[ecrea] CFP - "Bodies"

/Cultivate/ is an annual, open-access journal based in the University of 
York at the Centre for Women’s Studies. We are postgraduate-led and 
interested in the practices, nuances and articulations of feminism. We 
are based in Europe but open to global submissions of all kinds of 
studies related to or about feminism. We accept academic essays as well 
as cultural commentary and creative work. Both academics and 
non-academics are encouraged to submit material, in all mediums of art 
and critical thought, including but not limited to essays, photo essays, 
poetry, videos, podcasts.

In January 2018, the 24th cycle of /America’s Next Top Model /premiered. 
The advertising surrounding this particular cycle focused on the 
‘diversity’ of the new cast. While a minority of plus-size models have 
appeared regularly on the show since the tenth cycle, for 2018 audiences 
were told there would also be no age limit. However, despite the cast 
being more racially diverse than it has been previously, the majority of 
the models were predominantly light-skinned. There is no mention in the 
advertisements or press around this season of disability, only three out 
of the fourteen models are aged over twenty-five, none are aged over 
forty-five, none of the models are shorter than 5’7”, and the token 
‘plus-size’ model has been replaced with what the industry usually terms 
an ‘inbetween’ model. Currently, /America’s Next Top Model/ is broadcast 
in 170 countries. In addition, the related /Top Model /franchise is 
 international with variations of the show airing in different regions 
and countries; to date there have been forty-six different local and 
regional versions/,/ such as /Africa’s Next Top Model/, /Asia’s Next Top 
Model/, and /Caribbean’s Next Top Model/. While each iteration of the 
show has traditionally promoted largely unattainable aesthetic feminine 
standards, the decision to move away from the traditional expectations 
of the franchise in terms of body standards sits within in the context 
of the popularisation of a ‘body positivity’ movement in British and 
most North American media.

The campaigns at the centre of popular ‘body positivity’ (#Fatkini, 
Dove’s Real Beauty, Love Your Body and #LikeAGirl to name a few) suggest 
that this movement is invested in ‘normalising’ bodies that do not fit 
into the traditional standards of western beauty. There are, of course, 
other popular movements associated with feminism and body positivity 
that are not as focused on aesthetics, such as Time’s Up, Me Too and 
Free the Nipple. While these campaigns are not without their own issues, 
they do represent a popular interest in feminism and body positivity in 
some western cultures.

The prominence of new campaigns and media suggest there are new focuses 
on bodies in mainstream culture as well as the continuation of existing 
conversations such as cultural appropriation, colourism and the politics 
of religious clothing in a globalised context. There is a long standing 
connection between feminist scholarship, activism and bodies. While some 
people have found body related feminism to be a source of empowerment 
and freedom, there have been conflicts over exclusionary and silencing 
practices. We are interested in how all these conversations interact 
with contemporary and historical feminisms and the nuances and 
complications of both.

We are based in the U.K. and this issue has been inspired by the more 
recent popularisation of body positivity and conversations around bodies 
in the media that we consume everyday. /Cultivate /encourages 
contributors to not only engage with this topic but critique, differ, 
and go beyond. In this vein we seek global submissions in all forms of 
critical thought.

/Cultivate/ is looking for submissions including but limited to the 
following topics:

  * Gender and bodies
  * Media and bodies
  * Race and bodies
  * Sexuality and bodies
  * Bodies and art
  * Bodies in captivity
  * Bodies and culture
  * Embodiment
  * Health
  * Class perspectives on bodies
  * Engendered bodies
  * Pregnancy
  * Fat bodies
  * Mental health
  * Class and bodies
  * (Dis)abled bodies
  * Bodies in academia
  * Bodies and death
  * Queer bodies
  * Body modification
  * Objectification of bodies
  * Aging bodies
  * Eating Disorders
  * Adolescent body
  * Social media and body
  * Religion and the body
  * Bodies as sites of activism
  * Womanism and the body
  * Capitalism and neoliberalism and the body
  * Diaspora and the body

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