The Art of Punk

University Of Northampton
Friday 25th November 2016

Third Annual PSN Conference and Postgraduate Symposium

With all of the records, books, films, gigs and other material punk stuff out there, we sometimes forget that our movement is a leap of faith. A belief that life matters, so don’t fuck it up, and if someone else is fucking it up, do something about it.

Mark Bayard, ‘Introduction’, in Craig O’Hara. The Philosophy of Punk: More than Noise! (2013)

Since its UK inception 40 years ago, punk has profoundly changed not only music, but art, fashion and culture, giving many disillusioned young people a voice in the process. Yet how do punk’s anti-authoritarian tendencies fit with the academy’s critical investigation of the genre, as demonstrated by the British Library’s current exhibition ‘Punk 1976-78’? Does Bayard’s definition reflect a contemporary philosophy of punk? Is punk static, or has it evolved beyond its initial incarnation? And what role does anarcho-punk have to play in this history?

This symposium seeks to explore the artistic approach of punk through its social, political and cultural manifestations. We invite both researchers and practitioners of punk to contribute papers and performances exploring punk’s impact on the wider culture beyond music, including the arts, ethnography, sociology, politics, fashion, film, history, musicology, pedagogy and literature. We invite presentations from the perspective of any discipline.

Topics may include (but are not limited to):

• Punk and Society
• Literature, philosophy, art & punk
• Anarcho punk
• Punk and the academy
• Transnational punk
• Punk painting and photography
• Gender and punk
• Fashion, aesthetics, and style
• Practices of production
• Musicology
• Politics
• Subculture
• Proto and post-punk movements
• Concepts of independence and DIY cultures
• Archiving punk
• Race and the punk movement
• Global cross pollination of punk art

The programme will consist of a number of thematically grouped panels for both academics and postgraduates. By creating a dual purpose to the symposium, the Punk Scholars Network aims to bring together established academics and the next generation of punk scholars in a supportive and collaborative environment, which we hope will encourage networking opportunities, ideas exchange and potential future research opportunities.

Postgraduates and graduates can present work-in-progress papers on their PhD thesis, Master’s dissertation or graduate dissertation.

Alongside the conference there will be an art exhibition exploring the art of punk, in all its forms, including but not limited to: photography, audio, graphics and fashion.

An individual paper/performance/video is strictly limited to a reading time of 20 minutes, and we encourage, though do not require, self-organized panels of three presenters. Proposals for workshops, roundtables, or other types of sessions are also welcome.

Proposals should be submitted in the form of an abstract of c.250 words. All proposal submissions should also include:

• Full title of the paper/performance/video/exhibition
• Full name, contact details, and institutional affiliation (if any)
• Any requirements (projector, CD/DVD player, OHP, etc)
• Your academic status (if applicable) post graduate/graduate or ‘established’ academic (this is for the purpose of panel allocation)

Deadline for receipt of proposals/abstracts is 31st August 2016.

Symposium organisers: Dr Claire Allen and Roy Wallace

Proposals should be sent as e-mail attachments to: [email protected]

The conference programme will be announced in September 2016. It is intended that a selection of papers presented during the Conference and Symposium will be developed for future publication.