympics and in the context of the current, global financial crisis. The second is the Obama administration and its plans to re-engineer the image of the US abroad.

The book not only examines various narratives in flux, but also the processes and actors shaping the narratives. The three-part book volume will contain larger conceptual essays and detailed case studies. Part I deals with broader theoretical concepts regarding national narratives of the US in China and of China in the US by Chinese and American authors. In addition to general images, issues such as nationalism, patriotism, exceptionalism and universalism can also be addressed in this section. Part II discusses actors and processes in shaping national images and narratives and Part II are cases studies that are geared frameworks and concepts in Part I and Part II.

If you are interested, please send a 1000-word proposal to Hongmei Li and Monroe Price by March 5, 2009. We will make the final decisions by March 15. The book is planned for publication by the end of 2009.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS - Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival

The Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival is NOW ACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS!

The largest west coast Loving Day celebration kicks off the 2nd Annual Mixed Roots Film & Literary Festival on June 12 through 13, 2009. The Festival celebrates storytelling of the Mixed racial and cultural experience and brings together innovative artists, film and book lovers, and families for two days of writing and film workshops, readings, film screenings, a special family event and live performance by talented comedians, musicians and actors. All events are free and open to the public.

WE ARE CURRENTLY ACCEPTING FILM, LITERARY, LIVE PERFORMANCE, WORKSHOP AND EVENT SUBMISSIONS.

For submission requirements and more information, visit: http://www.mxroots.org

FELLOWSHIPS - Harold White Fellowships (National Library of Australia) Closing date: 30 April 2009

Applications for 2010 Harold White Fellowships at the National Library of Australia are now open, and close on 30 April 2009.

Each year several Harold White Fellowships are awarded to enable established scholars and writers to undertake research at the National Library for periods of between three and six months. The Fellowships provide a return economy fare to Canberra, a living allowance, a fully equipped office and special access to Library collections and services. Honorary Fellowships are also awarded to scholars and writers who do not require financial assistance but would benefit from other privileges associated with the Fellowship.

Research projects supported by Harold White Fellowships can be in any discipline or area in which the Library has strong collections. Past Harold White Fellows have undertaken research in fields including Asian studies, history of science, biography, media history, Australian history, musicology, religious history, anthropology, children’s literature, art history, politics, Indigenous history, Australian literature, Pacific studies, eighteenth century studies, geography, international relations and folklore.

Past Fellows have included leading Australian creative writers including Frank Moorhouse, Sara Dowse and David Foster.

Fellowships have been awarded to researchers working across Australia, in the USA, Canada, the UK, New Zealand, Hong Kong, China, Germany and South Africa.

More information, a link to the online application form, and contact details are available at www.nla.gov.au/grants/haroldwhite

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS - Lemuria (Deadline: 30 July 2009)

CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS: LEMURIA

Editor: Anurag Sharma
Co-editor: Pradeep Trikha

It gives us immense pleasure to inform you that the Department of English, Dayanand College, Ajmer proposes to bring out the next issue of Lemuria- A Half yearly Journal of Indo-Australian Studies in October 2009. We would welcome your scholarly self to kindly contribute an article/ book review/ write-up or creative piece for the issue.

THE DEADLINE FOR THE CONTRIBUTIONS IS 30th July, 2009.

For further information and details the following may be contacted:

Anuraag Sharma (sharma_anuraag@yahoo.com)
Pradeep Trikha (pradeeptrikha@gmail.com)

EOI - Research partnerships with the Australia Council for the Arts (Deadline: 20 March 2009)

AUSTRALIA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS - Expressions of interest: Research Partnerships.

The Australia Council for the Arts is seeking expressions of interest from tertiary researchers looking to build industry partnerships to support applications for Australian Research Council (ARC) funded research projects.

