Projects / Programmes
Research of Cultural Formations
January 1, 2009
- December 31, 2012
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.06.00 |
Humanities |
Culturology |
|
| 6.03.00 |
Humanities |
Anthropology |
|
| 6.05.00 |
Humanities |
Linguistics |
|
| 6.09.00 |
Humanities |
Art history |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| H0 |
Humanities |
H0 |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.05 |
Humanities |
Other humanities |
cultural formations, fine art, religion, women's history and culture, cultural politics, epistemology, ancient worlds, gender differences, identity, language - norms and rules, new communication and information technologies, pragmalinguistics, cultural studies, media studies.
Researchers (8)
Organisations (2)
Abstract
The notion of cultural formations discussed herein encompasses a variety of diverse manifestations of human activities, from linguistic expression to artistic creation. The approach taken by the research team is based on the methodology of contemporary historical anthropology, which combines the analytical and hermeneutical techniques applied in the humanities and social sciences, as they were created during the second half of the 20th century on the basis of linguistic, structuralist, semiotic, psychoanalytical and other models. Our investigation, however, does not negate the achievements of the fundamental research disciplines, rather it critically evaluates even the most positivistic and idealistic of these achievements and uses contemporary scientific approaches to upgrade such findings and bring new epistemological and tangible conclusions. Owing to the specialist profile of the research team, the focus of the investigation is primarily an analysis of fine art and cultural formations. Such examination reflects upon all spheres of artistic creation throughout history and illuminates elementary issues from the perspectives of a broad swathe of disciplines of historical anthropology. Study is particularly centred on notion and fate of the image, and its changes in various ideological situations, as well as the status of its creators.
The research into ancient worlds and their cultural formations aspires to constitute and develop an investigation into those aspects of historical anthropology of the ancient world which problematizes the relationships between the cultural dynamics and the mobility of religious systems (cults) on the one side and cultural spaces on the other. It also explores cultural production (knowledge and centres of the arts, the alternative, the peripheral and the subculture), anthropological changes (the transition into ancient globalism - the Hellenistic era), European invention of antiquity and the Balkans (cultural colonialism, ideological narrations) and the modalities of reception of classical antiquity.
Anthropological research of gender develops those aspects which problematize the relations of cultural spaces and gender differences as a key narrative foundation for gender representation.
Contemporary understanding of individual and collective linguistic identities is being influenced by two interrelated tendencies - globalisation and particularization. Changes in the communicational and symbolic aspects of linguistic identity - as a part of cultural identity - have been triggered by the appearance of new media and new communication technologies and unquestionably represent one of the focuses of contemporary understanding of cultural formations. Internet use and internet-related communication have become established practice inside which identities, viewpoints and in particular language are all being constituted.
Media research is based on the fact that technologies and institutions partake in the creation and transformation of cultural formations, while at the same time they create their "own" formations. As technologies and institutions operate in social, cultural, political and technological spheres, research is necessarily pluridisciplinary, and thus at the same time the theoretical starting point is epistemologically complex.
The entry of the national-cultural into the broader cultural-civilizational space represents at one and the same time a challenge and fear: the challenge of confrontation with the foreign, and the fear of loosing one's own. Therefore the research of cultural formations, their diversification and the accessibility of culture attempts to determine in which regards this challenge represents opportunity as well as to what degree the fear is justified. The research also identifies elements of inalienability and spaces of reception as well as proposes interventions.
Significance for science
Proven epistemological grounding of the historical anthropology of ancient worlds and the historical anthropology of gender and grounding of the interdisciplinary relation between historical anthropology and Balkan women. Three-level analysis of theoretical models of interpretation - re-presentation of the internal development of the network of ancient studies, methodology of comparative reading images and related texts, and politics of research and presentation of Antiquity from the position of inscribed ideological narratives: all of these were confirmed and argumented in specific research of case-studies. The research was connected with fieldwork and practice, especially in the context of the academic mobility in the Balkans and EU. Confirmed influence of proposed models of theory and methodology and of the results of research on young researchers' work (doctoral idissertations). Potential meaning of the expected results of applied project for science development in linguistic part of programme lies especially in the discovery of basic scientific rules, the discovery of new scientific knowledge, the extension of methodological approaches, the development of the basic field of research, the development of other basic sciences. Beside the importance that humanistic science and research always have for the development of a democratic society, their existence is crucial for finding alternatives and a way out of the crisis. In this aspect we recognize the most current importance of the research programme. It contributes importantly to the high quality development strategies for the society, to the overall progress and development in Sloveniain the fields of social relations, culture, development of human potential and sustainable development. The interdisciplinary approach in the research of visual culture called historical anthropology of images was established in last decades by Hans Belting, David Freedberg, J.W.T. Mitchell and others. New media make the ontology of images different than it was in the case of traditional art since the Renaissance until the Postmodernism. In the era before the Renaissance, the image had several functions: it served to religion, cult, animism, witchcraft, healing, etc. In the “Era of art” (Belting’s term), its main qualities were aesthetics, art, originality, authorship. Contemporary art can be interpreted only with the consideration of its new functions as they are its changing role in the society, its political, economic and ideological factors, etc.
Significance for the country
The role of the Slovenian humanities in forming a school of thought in historical anthropology and expertise in the interdisciplinary area of historical anthropology of gender are confirmed. European links facilitated access to running debates, best equipped institutions and leading centers of theoretical reflection and academic excellence in the humanities. Expanding of the network enabled more than 20 students to participate in post graduate and post-doc programs in EU. The first Slovenian participation in highest EU programs (Marie Curie EST 2005-2009) was realized as well as the participation in the EU program GEMMA (2007-2010). ISH has been accepted in the Center for Humanities at the University of Utrecht. We realized participation in two projects on reception of Antiquity and historical anthropology of gender, at Freie Universität Berlin and Ohio University, publication ensured in CRR in Oxford (2013). Economic factors of development have, at the beginning of new decade, been also defined with the development of new, especialy informational-communicational technologies. Young school-going generations, the basis of each countries development politics, have the main role in the development of such technologies. At this very moment we do not have a really convincing or definitive theory of how computer networks influence the comunication and users. Taking this into account it is important to investigate, to what extent do the changes, regarding language in new media communication, really threat Slovene national identity which is firmly connected with language identity. The relevance of the research programme for the development of science lies in the achievement of scientific excellence, dealing with research topics, that are new in Slovenia or topics that haven’t been dealt with or haven’t been dealt with in that manner, creation of new research trends and conducting the research within broader international context. Thereby ICK strives to contribute to fostering of humanistic and social science and research in Slovenia and to further assert Slovenian science on international level. Given that the historical anthropology of images is not known in still very traditional writings about visual culture in Slovenia, the research of its sources, its mains streams, its methodology and its possibilities of application shows themselves to be urgent. The most important information are given and the most relevant ways of interpretations are quoted to show the newest epistemological achievement to Slovene scholars, students and general public. Following the main scientific starting points used during this programme, case studies were published in the book Jure Mikuž, Pogledati-gledati, videti-uvideti and in other publications (see COBISS).
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
