CFP: Under the Surface: Visibility and Politics deadline for submissions: December 15, 2025 full name / name of organization: The 17th Annual Research, Art, Writing (RAW) Conference contact email: rawconference@utdallas.edu 

The 17th Annual Research, Art, Writing Conference
February 21st, 2026, Saturday, University of Texas at DallasCall For Papers: RAW 2026
Theme: Under the Surface: Visibility and Politics “On my way to discovering the solution of the dream all kinds of things were revealed which I was unwilling to admit even to myself.” - Sigmund Freud, The Interpretation of Dreams  Sigmund Freud famously understood our unconscious to be the realm that holds our innermost thoughts and desires, including impulses which we would, on a conscious level, prefer to deny or ignore. The unconscious, according to Freud, can only be accessed by interpreting our dreams and delving below the so-called surface of our conscious mind to find our true desires. For Freud and the psychoanalytic thinkers who have followed him, the act of interpretation opens pathways to new meanings, new understandings, and new ways of being. More recently, however, the very notion of depth beneath the surface has sparked debates in academic disciplines beyond psychoanalysis: is the surface a site of partial truth that requires interpretation, or is it a stage of inspiration and imagination that connects us to new worlds and across fields?The 2026 RAW Conference seeks to explore the tension between surface and depth and invites scholars to consider what the surface reveals and what remains hidden beneath it. Since this is an interdisciplinary conference, the term “surface” can have multiple meanings in relation to different disciplines. For example, it could refer to literal surfaces or textures, it could mean our conscious understandings, or it could refer to those elements that are more obviously present in a text. Do our texts and objects of study hold their meanings on the surface, or do they, as Todd McGowan claims of cinema, represent our collective dreams, prompting deeper interpretations? In response to a social and political context that seeks to suspend critical thought, why is it crucial for humans to continue to investigate both what is visible and what is kept invisible? When we focus on certain theories of depth, do we ignore material and industrial histories, which are equally important? What agents dictate what is to be seen and what is hidden, and how do the humanities interact with or respond to these acts of exposure and censorship?We welcome submissions from all disciplines and strongly encourage interdisciplinary approaches to the surface and what lies beneath it, such as: cultural representation; space and affect; mobility and borders; bodies and concepts; patterns and textures; linguistic and visual analysis; nonhuman agency; (de)materialization; and postcolonial and transnational thinking. We encourage both traditional research papers and multimedia or performance-based pieces that explore the interactions of depth, discourse, and politics. All conference papers and creative projects will be allotted 15-18 minutes for presentation.Specific topics may include (but are in no way limited to):

• Interpretive readings of literature, art, and media
• Psychoanalytic approaches to media analysis and criticism
• Investigations into underrepresented or intentionally obscured histories, cultures, and populations
• Debates regarding levels of interpretation
• Theories of cultural memory, trauma, and testimonies that bring traumatic memories to the surface
• Artistic explorations of surfaces and materials
• Perspectives in ecocriticism re: Earth’s many surfaces and what lies beneath, or regarding the invisibility of non-human subjects
• Ruminations on unseen systems and labor in interactive media or communities (video games, performance art, fandoms, etc.)

Please submit an abstract (250-300 words) and a short bio (max. 100 words) here: https://forms.gle/2CEnWSH4NkF2cpcv9  no later than Friday, December 5th, 2025, 11:59 pm. If you intend to present a creative project, please include relevant documentation, such as still images, videos, excerpts, and artist statements.Presenters at the RAW 2026 conference are eligible to submit their papers or creative work for the following awards: 

• The Sherry Clarkson Prize for the best scholarly paper.
• The Bass School Award for the best creative presentation. 

 Acceptance notices go out in mid-December. Presenters must register for the conference. Registration fees are $30 - $40. Please contact RAWconference@utdallas.edu with any questions.