[Commlist] CFP for Trans- States: The Art of Deception (Conference and Exhibition)

The Magician


    *Trans- States: The Art of Deception*

University of Northampton, 9 & 10th September 2022.


      *Trans-States.org
      *


*trans- *prefix meaning: across, beyond, through, on the other side of, 
to go beyond

*state: *a condition or way of being that exists at a particular time

An unabashed play on words, a ‘trans- state’ is, among other things, a 
/coincidentia oppositorum/. An alchemical wedding that defines the fixed 
place, where boundaries are actively transgressed.

Trans- States conferences are each themed upon a Major Arcana Tarot 
card. The first was The Hanged Man and focused on boundary-crossing, 
liminality, and the queering of normativity. The second was The Tower, 
which broadened its scope to include the shock and awe of revelatory and 
paradigm-shifting occultural experiences, the impact and implications of 
anti-structure, of alterations in consciousness, and of the 
revolutionary aspects of paranormality.

The theme of this conference is The Magician card. The contemporary 
Tarot Magus is an adept of the mystical arts, but the forebearers of 
this image are even more firmly rooted in the mercurial archetype of the 
Trickster. Master of stage(d) magic, sleight of hand, spectacle, and 
misdirection; everything they do is for show—the Magician is nothing 
without their spellbound audience. Juggler, gamester, huckster, 
provocateur, and virtuoso performer, The Magician occupies the streets 
and avenues, the highways and byways, the thoroughfares and village 
squares. Places of commerce and community, of trade and treachery, of 
discovery and deception. Quick-witted, unfathomably dexterous and 
expertly skilled, The Magician appears to perform the impossible and 
produce the hitherto unimaginable: making space for the virtual to 
emerge within the bustling midst of the everyday.

The Art of Deception is the art of /technē/. It is the art, skill, 
craft, and means by which practice brings about accomplishments that are 
quite simply—beyond belief.

This transdisciplinary conference and art exhibition will explore the 
complex interrelationships between contemporary occulture, deception, 
persuasion, trickery, manipulation, communication, mastery, craftiness, 
sleight of hand, commerce, /technē/, technology, and techgnosis.


      *Keynotes*

    * Erik Davis, PhD – *Underground icon, independent scholar, author,
    award-winning journalist, sometimes podcaster, and popular speaker.

    *Christine Ferguson, PhD – *Professor in English Studies in the
    Division of Literature and Languages at the University of Stirling

    *Lionel Snell* – Contemporary English magician, publisher and author
    on magic and philosophy, who publishes under many aliases including,
    famously, Ramsey Dukes.


      *Call for Proposals*

We welcome proposals by academics, independent scholars, practitioners 
and artists.

Applicants may be from any background, with no minimum education levels, 
although are expected to demonstrate expertise in their area of interest.

As further guidance for proposal ideas, all proposals should relate to 
one or more of the following: contemporary esotericism, mysticism, 
spirituality, psychedelics, occulture AND—

  * deception, persuasion, and manipulation.
  * trickster gods, the Trickster archetype, tricksters, pranksters,
    gamesters, hucksters, and provocateurs.
  * mediation, communication and technology. Particularly, information
    and communications technology (ICT).
  * /technē /and techgnosis.
  * mastery, master craftsmanship, and craftiness.
  * virtuoso performance.
  * stage magic, sleight of hand, street and fringe performance,
    juggling and the circus arts.
  * commerce and the marketplace.
  * cheating, swindling, fraud and thievery.


We aim to promote not only the blending of disciplines but also 
non-normative approaches to the theme. As such, joint proposals, 
collaborations, practitioner-based activities, pre-formed panels and 
performances are very welcome, as well as individual submissions and 
papers. We also welcome short film screenings; exhibited works; visual 
art; sound art; installations; visually interactive talks and workshops.

This list of ‘trans- states’ from the first conference may help provide 
additional inspiration:

Transcendental
Transformation
Transmutation
Transmedia and transnarrative
Transgender, Transexual, Gender Queer, Androgyne
Transitions and liminality
Transmissions
Transcultural
Transdermal and body modification
Transfixion
Transference
Transdisciplinary
Transfiguration
Transgression
Transhumanism
Transmigration and metempsychosis
Transnatural art and design
Transpersonal
Transubstantiation


      Please apply online at: Trans-States.org/participate
      <http://trans-states.org/participate> or visit Trans-States.org
      <http://www.trans-states.org> for more info.

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