Abstraction, Analysis and Synthesis of an Operating Principle. Around and Beyond the Season of Analytical Painting.

In accordance with the activities promoted by the Research Centre on Abstract Arts in Italy (CRA.IT), the new issue of "piano b" is aimed at collecting reflections, insights, and contributions regarding the evolution of the definition of abstract art. The issue of the journal is dedicated on the theoretical-critical and operational framework produced by Italian, European and international experiences belonging to the sphere of ‘pittura analitica’ (analytical painting) or ‘pittura-pittura’ (painting-painting). The aim is to focus on essential aspects and specific examples inherent to the continuity and renewal of art practices addressing matters of form, surface and specific techniques, generating new hypotheses for the organization of the act of painting or form construction in the art of the late 20th century.

The issue of ‘piano b’ will be developed around the following thematic topics:

● Case studies of artists who have reflected on abstraction from the 1970s to today.
● Exhibitions devoted to abstraction in recent decades, which stand out for their
problematic approach and connections to more recent practices.
● Abstraction in the criticism of recent decades: readings, syntheses, proposals for
categorisation.
● The relationship between abstraction in painting and its legacy in new media.
● The cultural positioning of abstraction today, exploring its connection with art forms
more linked to current events and political issues.
● The impact of Postmodern theories (including more specific approaches, such as
postcolonialism, gender studies, etc.) and the evolutions on abstract art
● Practices of appropriation, collage, re-use, and fragmentation that echo the abstract
art of the past.
● Abstract art and space: display, installation, and exhibition methods.

Authors must submit a complete contribution (30.000/40.000 characters, including notes and spaces) via the journal’s platform using a submission process. The file containing the proposal text must not display author's name appearing below the title, in the notes, or in the bibliographic references (where it will be replaced with *). The name of the author should not be made explicit in any way.

Metadata entry will occur during step 3 of the process and must include the following information:
1. For each author: first name and last name, email, ORCiD identifier (if available), institutional affiliation, country, and a brief biography (maximum 1000 characters, including spaces);
2. Title;
3. Abstract (maximum 1500 characters, including spaces);
4. Five keywords separated by semicolons;

Contributions can be written in Italian, English, and French. Proposals must be submitted by January 17, 2025. Each contribution will undergo a double-blind peer review process.