In 2020, we commemorated ten years since German director Christoph Schlingensief’s death. In doing so, Schlingensief’s life and personality came once again into focus as the source of his provocative aesthetic (see Süddeutsche Zeitung “Man wusste nie, wie weit er gehen würde”). However, after a decade Schlingensief’s works have become increasingly distant, and the anecdotes seem too vague and scattered to describe his radical aesthetic. This is why scholars have considered the various nuances in Schlingensief’s art, probing beyond the anecdotes to reveal an artistic process that developed through multiple media (i.e., film, performance, political actions, art installations, opera, and architecture), as well as through the influence of many collaborators (i.e., Voxi Bärenklau, Carl Hegemann, Elfriede Jelinek).

Scholars, who did not experience Schlingensief’s works live, have begun to investigate his work, relying on documented media. How will this impact our continued research? How has or will our methodologies change? This panel will investigate Schlingensief’s aesthetic in its different artistic forms, while taking on the question of the future of Schlingensief scholarship. Papers can address a single film, performance etc., consider larger trends and developments, or investigate Schlingensief’s artistic process or collaborations.    

Possible topics include, but are not limited to:

• Authenticity in Schlingensief’s film and performance
• The relationship between Schlingensief’s life and work
• Schlingensief’s collaborations and collective artistic process
• Schlingensief’s engagement with multiple media
• Schlingensief’s works and Transcultural and Political theater

Please note: Due to significant interest, we are posting this CFP with the hope of expanding an already organized panel into a panel series.

Please send a 350-500 word abstract and a short CV (up to 150 words) to khrach@iu.edu

Contact Info: 

Kathy Pollock, khrach@iu.edu