Circle 7 is comprised of international researchers working in the fields of art and artistic research, and it was developed within the Nordic and Baltic framework of the Nordic Summer University. Its primary aim is to provide a forum for experimentation and cross-disciplinary collaboration, welcoming members from inside and outside academia. 

The Circle 7 2022-2024 cycle is called ‘The experiential in artistic practice: methods, knowledges and reflective processes’. Throughout its series of symposia, Circle 7 will document research and findings, which will be published in an anthology, on-line journal or other publishing platforms. 

Themes:

Experiencing Artistic Research Through the Senses. 

During this symposium we will be investigating phenomenology (empirical research, direct experience) micro-phenomenology (experiences that trigger specific micro-gestures or micro-acts of attention) and reverse-phenomenology (how one experiences a landscape and how the landscape experiences one) as methods for reflecting on the experiential in artistic practice research. 

We intend to create spaces for exploring artistic methodologies with the aim to develop reflection as a means to address the experiential in knowledge-making and processes of artistic practices. This is done in the belief that critically investigating the artistic research process will promote understanding of the role of the experiential in artistic practices and will provide a framework from where to explore reflection to develop sense-making capacities for artistic practices. As such, we will explore artistic practices as other forms of cognising, incorporating, among other experimental forms of exploration, elements of ‘microphenomenology’, a method for experiential protocols created by Claire Petitmengin, in the discussion. 

Proposals:

We welcome proposals that respond to the themes explained above. As this will be a research symposium, please consider the following research questions when you write your submission. We also welcome applications for participation only. If you wish to take part without presenting a paper please also refer to the research questions for the discussions in between presentations.

Research Questions:

• How do knowledges emerge in artistic research practices through the experiential? 
• What kind of knowledges are they?  
• What methods and methodologies are employed in this work/paper/seminar/collaborative project?
• How is experiential learning and learning-by-doing significant for art practices and artistic communities?

These questions are a starting point, which will need to be incorporated into the fabric of your presentation. They are not meant to be answered in the presentation, they are meant to be used as a lens with which to look at your work. Together, we will attempt to answer these question in the symposium, during the periods of reflection.

The focus of this symposium is the investigation of the methods, knowledges and reflective processes involved in artistic practice research in a collective effort to explore and articulate how, in artistic research, experience informs experience and the experiential changes the researcher and the practice as it unfolds. This symposium will provide opportunities for investigating and experiencing other forms of knowledge through building trust in imagination, intuition and working-with others in the artistic practice process. 

Your presentation can be in any format that suits your work, which can be anything from the traditional PPT paper to a participatory seminar or a performance. 

Proposal submission:

Submissions must be related to the theme of the symposium. Submissions can be of any genre, any mix of genres, disciplines and media. 

Submissions must include your name, your country of residence, your email, a short bio about you (200 w max), the title of your presentation and a short abstract (300 w max). You can include up to 3 photographs. Should you need a projector please state this in your submission.Please also send us your CV in one document file. 

Submissions must be emailed in a PDF no larger than 10 Mb to marina.velez@marinavelez.com 

Original deadline 1st June. Extended deadline 10th June.

Structure of the Symposium

Each participant’s presentation/seminar/workshop will be followed by moments of reflection (of what was experienced in the presentations), weaving moments of ’learning by doing’ and ‘learning by reflecting’.

The opportunities for reflection directly after each session will follow set questions that will be common to all the symposia throughout the three year duration of the cycle. The idea is to create spaces for dialogue and reflection, loosely inspired by Dialogue-A Proposal by Bohm, Factor and Garret, and also embracing non-verbal feedback and communication. These spaces for reflection will be essential in providing material for the final publication and equally, providing participants with a ‘breathing out’ or ‘digestive’ moment after each presentation. The answers, contributions and expressions gathered during each period of reflection will be compiled into an anthology after completion of  the cycle. This will take the shape of a ‘carrier-bag’ of experiential knowledges in artistic research. The three-year cycle will become one collective meta-research, which will be made available to artists working in academia, researchers, educators and artists working outside academia as well as the general public.

Where:

This symposium will take place at Rønningen Folkehøgskole, in Oslo, Norway. You can find its location on a map here: https://ronningen.fhs.no/kontakt/ 

When:

The symposium will take place between 28th July and 4th August. Arrival and departure will be organised and communicated nearer the time. 

Fees:

Scholarships: €150

Full fee: single room €650-700, a shared twin room €500-550, family room €1500. Bed linen and towels are included in the accommodation. 

*Annual NSU membership €25 (€10 reduced fee)

The participation fee includes food and accommodation. The registration fee must be paid via bank transfer in advance of the conference. registration will open on the web-shop from 1st June. 

Participants should apply to their institutions, Art Councils, local foundations or sponsors to have their travel cost covered. For those not affiliated with an institution, it is possible after the symposium to apply to NSU for some travel funding. Circle 7 can offer two scholarships, please apply between 20th April and 1st June. Scholarship recipients pay €150 for shared room and board for the week. We ask recipients of scholarships to dedicate a couple of hours during the week to help with various tasks. 

If you wish to apply for a scholarship please submit a letter of intent together with your proposal. 

* The Nordic Summer University (NSU) annual membership fee facilitates the existence of NSU, which is a volunteer-based organisation. As a member you can sign up for all events organised by NSU, take part in the democratic decision-making process on which NSU is based, and become part of the extensive network of NSU. There are two rates: a standard fee of 25 euros and a discounted membership of 10 euros for self-financed/freelance/independent students, scholars and artists.

NSU

The Nordic Summer University is a nomadic, academic institution, which organises workshop-seminars across disciplinary and national borders. Since it was established in 1950, the Nordic Summer University has organised forums for cultural and intellectual debate in the Nordic and Baltic region, involving students, academics, artists and intellectuals from this region and beyond.

Decisions about the content and the organisational form of the Nordic Summer University lay with its participants. The backbone of the activities in the Nordic Summer University consists of its thematic study circles. In the study circles researchers, students and professionals from different backgrounds collaborate in scholarly investigations distributed regularly in summer and winter symposia during a three-year period.

The Nordic Summer University is committed to the principle of sustainability. At our symposia we offer vegetarian/vegan food only and aim towards zero waste. We thus invite members to bring their own reusable coffee cup and water bottle to the symposia and to consider carefully the carbon footprint of their travel choices.

For more information www.nordic.university