Theories and Practices of Intermediality Today

About the event

In this first joint workshop of the research partnerships in intermedial studies between the University of Edinburgh and Meiji University (Tokyo, Japan), Linnaeus University (Sweden) and Aix-Marseille University (France), with guests from IULM Milano (Italy), we wish to explore exciting new developments in the field of Intermediality studies, both in terms of theories and practices.

What are the most prominent ways of approaching intermediality and multimodality today, and how can these trends, critical traditions and their respective concepts be put into dialogue, combined or transformed in artistic practice? How can ideas and methods used in one of these analytical or artistic modes facilitate creative innovation in another? How can critical approaches conventionally applied to one medium or art form help us to better understand another? More generally, how can bringing into contact different artistic traditions ranging from classic to more contemporary media spur creativity and the construction of new kinds of aesthetic experience and semiotic interpretations? How do specific media and art forms interact in and between different cultures and historical eras, in the context of pressing lines of enquiry such as eco-criticism, gender studies, and postcolonialism and decolonization studies?

Exchanges in this workshop will be greatly enriched by crossed cultural and academic perspectives between our respective institutions. We seek to initiate a discussion between established scholars of intermediality, early-career colleagues and research students that will help us forge new creative and critical positions in this fast-developing field of study — a field which has prompted some of the most original concepts and critical theories since the beginning of the 21st century.

You can view the full programme for the two-day workshop on the Intermediality blog.

View the programme

How to attend

This event is open to all and free to attend. No registration is required.

Are you interested in studying Intermediality?

As the first UNESCO World City of Literature, home of the Edinburgh International Festival and a major cultural hub, Edinburgh is the ideal place for the study of intermediality. Our one-year taught masters programme draws on world-class teaching and research expertise across media, from literature to film, music, painting, photography and visual culture more widely. 

The programme will make you conversant with intermedial theory and equip you with the critical tools and historical background for understanding and analysing a wide range of intermedial phenomena across different periods and cultures. It can also be completed part-time over two years.

Find out more about studying with us