Networked with the academic elite
The National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCRs) are successful because the researchers work together in networks. For example, in the NCCR "Iconic Criticism – Power and Importance of Images" where networking has a permanent place on the agenda: the weekely Image Colloquium brings collaborators regularly together.
Are we all truly aware of what an image means? Images have become a means of communication as never before in the history of civilization. Instant communication at the speed of light, made possible by mobile phones, is a dominant feature of our society. Similar to music, images open up a world that cannot be expressed by words. They convey meaning through other means and directly illustrate complex issues. The vision of the art historian and philosopher, Gottfried Boehm who teaches in Basel, is to "acquire and make use of the knowledge that has been stored in images". He started a new project in 2005 on the subject: the NCCR "Iconic criticism ". At least a dozen disciplines are involved in Switzerland’s first NCCR devoted to the humanities: from art history to literature and theatre studies, from philosophy and sociology to computer processing and biology.
The many diverse disciplines grouped in the NCCR "Iconic Criticism" – also known as eikones – call for an informal type of communication and collaboration. As a result, the 30 or so people involved, including 20 doctoral and postdoc students as well as ten professors, set up the means for the network to come together once a week, in the form of the Image Colloquium. The purpose of this weekly meeting is to share information, assist on content-related matters and allow an exchange of opinions between professors and undergraduates, doctoral candidates and postdocs.
The concept of rhythm is central to Maren Butte's work. This art historian and theatre specialist is studying the "depiction of emotions", using images to evoke movement in bodies, whether on the stage in 19th century melodramas, through musical accompaniment or in a modern feature film. Her exploration of the relationship of image, sound and emotion in various media and practices of the past 200 years regularly reveals links to other approaches represented in the network of NCCR "Iconic Criticism".
"If other people endorse a subject that is also relevant to the research of others, you are given all the support imaginable in carrying out your work," says Maren Butte. The colloquium is a real think tank for young academics who have four years to research their subjects full-time. The weekly discussions have initiated many conferences and symposia such as "Image, Voice II: Figures of the Audiovisual" organised by the Time in the Image module. These events have contributed to the excellent reputation that NCCR "Iconic Criticism" has established in the last four years.
Making use of their own contatcs, the involved professors regularly succeed in invitingrenowned speakers and guests from all over the worldto Basel. "The opportunity to meet distinguished academics in Basel alone makes it a pleasure to carry out research in the NCCR "Iconic Criticism"," says Maren Butte. Although she has to work at establishing contacts herself, the close-knit NCCR network is a great help to Maren Butte. Like other doctoral and postdoc students, she has been able to establish connections in Berlin, Amsterdam and New York. International, interdisciplinary research partnerships develop from these types of links.