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Undergraduate Information Sessions

For all undergraduate students working in the Social Sciences, Humanities, and Fine Arts at the University of Alberta, or neighbouring institutions: there will be two information sessions on the upcoming conference, Tomorrow’s Ideas, Now held on the U of A campus.

The first – Thursday, March 17th @ 12:30 to 1:30 in the Fishbowl, 2nd floor of the Humanities Centre. Free pizza and pop will be provided and we will be there to give you the rundown of the conference happenings, and to answer any and all questions that you may have about the conference.

The second – Wednesday, April 6th @ 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., in the Fishbowl, 2nd floor of the Humanities Centre. We will be providing coffee and muffins and will be able to answer any questions that you might have about your application, the conference, etc.

We welcome all undergrads to come out and get the information that they need for their application. We want to see your bright, shining faces!

Email: gillian.edwards@ualberta.ca for more information.

H Box

Think home movie theatres are great? Wait for H Box. This is a portable movie screening room of sorts that travels from museum to museum to festival with films from various artists being showcased in its small quarters.

This is one of the new ways that art and technology are converging into new media types. The H Box has already visited the Centre Pompidou, the Tate Modern, the Yokohama Triennale and the Sao Paulo Biennale, showing 21 video works total by various artists.

Created by the Hermes Foundation, this box can be disassembled and reassembled at its venue, with whatever work is being shown at that time and place. The Box itself is a piece of art – a cross between a spaceship and a mobile home.

One of the KIAS research questions in the Culture, Media, Technology theme states the following: How are the arts making use of new technologies to develop innovative and novel artistic forms and expressions?

Creations like the H Box make you reconsider traditional film viewing methods – do you think that this is the way of the future or is this a flash-in-the-pan idea? Does the Box detract from the art being presented inside or does it bring attention that the film might not have received otherwise?

http://www.fondationdentreprisehermes.org/eng-GB/projet/130/H-BOX.htm

Photo credit: EgoDesign.ca, Andres Lejona

Egypt and Libya

The protests and movements sweeping across the Middle East are bringing the issue of borders and citizenship to the forefront of political minds everywhere. Particularly in Libya, where Gaddafi’s rule is threatening the lives of so many, large groups of people are attempting to leave the country before violence and chaos spreads further.

British PM David Cameron recently pledged to assist the refugees in getting out of Libya – many of which are Egyptian migrant workers who are trying to return home. A recent article from The Telegraph (Mar 2/11) stated the following:

“Conditions at the border are said to be worsening, with guards unable to stem the tide of those seeking to flee Libya as it descends into civil war.

Many have been caught up in crushes, as they attempt to cross, and food and water are becoming scarce.

Aid workers have scrambled to set up a transit camp with enough tents to house around 10,000 poor. Water and sanitation are said to be poor.”

One of the research themes that KIAS is focusing on this research cycle is that of Place, Belonging, and Otherness. How do you think the political changes in the Middle East are affecting the policies of borders – and how will this affect the feeling of belonging to the citizens of these countries?

Do you think that these protests and government overhauls will alter the way borders and citizenship are viewed in the Middle East?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/egypt/8357367/Libya-Britain-to-begin-airlift-to-rescue-refuges-at-Tunisian-border.html