The Australia Council has recently reviewed its research priorities as part of a new three year research plan. Projects should align with the research priorities that Australia Council has identified and these include:
  • the collection, analysis and dissemination of data on the economic performance of the arts in Australia, as an essential part of the evidence base for the development of arts and cultural policy;
  • public consumption and participation in the arts;
  • private sector support for the arts;
  • the effect and impact of digital technologies on the production and consumption of the arts in Australia and internationally. As an industry partner, the Australia Council may offer support in the form of cash or in-kind assistance.
There are two phases to partnership development with the Australia Council:
  • Phase 1 - an expression of interest outlining the proposed project and the nature of the partnership.
  • Phase 2 - researchers whose initial expression of interest is selected will be invited to submit a full length proposal in the form of an application for ARC funding developed in consultation with the Australia Council and other industry partners where applicable.
Phase 1 expressions of Interest should include a proposal of no more than three pages including:
  • research question;
  • project summary including a description of the project (summarising aims and expected outcomes);
  • contribution of the project to the Australia council's research priorities and any other benefits potential benefits of the project to the Australia Council;
  • name of participating eligible higher education institution;
  • details of project team including name, job title and brief description of role and experience;
  • other proposed industry partners;
  • start and end dates of proposed partnership;
  • budget outline for the project;
  • proposed role and contribution of the Australia Council.
The Australia Council will not support proposals seeking funding for:
  • in excess of five years continuous support;
  • publications, conferences or travel in isolation from a research project;
  • capital works or general infrastructure;
  • core organisational operating costs.
Phase 1 expressions of interest close on Friday, 20 March 2009.

Please contact Lisa Cahill by email at l.cahill@australiacouncil.gov.au for more informatio.

EVENT - Near and Far - and Mainly Macao (Carol Archer and Christopher Kelen)

You are warmly invited this coming Friday to the exhibition opening of:

Near and Far – and Mainly Macao

Joint exhibition of pictures by Carol Archer and Christopher Kelen to coincide with the launch of two volumes published by the University of Macau:

Carol Archer's exhibition catalogue, Work of Macao Hands
and
Christopher Kelen's trilingual poem and sketches, The River Considered as Sea

Opening 4 p.m. Friday 20th February, 2009 and continuing until the 6th of March Anthony S.W. Lau Exhibition Hall, University of Macau Library.

The books will be launched by Professor Robert Antony of the university's History Department. The launch will be followed by readings from The River Considered as Sea in English, Chinese and Portuguese by Professor Kelen and by Professors Espandinha and Yao Jing Ming, and also by Ms Hilda Tam - all of whom worked as translators on this project.

Near and Far – and Mainly Macao is a joint retrospective exhibition presenting solo and collaborative works by Carol Archer and Christopher Kelen. The works were created over the last ten years and most of them were previously shown at various exhibitions at the Fringe Club in Hong Kong, at Macao's CCI Gallery, at the Albergue Gallery in Macao and here at the University of Macau.

Carol Archer's book Work of Macao Hands presents a collection of watercolours offering close-up views of Macao, while Kit Kelen's The River Considered as Sea, a ten-part poem with ink and watercolour pictures, renders Macao at a distance.

6 February 2009

AWARDS - State Library of Queensland 2009 (Closing date: 20 March 2009)

The State Library of Queensland has recently advertised its awards program for 2009.

Awards and competitions

The State Library of Queensland is calling for nominations for it's three prestigious annual awards:


Further information, nominations and application forms can be found by following the links above.

Nominations open Monday 26 January 2009 and close at 5pm, Friday 20 March 2009.

More information
  • Telephone: +61 7 3842 9442
  • Fax: +61 7 3840 7873
  • Email: kate.hall@slq.qld.gov.au

4 February 2009

CFP - Dragon Tails: Re-interpreting Chinese-Australian Heritage (9-11 Oct 2009; Sovereign Hill, Ballarat, Vic) Deadline: 18 May 2009

CALL FOR PAPERS

Dragon Tails: Re-interpreting Chinese-Australian Heritage
9-11 October 2009
Sovereign Hill, Ballarat, Victoria

VENUE: Sovereign Hill Museums Association, Ballarat, Victoria (www.sovereignhill.com.au)

CONFERENCE OUTLINE
In 1984, noted historian Jennifer Cushman challenged researchers to move beyond the prevalent one-dimensional approach to understanding the Chinese presence in Australia—an approach that was primarily concerned with examining Australia’s attitudes towards the Chinese. In taking up this challenge, and seeking to understand the Chinese ‘on their own terms’, researchers have uncovered new sources and applied inter-disciplinary approaches to reveal the complex picture of Chinese community cultures, identities and race relations in Australia.

