Call for Papers: Deadline – November 1, 2014
Iconic tall buildings are Chicago’s hallmark, yet it is the bungalow belts, bascule bridges, and “L” train lines that beckon vernacular analysis. Chicago is a network of neighborhoods with ubiquitous building forms, but a closer analysis reveals constant change and a diverse tapestry of communities frayed by the legacies of segregation. For the 2015 conference, the theme Neighborhoods in Transition will guide VAF as we go “Out of the Loop” and into the city’s vast grid to reflect on the regeneration or dissolution of community. Buildings, streetscapes, and neighborhoods will be VAF’s point of departure for its investigation of Chicago’s spatial and social patterns, material evidence and existential boundaries, and communal and cultural identities.
Papers for VAF Chicago may address vernacular and everyday buildings, sites, or cultural landscapes worldwide. Submissions on all vernacular topics are welcome, and for the 2015 Conference, we encourage papers that ask questions of the built environment andengineered ecologies for which Chicago represents a seminal model or serves as case study for trends occurring nationally and internationally. Trends include those in the architectural and building trades, in industrial and commercial sectors and for the workers in those arenas, in urban and city planning, and in models for societal restructuring that include urban renewal, relocation, and public housing.
SUBMITTING AN ABSTRACT
Papers should be analytical rather than descriptive, and no more than twenty-minutes in length. Proposals for complete sessions, roundtable discussions or other innovative means that facilitate scholarly discourse are especially encouraged. Proposals must be one-page, fewer than 400 words, and include the paper title, author’s name, and email address. You may include up to two images with your submission. Please clearly state the argument of the paper and explain the methodology and content. Attach a one-page CV to your proposal submission. Presenters must deliver their papers in person and be VAF members at the time of the conference. Speakers who do not register for the conference by March 1, 2015, will be withdrawn. Please do not submit an abstract if you are not committed to attending the papers session on Saturday, June 6th. There may be limited financial assistance, in the form of Pamela H. Simpson Presenter’s Fellowships, to offset registration costs to students and recent graduates.
THE DEADLINE FOR PROPOSALS IS NOVEMBER 1, 2014. Submissions should be emailed at that time to the VAF Papers Committee Chair atpapers@vafweb.org. For general information about the Chicago conference, please contact Virginia Price at va.price@yahoo.com.
Source: http://www.vafchicago.org/welcome/call-for-papers-4/