Mediating the Real was a conference held at the University of Otago in August 2016. This conference addressed what the ‘Real’ might mean in contemporary media studies. Moving beyond common-sense understandings of ‘realness’ as an objective ‘Truth’, Mediating the Real specifically applied psychoanalytic and Lacanian understandings of the Real to mediated cultures. It featured three keynote speakers, Dr Misha Kavka (The University of Auckland), Agon Hamza (Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts) and Dr Allen Meek (Massey University).
Here, we present three provocations written by conference delegates. We encourage you to engage with, feedback and discuss their responses to the theme using the comments section.
Wandering and Wondering in Wonderland
Sean Coyle produces a media essay on visual representation of ‘true’ crime and homophobia.
The Sun’s Eclipse and Fantasy of the Eye: Feminist Vision in Virginia Woolf’s The Sun and the Fish
Eileen Yu presents a Lacanian reading of a short essay, ‘The Sun and the Fish’ by Virginia Woolf.
Cat Hope and Adam Trainer look at how Western art music is archived in terms of authenticity and immediacy through a case study of the Western Australian New Music Archive.