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SPECULATIVEFUTURESOFRACESYMPOSIUMFRIDAY14THAPRIL2017•DEPARTMENTOFCOMMUNICATIONSTUDIESART•ACTIVISM•THEORY•PERFORMANCE•PRAXISTheSpeculativeFuturesofRaceSymposiumisaone-dayconferenceaddressingspeculativeandfuturistapproachestocriticalissuesofraceintheoryandpractice,artandactivism.TheSymposiumhighlightstheevolvingpolitical,social,andartisticmovementsofAfrofuturism,Arabfuturism,Latinofuturism,IndigenousFuturism,AfrosurrealismandAstroblackness.Thesesocialmovementsemphasiseimaginative,speculative,andfuturistapproachestoantiracistpraxis,operatingattheintersectionofliberatorypoliticsandthespeculativearts.TheSymposiumaddressescriticalissuesofspeculativeracetheory,includingradicalontologiesofbecoming,posthumanism,andperformance,byturningtotheimpactoftheselivedexperiencesandtheirdiscoursesuponidentity,globalcitizenship,politics,art,andecologicalnetworks.TheSymposiumdrawstogetherspeakersandperspectivesfromcriticalcommunicationsandmediastudies,genderandsexualitystudies,criticalracetheoryandAfrican-Americanstudies,philosophy,music,art,activism,andliterature.FindusonFacebook:fb.me/speculativefuturesrace|@speculativefuturesofrace

—SPONSORS—

Wearegratefulfortheinvaluablesupportextendedby:

DepartmentofCommunicationStudies•AssociatedStudentsMikeCurbCollegeofArts,Media,andCommunication

OfficeofResearchandGraduateStudiesDivisionofStudentAffairs

CivilDiscourse&SocialChangeInitiative•CollegeofHumanitiesDepartmentofArt

DepartmentofCentralAmericanStudiesDepartmentofSociology•DepartmentofChicanaandChicanoStudies

DepartmentofAfricanaStudies•OviattLibrary•DepartmentofAsianAmericanStudiesMiddleEastern&IslamicStudiesProgram•DepartmentofReligiousStudies

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MorningSessionAronstamLibrary,Room240,SecondFloor,ManzanitaHall10:30am—11:30am•SpeculativeArtistsPanelIBeatrizCortez(LosAngeles),Migration,Nomadism,andImaginingtheFutureMartonRobinson(SanJose,CostaRica),IdentityandRepresentationinCostaRica:VisualStrategiesofImagination11:45am—12:30pm•KeynoteAddressDarkSpeculativeFuturity,Afrofuturism,andtheRiseofNeo-NationalismReynaldoAnderson(Harris-StoweStateUniversity)12:30pm—1:15pm Lunch1:30pm—2:00pm•VisitingScholarAddress AfrofuturismandtheRaceforUtopia:SpeculativeFuturesofPosthumanismtobiasc.vanVeen(CSUN)2:00pm—3:00pm•SpeculativeArtistsPanelII ZealHarris(LosAngeles),SignifiersofRace&SpeculationinMyArtPavithraPrasad(CSUN),NotesonTerrestrialPerformanceofOuterSpace

3:00pm—3:15pmCoffeebreak

AfternoonSessionArmerTheater,Room100,FirstFloor,ManzanitaHall

3:30pm—4:15pm•KeynoteAddress

TheVertigoTango:Crosspasts,LiminalSelves,andtheSpeculativeFuturesofRaceValorieThomas(PomonaCollege)

4:30pm—5:30pm•KeynoteAddress

WhoseAfrofuturism?NaloHopkinson(UC,Riverside)

5:45pm—7:00pm•Performance/Pieces

8StarT.CarlisRobertsandAnandJayKalra(Oakland)

ModeratedbyDr.PavithraPrasad(CSUN)

