The summer school of 2020 analyzes and discusses present and past material and conceptual entanglements both as research topics and as a mode of thinking from (art)historical, literary, sociological, cultural, philosophical, archaeological, intermedial and artistic perspectives. It addresses the following questions a.o.:

1. What do we really mean, when working with broad concepts such as “materiality” and “subjectivity”? How might a post-millennial (digital) approach differ from older conceptions?
2. Since a shift towards the material might decentralize and destabilize the human subject and turns towards non-human performativity, while being a conceptual device nonetheless, how can we reasonably reconcile the material and con-ceptual/ideal, body/matter and sign/text, or, if necessary redefine it?
3. Since thinking in entanglements is fundamentally about potentially limitless spatio-temporal relationality (“fields of force and flows of material”, as Tim Ingold stated) – how can we still reasonably delimit our research, keep it focused and avoid arbitrariness?
4. In what ways might performative, experiential, artistic or sensorial methodologies and methods help us to study entanglements of materialities and subjectivities? How can we, for example, account for sensual, aesthetic and per-formative aspects of material culture in our own research output — in text, visual, auditive, or intermedial forms? 

Invited keynote speakers

1. Prof. Dr. Christian J. Emden (Professor of Politics, Law & Social Thought, Rice University)
2. PD Dr. Irina Rajewsky (Privatdozentin, Institute of Romance Languages and Literatures, Freie Universität Berlin; Visiting Professor, Centre for Intermediality Studies in Graz (CIMIG), University of Graz, SS 2020)
3. Prof. Dr. Caroline van Eck (Professor of Art History, Director of Studies of King’s College, University of Cambridge)

How to apply?
The Summer School offers doctoral and postdoctoral scholars a unique opportunity to contribute to a broader discussion with their own research and ideas. We encourage applications from researchers from the humanities and the social sciences with a strong interest in theoretical debates in an interdisciplinary setting.

Please provide us with the following application material

1. a letter of motivation, indicating how you expect to benefit from participating in this Summer School and how you can contribute, in turn, to the discussions (mentioning your specific interest in the topic)
2. a CV of max. two pages
3. an abstract (500 words) of your current research project with some keywords
4. one referee we might contact

What do we offer?
The GSAH will cover your travel expenses as well as accommodation (double room) and meals at the Hotel Bad Muntelier. You will receive an e-reader with preparatory material and have the opportunity to present your research on the Summer School homepage and blog (http://blog.wbkolleg.unibe.ch). Most importantly, you are offered an intellectually stimulat-ing, lively and friendly atmosphere conducive to fruitful exchange with both senior scholars and peers.

Contact
Please apply electronically (single PDF) to Michèle Seehafer who is happy to answer questions regarding the application:
michele.seehafer(at)wbkolleg.unibe.ch. For all further questions please contact michael.toggweiler(at)wbkolleg.unibe.ch.

Programm
Each morning session begins with a lecture given by one of our three keynote speakers, followed by responses and plenary discussions. These sessions prepare the ground for the parallel workshops in the afternoon, which focus on key concepts/problems and core texts that are particularly relevant for the research projects of the participants. Posters visualize the participants’ projects and foster informal exchange throughout the week.