[Commlist] CfP Drone Performances. Aesthetics, Mediation, Politics

we are pleased to announce our call for papers for the conference 
"*Drone Performances.*

*Aesthetics, Mediation, Politics*" which will take place from *29 to 30 
January 2026* at the University of Klagenfurt, Austria.

Drones are reshaping visual culture, human-machine interaction, and 
aesthetic expression. From cinematic landscapes to military 
surveillance, from art installations to everyday leisure, drones are 
increasingly mediating how we sense, see, and relate to the world.

This international and interdisciplinary conference aims to bring 
together scholars and artists to explore *how drones perform, intervene, 
and matter* in cultural and social contexts. Hosted by the Department of 
Media & Communications and the Digital Age Research Center (D^! ARC) at 
the University of Klagenfurt, the conference is part of the arts-based 
research project *“*Performing Drones. 
<https://www.aau.at/en/media-and-communications/research/performing-drones-new-perspectives-in-human-machine-theatre/>*”*

We welcome contributions that address drones from perspectives such as 
*media studies, STS, anthropology, cultural studies, and sociology*, 
particularly focusing on *everyday and artistic uses* of drones. We are 
especially interested in work that examines the *entanglements of 
aesthetics, mediation, agency, and politics*—as drone imaginaries travel 
across contexts.

We invite a range of formats from presentations over performances to 
posters, videos, and experimental formats.

*Potential topics include (but are not limited to):*

  * The eye of the drone: surveillance, visibility, and affect
  * Autonomy and automation: machine agency and human control
  * Drones as actors and mapping drone assemblages
  * Drones in contemporary art, film, video clips, popular culture and
    performance
  * Drone imaginaries and speculative futures
  * Artistic, civilian, military practices and legacies
  * Drone sensing and datafication
  * Drone atmospheres: sensing and embodied perception
  * Tinkering and play with drones

*Submission Deadline: September 29, 2025*
Please send abstracts (max. 300 words) to 
https://conference3.aau.at/event/216/ 
<https://conference3.aau.at/event/216/>**

For further questions please contact the organizers 
(Matthias.Wieser /at/ aau.at) <mailto:(Matthias.Wieser /at/ aau.at)> and 
(Katharina.Kinder-Kurlanda /at/ aau.at) <mailto:(Katharina.Kinder-Kurlanda /at/ aau.at)>.

The event is supported by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) and the German 
Sociological Association (Section Sociology of Media and Communications).

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