CFP: 1st History of Games International Conference

The History of Games International Conference 1st edition: 
Working With, Building, and Telling History
Montreal, Canada. June 21st – 23rd 2013

Organizers: Espen Aarseth (IT University of Copenhagen), Raiford Guins (Stony Brook University), Henry Lowood (Stanford University), Carl Therrien (Université de Montréal) 

In spite of the strong wake of game studies in the last decade, the history of video and computer games is still in its infancy in the academic world. Some significant contributions have been made and continue to emerge. In order to make the most out of these contributions and to reflect on the methodological issues they raise, we have decided to create the first international conference on the history of games. This will be the occasion to bring together academics, curators and museum exhibitors, introduce the general public and students to the history of the medium, and sensitize partners from the game industry to their role in terms of cultural heritage and preservation.

We invite proposals on the history of games at large, as long as it is tied with the electro-mechanical / digital development of the phenomenon. Special attention should be given to the methodological issues raised by your historical research. The conference seeks original submissions from researchers interested in diverse areas of historical study including, but not limited to: social history, military history, cultural history, memory studies, sensory history, history of technology, history of play and games, history of computing, art history, material culture, historical archaeology, as well as historical preservation, library and information science, and museum studies.

The conference will explore three main areas of historical research. We encourage contributors to work within one of the proposed tracks. Each track will be led by a keynote speaker to kick-off the discussions and debates:

• Building History: historiography, methods, issues, and frameworks at play in building the history of games.  Keynote speaker: Henry Lowood

• Working with History: the connections among museum and library studies, curation, preservation, and the development of historical research on games. Keynote speaker: Erkki Huhtamo

• Telling Histories: the possibilities for historical narratives about games, whether expressed in scholarly writing, exhibitions, journalism, public projects, historical games or other means. Keynote speaker: Stephen Kline

Conference highlights

• Pioneer keynote speakers
• Roundtables with selected journalists, museum curators and exhibitors, and scholars working on history
• Selected papers will be published in special issues of Game Studies and Kinephanos, two peer-reviewed web journals
• Location : downtown Montreal, close to the central bus and subway stations 
• Closing event: Symphonic video game music concert at the new Maison Symphonique de Montréal
  
• Festival season: the conference is held between two of the most popular international festivals in Montreal: Francofolies, and the International Jazz Festival
  
• Special rates on select hotels for participants

Submissions
  Proposals should be at least 1000 words in length (plus references) and include a title, author’s name, affiliation and short C.V., and provide a clear synopsis for a 20-minute conference length paper.

Deadline for proposals: December 15th 2012.

Please send proposals to Laine Nooney (laine.nooney@gmail.com).