While we would no longer say that the history of the Chinese in Australia is hidden or neglected, where do these new stories fit within the wider narrative of Australian history? What are the challenges involved in communicating and interpreting these new perspectives, with their inherent complexity and contradictions, to broader audiences? One of the major aims of this conference is to bring together these new historical understandings about early Chinese-Australians, and consider their place within broader histories of Australia and the Chinese diaspora. Another aim is to create a forum for how these stories might be interpreted in the classroom, and at cultural heritage sites and museums.

This conference welcomes papers from a wide range of disciplines, including history, archeology, tourism, cultural studies, education, and museum/heritage studies.

We are particularly interested in work that:
  • Tells about early Chinese-Australian history from Chinese-Australian perspectives.
  • Discusses Chinese-Australian heritage/history within broader perspectives (e.g. Australian, Chinese, comparative, and/or transnational).
  • Draws on new resources to tell new stories.
  • Focuses on intercolonial (Northern Territory and Queensland) and/or trans-Tasman connections.
THEMES:
  • Chinese goldseekers and their legacy
  • Developments and issues for Chinese-Australian heritage tourism (regional and urban)
  • Everyday life and culture for early Chinese-Australians
  • Communicating Chinese-Australian heritage (e.g. education, multimedia, internet technology)
  • Early Chinese-Australian formations of politics, identity and citizenship
  • Interrogating Chinese-Australian historiography and material culture
  • Perspectives on heritage Chinese precincts
  • Mapping historical connections between Asia and Australia
  • Biographies and oral histories of Chinese-Australian ‘pioneers’
  • Creative work that re-interprets Chinese-Australian history

PRESENTATIONS:
  • Papers – Standard session presentations should be 20 mins long (with 10 mins allowed for question time).
  • Panels – We’d welcome panel submissions. Our suggested formats for the panels are:
    (a) 3 x 20 min papers with a coherent theme, or
    (b) Up to 5 speakers on a discussion panel (approx 10 mins each, with at least 40 mins for discussion)
Abstracts (max 200 words), with speakers’ full contact details and short biographical notes (max 100 words) should be sent to keirreeves@iprimus.com.au BY MONDAY 18 MAY 2009.

Enquiries about the conference should be directed to keirreeves@iprimus.com.au

CFP - AAI 3: Regionalising Asian Australian Identities (13-14 Nov 2009; Curtin U, Perth, WA) Deadline: 30 June 2009

Asian Australian Identities 3 (AAI3) Conference: Regionalising Asian Australian Identities

Curtin University, Perth, Australia
13-14 November 2009

CALL FOR PAPERS

The Asian Australian Studies Research Network, in collaboration with the Centre for Advanced Studies in Australia, Asia and the Pacific (CASAAP), Curtin University, invites submissions for the Regionalising Asian Australian Identities conference, to be held at Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia, from 13-14 November 2009.

Building on the momentum of previous successful Asian Australian Identities conferences, AAI3 considers the importance of understanding Asian Australian identities and communities within both regional and transnational contexts. In holding the 2009 conference in Western Australia, we are particularly mindful of the rhetoric of the rise of ‘Asia’ which has sustained much of the State’s (and nation’s) boom years. From distanciation to fascination and engagement, Australia’s relationship to Asia continues to inform the culture and politics of the nation. At the same time, the conference theme also reminds us to look into our own backyards and to consider the often neglected histories of the nation’s own regional encounters with Asians, in particular Asian-Indigenous interactions in the north of Australia. How does the articulation of ‘Asian Australian identities’ fit within these shifting terrains? And how might we reconsider Australia’s relationship to Asia and to its own local regions in new and productive ways, particularly as it affects identity formation?

As Asian Australian studies comes of age, what new pathways will the field take? Do we (continue to) learn from the direction Asian American studies has taken? Does Asian Australian studies have a role to play in the growth of Inter-Asia cultural studies? What kinds of conversations might scholars in Asian Australian studies have with their counterparts in North America, Europe and Asia, as well as with ‘locals’ from regional parts of Australia?

