The editorial board of the book series European Avant-Garde and Modernism Studies (Berlin and New York: Walter de Gruyter) calls for contributions to the tenth volume:
The Avant-Garde and Migration
Edited by: Abigael van Alst, Kate Kangaslahti, Andrea Kollnitz, Jessica Sjöholm Skrubbe, and Iveta Slavkova
The tenth volume of the EAM book series foregrounds migration as a key concept in the history and continuing development of the avant-gardes, while also recognising its wider contemporary relevance. Migration, firstly, may be understood as a socio-cultural and geopolitical concept relating to avant-garde and neo-avant-garde migrant actors and movements during the twentieth century, as well as to the contemporary cultural and geopolitical landscape in Europe and beyond. How have diverse forms of voluntary or forced migration inflected avant-garde or modernist practices, networks, and collectives? What roles have peripatetic, exiled, or refugee artists and intellectuals, and their creative output, played in shaping the cultural politics of diverse national and ethnic communities? In what ways do the dynamics of past and contemporary avant-garde and modernist techniques intersect with the social and cultural dimensions of today’s global migration?
Secondly, the concept of migration may function metaphorically in addressing aesthetic and ideational forms of movements and boundary-crossing. These include changes in the meaning of the ‘travelling’ concept of the ‘avant-garde’ and other aesthetic or philosophical notions as they circulate across cultures and through history; the transgression of boundaries between genres, media, and modes of expression enabled by the critical practices of the avant-gardes and modernism; and the creative transformations, with socio- political implications, that arise from the interplay between movements, actors, and networks.
This volume explores historical and theoretical aspects of the avant-gardes’ cross-border mobility, transcultural encounters, aesthetic disruptions, and conceptual transformations, while also considering how these can shed light on the global challenges and complex problems that characterise our time. The editors welcome proposals for creative and critical papers based on original and newly conducted research that advances or challenges our understanding of the relationship between avant-garde and modernist practices and migration across all areas of artistic practice and activity.
We invite proposals for contributions of about 6,000 words relevant to these themes, in English, German, or French. Potential authors must first submit an abstract (max. 500 words), together with details of their institutional affiliation and a brief biography (max. 200 words), as well as a list of no more than ten recent and relevant publications. Abstracts must be submitted by 30 November 2026 and cannot be accepted after this date. The editorial team will respond to proposals in early February 2027. The deadline for completed contributions will be 15 June 2027. Abstracts from non-members of the EAM and from PhD students are welcome and will be considered. Authors writing in a second language are strongly advised to have their texts proofread by a native speaker before submission.
Please send your abstracts in word-format to the following address: eamvolume10@gmail.com