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Interdisciplinary Arts Symposium to Provide Perspective on Society

By Juan Flores, UC Merced
February 2, 2023

Members of the campus community and general public are invited to take a closer look at how society functions by attending the Interdisciplinary Arts Symposium at UC Merced.

The two-day event is taking place Friday, Feb. 3, and Saturday, Feb. 4, at the Conference Center. Both days will kick off with a light breakfast at 9:30 a.m. in room 205. The event will also be livestreamed.

Artists and scholars from several UC campuses will be on hand to discuss their specialized areas of study, such as feminism, identity, artificial intelligence and more. Each talk will be followed by a question-and-answer forum open to everyone in person and on Zoom.

Friday's speakers include Black feminist writer and performance artist Ra Malika Imhotep; artist and public scholar Caleb Luna; as well as researcher and teacher Natalia Duong. Saturday's edition will include artist and scholar Omar Pimienta; artist-activist and theorist Sahar Sajadieh; and researcher Sunaina Kale.

Organizers said they hope the event will shed light on how much people stand to learn from both study and practice of the arts, which saturate their everyday lives while often being dismissed as ornamental or inconsequential.

"The arts are integral to society, and when we study the arts we gain unique perspectives on society," said David Kaminsky, professor of music and dance in the Global Arts Studies Program. "I am hoping guests will come away from this symposium inspired by the many ways scholars can learn about the world and humanity's place in it via dedicated study of the arts."

This year's symposium is made possible with sponsorship from the Division of Equity, Justice and Inclusive Excellence.

The event is free and open to everyone. No registration is required.

More information about the Interdisciplinary Arts Symposium is available online.