Weird Fictions Research Group invites you to a talk by
Joanna Kaniewska
(University of Warsaw)

Cyborgs, Transhumans, and Posthumans in the Popular Music of 2010s

This event is a part of the Weird Music series organized by the Weird Fictions Research Group members and their invited guests.

Thursday, December 16, 2021
at 5:30 p.m.

You can get 2 OZN points for participating in this event.
Check how to collect OZN points online here.

Where?

This is an online event. To attend, click the button below or enter https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87529607265 into your browser, and join the meeting.

JOIN ZOOM MEETING

FACEBOOK EVENT

What?

Popular music is often dismissed as shallow or merely entertaining. However, it often resonates with the cultural and political anxieties of the world around it. It is no surprise, then, that many musicians create art rooted in the biggest concern of today: the future of humankind in the increasingly unstable world.

In this mini-lecture, I would like to explore the artistic practices of three female pop stars of the 2010s who draw inspiration from futuristic and weird imagery: Björk, Janelle Monáe, and Grimes. In their music, they use science fiction themes and create the figures of cyborgs, trans-humans, post-humans to express their response to the contemporary world. These concepts have also been the subjects of several academic discourses from different fields, including feminist and environmental studies. Coincidence? I think NOT! Let’s explore these connections together and see what they say about today’s visions of the future.

Who?

Joanna (Asia) Kaniewska is a subtitler by day and an independent researcher by night. She graduated from University of Warsaw with MA in Japanese Studies and American Studies and is currently working towards enrolling in the Doctoral School of Humanities. She’s been a part of Weird Fictions Research Group since its very beginnings in 2018. Her academic interests include popular music, Japanese and American popular culture, science fiction, and weird studies. Sometimes, she writes about them on her blog “dziewiętnaście czwartych” (“nineteen fourths”) or talks about them in her radio show “dancing in dystopia.”

News

Office hours of Dr. Gajda-Łaszewska during the exam session

January 28, 2025

Office hours during the exam session: Thursday, 30 January 2025, 12:30-14:00; Friday, 07 February 2025, 10:30-12:00. Online office hours remain the same.  No office hours in the week of 10-15 February 2025.

News

Dołącz do Akademii Młodych Polskich Innowatorów i wygraj płatny staż!

January 23, 2025

Chcesz wziąć udział w stażu w amerykańskiej firmie? Masz 18–26 lat? Interesujesz się przedsiębiorczością, mediami lub sprawami publicznymi? Chcesz zdobyć wiedzę i doświadczenie od ekspertów z USA i Polski, a także pracować nad innowacyjnym projektem, który odpowie na aktualne wyzwania gospodarcze i społeczne dla Polski? Jesteś z Warszawy lub jesteś gotowy/a dojeżdżać do stolicy na warsztaty i staż? Jeżeli na powyższe pytania odpowiedź brzmi TAK!, to dołącz do programu „Pathfinders of Tomorrow: Akademia Młodych Polskich Innowatorów”, który łączy młodych liderów z praktykami, by wspólnie tworzyć nowatorskie rozwiązania.

Year 2024/2025

January 23: „I’m weird. I’m a weirdo.” The Allure of Unhinged Teen Television Drama Series Riverdale (2017-2023)

January 20, 2025

Join us for the second Weird TV lecture in 2025! Teen TV programming by The CW Television Network in the last 20 years has been a wildly successful blend of soap opera, generational saga, crime, the paranormal, and erotica. This paper argues that the drama series Riverdale (2017-2023) is the last show of this kind due to its week-to-week broadcasting format, as well as its convoluted, absurd, weird, and addictive storytelling. In the span of 6 years and 7 seasons, Riverdale explored various themes and topics: serial killers, occultism, time traveling, parallel universes, superpowers, folk tales, witchcraft, and many, many more. On a purely visual level, the show does take its inspiration from the grand tradition of horror/thriller genre storytelling, BUT is it camp, pastiche, or pure kitsch? This paper attempts to situate Riverdale within a broader context of both cult cinema/TV, and teen film studies. Finally, Riverdale’s weirdness and ridiculousness would be nothing without the show’s internet discourse, fandom, and critical reception, which are part of this analysis.

Year 2024/2025

January 21: “Women Against the Law” – Screening and Discussion of Estado de Proibição!

January 20, 2025

Join us for our first 2025 event, “Women Against the Law” – Screening and discussion of Estado de Proibição!” The screening and discussion will be conducted by doctoral student Thany Sacnhes. Estado de Proibição shares the stories of women who break the law to care for their children and of those who have lost their children to state violence connected to drug prohibition. The film, created by Plataforma Brasileira de Política de Drogas in collaboration with Panamá Filmes and supported by the Open Society Foundations, was filmed in São Paulo, Recife, and Rio de Janeiro. It aims to raise public awareness of the consequences of drug prohibition, which affect both drug users and non-users. The documentary highlights the intersections between the social and therapeutic use of drugs and examines how prohibitionist policies lead to the criminalization of communities and increased police violence.

American Studies Colloquium Series

January 16: Painting in Total Darkness: Blindness as the Medium for Vision

January 16, 2025

We are delighted to invite you to the last lecture of the American Studies Colloquium Series in the 2024/2025 Fall semester! Touching on various processes, materials, histories, and methodologies of making, Stephen Proski’s lecture will show how blindness can function as a unique lens of perception, particularly as it relates to the expanded field of painting.