Islands: The 40th Annual SAHANZ Conference, Brisbane, Australia
From spaces of isolation and independence, to archipelagos of connection and knowledge exchange, islands occupy a complex and evocative place in our terrestrial and imaginary worlds. At once utopian and dystopian—places of refuge and exile, extravagance and exploitation, paradises and prisons—islands contain contradictions and contested spatial histories. They provide distance from which to look back and reflect on one’s place in the world and the journeys that have brought us there. At the same time, they connote severance from the world as places of ostracization: petri dishes of extremism, claustrophobia, paranoia and self-isolation. More than physical spaces of geographic separation, islands also suggest those contrasts and positions that play out across political, social and cultural spheres. In architecture, such differences produce islands of practice—siloes of discourse and debate—historically visible in certain schools of practice and the work of independent practitioners and scholars. Islands are also shaped by architectural practices, from indigenous and colonial to modern and contemporary, from vernacular and regional to global and digital. Islands, therefore, emerge as both sites and subjects of critical historical research, and a lens or position through which to examine the past.
On the occasion of the 40th Annual SAHANZ Conference, the theme of islands also encourages delegates to challenge and critique the often-siloed nature of architectural history itself, and how the discipline might speak to a wider audience. Topics may include, but are not limited to:
- The antipodean island-ness of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand: Interrogations of physical and cultural distance, centre-periphery histories
- Historical studies of the island architecture and building cultures of Oceania—Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia—as well as the greater Asia-Pacific region
- Islands of containment: Histories of immigration islands and detention facilities, island quarantine and isolation. COVID bubbles, and the biodomes of self-sustaining environments. The Eden Project, and Buckminster Fuller’s Dome over Manhattan
- Islands and inclusion and exclusion: Histories of defensive islands and island fortresses
- Political islands: Architectures of sovereignty and independence, colonisation and control. Strategic islands for military outposts and regional interference. Excised islands. Spaces of exile, self-isolation, and the architecture of Brexit
- Islands of practice: Histories of regional schools and vernacular architectures, as well as solo and independent practitioners. Architecture and individualism, the lone auteur
- Girt by sea: Islands and water, riparian histories. Climate change and island heritage. The architecture and urbanism of floating markets, villages in Southeast Asia
- Terrestrial islands: sites and buildings for refuge, commune and retreat
- Island cities: Histories of urban islands. Manhattan. Venice (and Ruskin). Singapore. Dubai’s artificial islands. The city within the city – toward the archipelago
- Fictional islands and island imaginaries: Atlantis, Lilliput, Neverland, and Azkaban
- Islands and indulgence: Sanctuaries and retreats, Coney Island, and Japan’s ‘Art Islands’
- Paradise Island: Studies of island resort architecture. The Gold Coast’s canal islands (Chevron, Hope, Paradise); Bali and the work of Peter Muller. The island resorts of Christine Vadasz
- Treasure Island: Developers and their islands (Keith Williams at Hamilton and Daydream Islands; Alan Bond and Cockatoo Island; Christopher Skase and the island of Majorca)
- Desert island: Spaces of separation, solitude and remoteness
Key Dates
Deadline for Revised Proposals (750 words): 27 September 2024
Conference Dates: Mon 2 December – Wed 4 December 2024
Conference Registration
Conference registration is now available here.
Early-bird rates are available for full and student registrations until 30 September. Registrations include an opening night cocktail event on Monday, 2 December to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Society and the annual conference.
Please note that all paper authors, including co-authors, must register for the conference, and be current members of SAHANZ. To join or renew your membership, please visit the SAHANZ website.
Conference Information and Updates
Venues:
The conference will be held across the Brisbane CBD campuses of UQ and QUT. UQ’s city venue is located at 308 Queen St. QUT’s city campus is at Gardens Point.
Accommodation:
There are a wide range of accommodation options across the Brisbane CBD, Southbank and surrounding suburbs that are within walking distance to the conference venues, and/or are well connected to the CBD by public transport.
Optional conference activities:
We are currently exploring a small number of optional tours and activities to complement the main conference. Details are still to be resolved, but may include activities on Sunday, 1 December, and a conference dinner on the evening of 4 December. More information to come.
Convenors
Dr. Ashley Paine (UQ) and Dr. Kirsty Volz (QUT)