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::KEYNOTESPEAKERS::NaloHopkinsonisaJamaican-bornCanadianspeculativefictionwriterandeditor,whoseworkdrawsuponCaribbeanhistoryandlanguage,anditstraditionsoforalandwrittenstorytelling.HernovelsincludeBrownGirlintheRing,MidnightRobber,TheSaltRoads,TheNewMoon'sArms,TheChaos,andtheshortstorycollectionSkinFolk,forwhichsheisarecipientoftheJohnW.CampbellAward,theWorldFantasyAward,theGaylacticSpectrumAward,andatwo-timerecipientoftheSunburstAwardforCanadianLiteratureoftheFantastic.HopkinsonhaseditedthefictionanthologiesWhispersFromtheCottonTreeRoot:CaribbeanFabulistFictionandMojo:ConjureStories,andsheisco-editorwithUppinderMehanoftheanthologySoLongBeenDreaming:PostcolonialVisionsoftheFuture,andwithGeoffRymanoftheanthologyTesseracts9:NewCanadianSpeculativeFiction.HopkinsondefendedGeorgeElliottClarke'snovelWhylahFallsonCBC'sCanadaReadsnationalradioprogramin2002,andshewasthecuratorofSixImpossibleThings,anaudioseriesofCanadianfantasticalfictiononCBCRadioOne.NaloHopkinsoniscurrentlyProfessorofCreativeWritingatUniversityofCaliforniaRiverside.Dr.ValorieThomas,AssociateProfessorofEnglishandAfricanaStudies,PomonaCollege,originatedtheconceptofDiasporicVertigoasamotifofdecolonization.Thomasalsostudiesfilmandvisualart,hasanongoinginterestintheconnectionsbetweenwriting,artandsocialjustice,andisascreenwriter.SherecentlycuratedtheinternationalexhibitionVertigo@Midnight,featuringtwenty-oneAfrodiasporicartistsexploringthemotifsofAfrofuturism,speculativeart,andspiritualityatPomonaCollege’sChanGalleryandScrippsCollege’sClarkHumanitiesMuseum.Dr.ReynaldoAnderson,AssociateProfessorofHumanitiesatHarris-StoweStateUniversity,co-founderoftheBlackSpeculativeArtsMovement(BSAM).WithDr.JohnJennings(Harvard)herecentlyco-curatedtheBlackSpeculativeArtsexhibitionUnveilingVisions:TheAlchemyoftheBlackImaginationattheSchomburgCenterforResearchinBlackCultureinHarlem,NYC.Heistheco-editorwithDr.CharlesE.JonesofAfrofuturism2.0:TheRiseofAstro-Blackness(Lexington,2015)andco-editorwithDr.tobiasc.vanVeenof“BlackLives,BlackPolitics,BlackFutures,”aforthcomingspecialissueofTOPIA:CanadianJournalofCulturalStudies.::ARTISTS::ZealHarris,MFA•www.zealsart.comZealHarrisisknownforcontemporary,seductive,colorful,caricaturesque,political,urban-vernacular,storypaintings.SheisaLosAngelesbasedvisualartistandhasbeeninrecentexhibitionsinPortAuPrinceatHaiti’sGhettoBiennale;inNewYorkattheCaribbeanCultureCenteroftheAfricanDiaspora;inArizonaatTheMesaContemporaryArtsMuseum;andinLosAngelesattheCaliforniaAfrican-AmericanMuseum,TheMakeshiftMuseum,18thStreetArtsCenter,andGallery825.ZealhasbeenmentionedinartreviewsandinterviewedonRisingUpwithSonali,PacificaRadio,FabrikMagazine,TheCultureTrip,LifeinLA,RequitedJournal,theBlkGrrrlShow,ClocktowerRadyoShak,theLAWeekly,andTheLosAngelesTimes.ZealhasanMFAinStudioArtfromOtisCollegeofArt&Design.

