Call for Papers
William Morris and the Art of
Everyday Life
A one-day conference convened by the Australasian
Victorian Studies Association
and
the University of Otago
Christchurch Art Gallery
Saturday
May 10, 2008.
'Have nothing in your houses that you do not
know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.'
William Morris, 'The Beauty of Life' (1880)
This one-day
conference will be held to coincide with the 'Morris & Co.' exhibition, the
first of its kind in New Zealand, at the Christchurch Art Gallery. Scholars
working in areas related to William Morris and/or the Arts & Crafts
movement are invited to submit proposals for presentations on topics relevant
to the conference theme of 'William Morris and the Art of Everyday Life'.
Suggested
topics include (but are not restricted to):
William Morris
in the home
Victorian
material culture
Domestic
aesthetics and design
Politics of
production and consumption
Work and leisure
Utopia and
everyday life
Hospitality,
friendship, community
Arts and
Crafts homes and gardens
William
Morris's social networks (e.g. the Pre-Raphaelites, Socialist League,
'Anti-Scrape')
Professor
Florence Boos of the University of Iowa, editor of The
Earthly Paradise by William Morris. Vols. I and II (Routledge, 2001)
and president of the Morris Society in the U.S., will be the keynote speaker
for this event.
Proposals of
200 words for papers of 20 minutes duration should be sent to Dr Wendy Parkins
by email (wendy.parkins@otago.ac.nz)
by Friday, February 29, 2008. Please include full contact details and
institutional affiliation with your proposal.