Queer Pharma: Experimentations in Bodies, Substances, Affects

Datum
04. Juni – 06. Juni 2025 

Work­shop orga­nized by Schwules Muse­um Berlin & Freie Uni­ver­sität Berlin

Call for Papers for the work­shop “Queer Phar­ma: Exper­i­men­ta­tions in Bod­ies, Sub­stances, Affects”
June 4–6, 2025
Schwules Muse­um Berlin & Freie Uni­ver­sität Berlin
Co-orga­nized by Han­sjörg Dil­ger and Max Schnepf 

Queer Phar­ma: Exper­i­men­ta­tions in Bod­ies, Sub­stances, Affects

Aca­d­e­m­ic work­shop with a pub­lic keynote by Kane Race (Pro­fes­sor of Gen­der and Cul­tur­al Stud­ies, Uni­ver­si­ty of Syd­ney) & an artis­tic ses­sion led by Tomás Espinosa

Abstract sub­mis­sion: Novem­ber 24, 2024
Noti­fi­ca­tions of accep­tance: Decem­ber 6, 2024
Pre-cir­cu­la­tion of paper drafts (3.000 words): May 4, 2025

Exper­i­men­ta­tions with phar­ma­ceu­ti­cal sub­stances cra­dle queer poten­tial – bod­ies and organ­isms trans­form, rela­tions shift, emo­tions swell or fade into qui­etude. With capac­i­ties to inter­vene in life’s process­es, drugs and med­i­cines are not mere­ly prod­ucts of ‘Big Phar­ma,’ but agents of uncan­ny pos­si­bil­i­ty. How might we imag­ine minor ‘phar­mas’ in ten­sion with or on the mar­gins of the dom­i­nance, epit­o­mized by the cap­i­tal­ized ‘Big’? Tak­ing Queer Phar­ma as a coun­ter­point, this work­shop invites sub­mis­sions that ethno­graph­i­cal­ly engage with uncer­tain­ties and impro­vi­sa­tions in exper­i­ment­ing with bod­ies, sub­stances, and affects – whether through drug use or oth­er phar­ma­ceu­ti­cal prac­tices (Race 2009, 2018). What new mate­r­i­al and affec­tive con­stel­la­tions might emerge if we were to focus on exper­i­men­ta­tion as a queer prac­tice? […]

You can find the full CFP attached and also HERE.