Celebrations in 2024 of the 150th anniversaries of Arnold Schönberg, Karl Kraus and Hugo von Hofmannsthal showcased many modes of modernism. Viennese modernism is frequently characterised as an avantgarde movement with an emphasis on innovation and artistic expression that fervently broke with traditional aesthetics. Conversely, artistic movements from the mid- to late 1920s such as 'Neue Sachlichkeit' have been framed as a moving away from avantgarde movements and returning to more conventional or realist modes. More recently, however, Gustav Frank and Stefan Scherer have developed the concept of a synthetic modernism for the period from 1925 to the mid-1950s, demonstrating that literary texts of the period combine modernist techniques with a move towards, or back to, plot-driven storytelling whilst Svetlana Boym exemplifies her notion of ‘off-brand’ modernism, or ‘the off-modern’ with recourse to contemporary culture, thereby collapsing the modern/postmodern paradigm.
This conference will examine how the concepts of a ‘synthetic modernism’ and the ‘off-modern’ can fruitfully be applied to ‘classical’ modernisms and beyond: the fin de siècle and beyond saw an expansion of intermediality and cross-pollination in the fields of music, literature, fine art, arts and crafts, dance, fashion, architecture, journalism and education, thereby destabilising concepts of ‘high’ and ‘low’ art.
All are welcome to attend this 2-day conference which will be held in person at the University of London Senate House. Attendance is free, however, advance online registration is required.
More info & full programme can be found here.
