{"id":25002,"date":"2026-07-21T08:44:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T12:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artsci.utk.edu\/denbocenter\/?page_id=25002"},"modified":"2026-08-31T13:03:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T17:03:00","slug":"conference","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/artsci.utk.edu\/denbocenter\/public-events\/conference\/","title":{"rendered":"“Speculative Souths”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A Denbo Center Conference<\/p>\n\n\n

“Speculative Souths”<\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSpeculative Souths\u201d is an interdisciplinary symposium that will redirect past regionalist studies of the US South with a transformative focus on \u201cspeculative representation,\u201d a way of creatively reimagining identity and place as sites of possibility\u2014building from the past but attuned to the developments of the present and needs of the future<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Call for Proposals closes November 2, 2026.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The US South has long been a space upon which others project fantasies of national and regional identity, heroic mythologies of resistance, or nostalgic ideas of \u201cAmerican\u201d identity. Rarely has it been considered a space from which progressive and future-oriented narratives about place and identity emerge and develop. By contrast, the interdisciplinary symposium \u201cSpeculative Souths\u201d will consider the US South as a generative, even virtual, space of imagination, entanglement, and possibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The symposium will build from the traditions of speculative thought embodied in science fiction and fantasy artforms in order to reexamine place and identities associated with the US South. Papers will play with \u201cspeculation\u201d as a creative imaginary from a variety of scholarly perspectives\u2014from economic speculation to the virtuality of digital life to new global economic and cultural networks\u2014to rethink regional studies and the legacies of history within specific localities. Participants will contribute to an emerging international conversation about the importance of redefining \u201cauthentic\u201d identity and place in a new media economy that often profits from regional stereotypes.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three-day symposium will take place at the DCHA in June 2027 and showcase 30-40 speakers, including invited plenaries and panel participants. There will be an open call for participants in Fall 2026, invited plenary speakers, and events with established DCHA community partners (for example, UT Galleries, the Knoxville Museum of Art , the East Tennessee Historical Society, and Central Cinema). Speakers will be nationally recognized scholars in the areas of US southern cultures and arts whose work is at the forefront of speculative studies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Call for Proposals<\/div><\/h2>
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The Denbo Center for Humanities & the Arts (DCHA) at the University of Tennessee seeks submissions for its inaugural conference, \u201cSpeculative Souths,\u201d<\/strong> which will take place June 10-12, 2027<\/strong> in Knoxville, TN.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSpeculative Souths\u201d is a symposium that will redirect past regionalist studies of the US South with a transformative focus on \u201cspeculative representation,\u201d a way of creatively reimagining identity and place as sites of possibility\u2014building from the past but attuned to the developments of the present and needs of the future. The US South has long been a space upon which others project fantasies of national and regional identity, heroic mythologies of resistance, or nostalgic ideas of \u201cAmerican\u201d identity. Rarely has it been considered a space from which progressive and future-oriented narratives about place and identity emerge and develop. By contrast, the interdisciplinary symposium \u201cSpeculative Souths\u201d will consider the US South as a generative space of imagination and possibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The symposium will build from the traditions of speculative thought embodied in science fiction and fantasy artforms in order to reexamine place and identities associated with the US South. Beginning with a keynote from Kiese Laymon, the conference will feature roundtable discussions, panel presentations, and visual arts exhibitions that play with \u201cspeculation\u201d as a creative imaginary from a variety of perspectives\u2014from literary and cultural representation to the virtuality of digital life to local histories to new global economic and cultural networks\u2014in order to rethink regional studies and the legacies of history within specific localities. Participants will contribute to an emerging international conversation about the importance of redefining \u201cauthentic\u201d identity and place in a new media economy that often profits from regional stereotypes. Given the DCHA\u2019s focus on interdisciplinary, humanities-based research, scholars from a wide range of disciplinary backgrounds and institutional affiliations are welcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proposals can take three forms:<\/p>\n\n\n\n