Happiness or Its Absence in Art

A symposium at the Department of the Arts, Ben-Gurion University of the
Negev, Israel, March 10th, 2011

The theme of happiness goes hand in hand with art. During the evolution of
Western civilization the concept of happiness was tied to visual
representations in different ways and carried various meanings. Ancient
Egyptian burial structures and their contents relate to happiness and wealth
acquired in the afterlife, while victory arches, for example, convey a sense
of elation drawn from joy and happiness associated with a crowd united by
its feelings of nationalism. Medieval works of art were often designed in
order to inspire the viewer with happiness resulting from religious
fulfillment. However, religious piety and the severity arising from some of
the religious works in the Baroque era, for instance, may form the basis for
a discourse about the absence, or rejection, of happiness at that time.

For this symposium we invite papers relating to various aspects of the theme
of happiness in art and visual culture, including concepts which generate or
shape happiness (or its absence) such as: love, innocence, religious
exaltation, spiritual uplift, physical pleasure and enjoyment,
entertainment, food, life and death, along with misery, despair, unrequited
love. We welcome papers dealing with a work of art or type of iconography,
as well as studies from the field of art theory. We are interested in
discourses about the perception of happiness by the artist or within the
creative process itself; the status of the beholder and the artistic attempt
to create a transcendental experience. New research methods and approaches
within the discipline as well as papers which adopt an original perspective
will receive special attention.

We cordially invite you to propose papers by sending a title and an abstract
(up to 300 words) in English, in MS Word format to happiness.artsgmail.com
by December 31st, 2010. Please remember to attach your contact details.

For further inquiries please contact Ms. Ronit Milano at:
ronitmilanogmail.com