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MartonRobinson•https://www.biomythart.com/marton-robinsonSanJose,CostaRicaartistMartonRobinsonexploreswaysofchallengingconventionalblackrepresentationsofidentityandethnicityfromthenotionofarthistory,history,politics,massmediaandpopularculture.Throughprints,foundobjects,sculptureandvideos,MartonRobinsoncreatesnewdiscoursesusingmockeryandsymbolism,exploringhowblackidentityisconstructedthroughcolonialismandhowthisperceptionisengravedinthepsycheofhisnativeCostaRica.BeatrizCortez•http://www.beatrizcortez.comBeatrizCortezisawriterandanartist.ShewasborninElSalvadorandhaslivedintheUnitedStatessince1989.Herworkexploressimultaneity,theexistenceindifferenttemporalitiesanddifferentversionsofmodernity,particularlyinrelationtomemoryandlossintheaftermathofwarandtheexperienceofimmigration,andinrelationtoimaginingpossiblefutures.ShehasexhibitedherworknationallyinLosAngeles,SanFrancisco,Washington,D.C.,NewYork,Minneapolis,andMiami,andinternationallyinElSalvador,CostaRica,Guatemala,andEcuador.SheholdsaMastersofFineArtsfromtheCaliforniaInstituteoftheArts,andadoctorateinLatinAmericanliteraturefromArizonaStateUniversity.SheisarecipientoftheCaliforniaCommunityFoundationFellowshipforVisualArtistsfor2017.SheteachesintheDepartmentofCentralAmericanStudiesatCaliforniaStateUniversity,Northridge.ShelivesandworksinLosAngeles.8Star—ArtistPerformance+Talk•InternationalDebut•T.CarlisRoberts+AnandjayKalra8StarisanewmusicalaboutthelifeandworkofOctaviaButler.PlacingkeymomentsofButler’slifealongsidecharactersandphilosophiesdrawnfromherworks,8Starrevealsaportraitoftheartistandthemultipleworldsofhercreations.PerformingartistsT.CarlisRobertsandAnandjayKalrawillprovidealookinsidethemusicalbyexploringtheircreativeprocessandthinkingthroughButler’sracialandgenderedspeculations.Thiswillbethefirstpublicperformanceofselectionsfromthelargerwork.Dr.T.CarlisRobertsisanartistandscholarbasedinOakland.Asacomposerandsounddesigner,theyhaveworkedwiththeateranddancecompaniesacrossthecountry,includingSteppenwolfTheatreCompany,SanJoseRepertoryTheatre,andAboutFaceTheatre.Asamusician,Thasperformedasadrummer,singer,andbandleaderwithgroupsincludingTheSingingBoisandLasBomberasdelaBahía.TAssociateProfessorofMusicattheUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley,wheretheyteachcoursesonmusicandpolitics.http://tamararobertsmusic.com/

AnandjayKalrahaslovedmusicaltheatersincebeforehecouldtalk.Hewroteandperformedasoloshowaboutcriticalmomentsinhistransitiontoadulthoodandtransmasculineidentityin2009andhasperformedhispoetryandsongsinsmallcabaretsandcommunityeventssince2008.In2016,heformedtheall-transmasculinesinginggroupVajaynaMen'sChoirandco-producedMan2man,avocal-drivenconcert,withT.CarlisRobertsfortheNationalQueerArtsFestivalinSanFrancisco,California.

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::SPEAKERS/ORGANIZERS::Dr.tobiasc.vanVeenisacriticalmediatheorist,creativedirector,andVisitingScholaratCSUN.Hisresearchfocusesonspeculativeracetheory,futuristmediacultures,andphilosophyoftechnology.Heisco-editorwithReynaldoAndersonofthe“BlackLives,BlackPolitics,BlackFutures”specialissueofTOPIA:CanadianJournalofCulturalStudies(2018);editoroftheAfrofuturismspecialissueofDancecult:JournalofElectronicDanceMusicCulture(2013),andco-editorwithHillegondaRietveldoftheJournal’sspecialissueEchoesfromtheDubDiaspora(2015).Asound-artist,mediaartscuratorandtacticalturntablistsince1993,tobiasisfoundingdirectoroftheUpgradeMTLattheSociétédesartstechnologiques[SAT],andhasorganisedinterventions,events,broadcasts,andexhibitionsworldwide,workingwithorganisationsincludingMUTEK,Steim,Eyebeam,theNewFormsFestival,StudioXX,VIVOMediaArtsCentre,CiTRRadio101.9FM,Kunstradio,andTurbulence.org.HehoststheOtherPlanes:SpeculativeFuturismpodcastonCreativeDisturbance.organdisdirectorofsound-artlabelIOSOUND.ca.Dr.PavithraPrasadisAssistantProfessorofCommunicationStudiesatCSUN.PavithraPrasad'sresearchdealswiththeintersectionsofrace,class,gender,andculturalidentityinperformancesofnightlifeandtransnationalsubcultures.HerethnographicworkonsubcultureandtourisminIndiahasbeenpublishedinTextandPerformanceQuarterly,Ecumenica,andCriticalArts.Sheiscurrentlyworkingonabookthattracestheeffectsofsocio-economicneoliberalismonperformancesofcosmopolitanism,class,andglobalmobility,inclubsandelectronicdancemusicfestivalsinIndia.Shemaintainsacreativelifeasaperformer,musician,andplaywright,playingacrossgenresrangingfromsciencefictiontheatreandperformanceethnography,tofolkmusicfusionsandun-passabledrag.ORGANIZEDBY—Dr.tobiasc.vanVeen•tobias.vanveen@csun.eduVisitingScholarinCommunicationStudies,CSUNDr.PavithraPrasad•pavithra.prasad@csun.eduAssistantProfessorinCommunicationStudies,CSUN