Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts

Intimacy/Infrastructure Panel

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

6:00 pm - 8:45 pm

The juxtaposition of “intimacy” and “infrastructure” might seem paradoxical: Infrastructure is, by definition, composed of material and immaterial relations that interchange or express movement. It’s the structures that make society operate (government, education, hospitals, power stations, cables, pipelines, etc.) and it enables, sustains, and/or enhances societal living conditions—until it ruptures. Intimacy, on the other hand, is a term of unbound meaning. It is a synonym for proximity or close relations. Intimate relations imply affect, or a looking inward, often embodied, private, and psychological. And yet, these two rubrics have been together animating conversations around relational life as of late, especially in the work of a number of artists.

Diving into both concepts through the participatory role of language, affect, and infrastructural studies, the panel brings together notable scholars and poets Juliana Spahr (Mills at Northeastern University), Ara Wilson (Duke University), Kai Bosworth (Virginia Commonwealth University) and Roberto Tejada (University of Houston) with moderation by Jennifer Teets (Mitchell Center Visiting Artist and Curator) and Michael D. Snediker (University of Houston) acting as respondent.

Intimacy/Infrastructure is presented in conjunction with Intimate confession is a project, a group exhibition currently on view at Blaffer Art Museum that considers transmission, intergenerational life, and cultural inheritance through the prism of intimacy and infrastructure. It is a collaboration between multiple University of Houston academic programs and centers: the Mitchell Center, Blaffer Art Museum, Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program and the Department of English.

Date:

Wednesday, February 28, 2024 (6:00pm-8:45pm)

6:00pm reception, Blaffer Art Museum Extended Open Hours to 6:30pm

7:00pm-8:45 pm Panel Discussion followed by Q+A

Location + Parking:

The reception is at Blaffer Art Museum. Panel is located next door in Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture Auditorium (ARCH 150), Parking validation for Elgin Street Garage will be validated at the museum. Format: Panel, “Intimacy/Infrastructure,” in conjunction with the Blaffer Art Museum exhibition, Intimate confession is a project In collaboration with the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts, Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies Program, and the Department of English at the University of Houston.