Britain, Canada, and the Arts: Cultural Exchange as Post-war Renewal

Papers are invited for a major international, interdisciplinary conference to be held at Senate House, London. Coinciding with and celebrating the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, this conference will focus on the strong culture of artistic exchange, influence, and dialogue between Canada and Britain, with a particular but not exclusive emphasis on the decades after World War II.

This conference aims to expose and explore the breadth of an exchange of social and cultural ideals, artistic talent, intellectual traditions, and aesthetic formulations. We invite papers from a variety of critical and disciplinary perspectives -- and particularly encourage contributions from scholars and practitioners working in theatre, history, literature, politics, music, film and television, cultural studies, design, and visual art.

Some indicative post-war cultural figures and areas of influence:

• Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett: Canadian tours and compositions

• Glenn Gould as musical interpreter, recording artist, celebrity personality, documentarian

• Developments in staging, acting, repertoire, and theatre-design at the Stratford Festival, Shaw Festival, Old Vic, Chichester Festival Theatre, National Theatre

• Celia Franca, Gweneth Lloyd, and national ballet

• Robertson Davies

• Yousuf Karsh

• Intellectual exchange and influence: Northrop Frye, Harold Innis, Marshall McLuhan, John Kenneth Galbraith

• Henry Moore and the Art Gallery of Ontario

• John Grierson at the National Film Board

• Leonard Brockington and the CBC

• Mazo de la Roche and Lucy Maud Montgomery: influence and adaptations

Other areas of exploration include (but are certainly not limited to):

• Popular culture and popular music

• ‘French Canada' in the British artistic scene

• Cultural policy-making

• Indigeneity and native culture

• More recent and contemporary exchanges in the arts

Proposals (max. 250 words) for papers of 20 minutes can be sent to the organizers, Irene Morra and John Wyver, at canbritconference -at- gmail.com by 1 November 2016.