We invite papers from all disciplines that explore the regionalising of Asian Australian identities, cultures and politics.

Areas of interest include:
  • Australia’s relationship to Asia and the Pacific
  • The effect of the ‘rise of Asia’ on Asian Australian identities
  • Regional interactions between Asians and indigenous Australians
  • Rethinking questions of migration, belonging and settlement
  • Transnational connections, political alliances
  • The development of new forms of cultural production, participation and imagination
  • New creative practices for Asian Australian youths; gaming and online communities
  • Constructions of ‘local’ Asian Australian identities and practices in the context of the globalisation of diaspora
  • Asian Australian identities and religion
  • Articulating Asian Australian heritage and history
We also value the participation of creative practitioners across the various fields of Asian Australian cultural production.

Confirmed speakers include:
  • Koichi Iwabuchi (Waseda U)
  • Krishna Sen (U of Western Australia)
  • Jon Stratton (Curtin U)
All presentations should be of 20 minutes duration. Abstracts (200 words max) and a short bio (max 200 words) should be sent by 30 JUNE 2009 to: AAI3@curtin.edu.au

Notifications will be sent by 31 July.

Please contact Olivia Khoo for more information.

3 February 2009

POSITION VACANT - Sociology lecturer, U of Oxford, UK (Closing date: 20 February 2009)

University Lecturership in Sociology atOxford, associated with Nuffield

The Department of Sociology at the University of Oxford seeks to appoint a University Lecturer in Sociology, specializing either in the field of ethnicity or in one of the other areas of departmental interest (social inequality and stratification, political sociology, economic sociology, the study of extralegal forms of governance or economic activities). The appointee will also be offered a Fellowship at Nuffield College.

The anticipated starting date is 1 October 2009, or as soon as possible thereafter.

The University salary is in the range £35,520-47,736. The post-holder will also receive a pensionable academic allowance from the College of £20,361 per annum.

Applicants should have a doctorate or equivalent, a strong record of research achievement at an international level, including the demonstrated capacity to publish in top-rated journals and with first class University presses.

The successful candidate should have the ability and experience necessary to teach mainly at the graduate level, to supervise doctoral students, and to win external research funding.

Further information is available at www.admin.ox.ac.uk/fp/, including details on how to apply.

The closing date for applications is 12 Noon on Friday 20th February 2009.

Ref no is CY09001.

See http://www.sociology.ox.ac.uk/apply/vacancies.asp

UPCOMING CONFERENCES - Range of Chinese transnational/diaspora conferences in 2009

[This listing courtesy of Keng We Koh and the Shao Overseas Chinese Center]


CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS - Continuum: Journal of Media and Cultural Studies

Have you been working on an article over summer? Beginning to think about where to place it? Continuum is currently looking for new material.

Continuum – Journal of Media and Cultural Studies

Continuum expanded to 6 issues in 2008, allowing the journal to reduce lead-times to publication. In most cases, successful summer submissions will result in 2009 publication.

As the affiliated journal of the Cultural Studies Association of Australasia, the journal is circulated in hard copy to all members, putting your work directly before those who will read it with most interest. A good example is the recent issue (22.6) proceeding from the 2007 CSAA Conference ‘Sustaining Culture’ held in Adelaide. Congratulations to Susan Luckman for bringing together an excellent collection.

With extensive electronic distribution as a Taylor & Francis title, the journal also has excellent international exposure, being circulated to some 23,000 libraries world wide.

To submit an article please go to:

http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ccon

Or send a manuscript with author details to Mark.Gibson@arts.monash.edu.au or Mark Gibson, National Centre for Australian Studies, Monash University, Caulfield East, Victoria 3145.

Continuum will also shortly be reviewing special issue proposals for 2009-2010. Running a seminar? An innovative conference panel? Want to push forward a new theme or idea in media and cultural studies? If so, then please also discuss your ideas with the editorial team.

EDITORS:
Mark Gibson Mark.Gibson@arts.monash.edu.au
Panizza Allmark P.Allmark@ecu.edu.au
Greg Noble G.Noble@uws.edu.au