CFP: Semiotics of Selfies Special issue of Punctum. International Journal of Semiotics

Call for papers
Semiotics of Selfies
Special issue of Punctum. International Journal of Semiotics

Editor: Gregory Paschalidis

In Camera Lucida Roland Barthes suggests that the “age of Photography corresponds precisely to the explosion of the private into the public, or rather into the creation of a new social value, which is the publicity of the private: the private is consumed as such publicly”. What he had in mind was the
aggressive invasion of the privacy of celebrities by press photographers. The advent of digital technology took the “age of Photography” to new heights, while simultaneously fostering the “explosion of the private into the public” to an unprecedented scale. This time, however, the paparazzi were virtually everyone. In the last decade selfies have become perhaps the most widespread genre of the newly born digital culture. At the same time, it is certainly the most notorious, being regularly associated with rampant narcissism and addictive self-promotion. Having unmistakable continuities with the timehonoured tradition of the self-portrait, both in painting and in photography, selfies became an arena where new visual vocabularies and strategies of self-representation have developed, bringing a new urgency to Peirce’s idea of “the self as a sign”.

This special issue of Punctum aims to contribute to the investigation and understanding of the selfies as a semiotic practice by encouraging the examination of its cultural dynamics in all its diverse forms and contexts, from its vernacular versions in social networks and celebrity webpages, to the ever expanding range of its appropriations by marketing and branding, artists and educators, social and political activists.

Prospective authors should submit an abstract of approximately 300 words by mail to Gregory
Paschalidis (paschagr@jour.auth.gr) including their affiliation and contact information. Acceptance of the abstract does not guarantee publication, given that all research articles will be put through the journal’s peer review process.

Timeline
Deadline for abstracts: June 20, 2018
Notification of acceptance of the abstract: June 30, 2018
Deadline for submission of full papers: September 15, 2018
Reviewers’ report: November 1, 2018
Final revised papers due: December 1, 2018
Publication: Volume 4, Number 2 (December 2018)

PUNCTUM. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SEMIOTICS
Punctum (www.punctum.gr ) is a blind peer-reviewed, on-line journal dedicated to the semiotic study of contemporary cultural texts, practices and processes, published under the auspices of the Hellenic Semiotic Society. Aspiring to provide a venue for the advancement of international semiotic scholarship, the journal is published twice a year (July & December) in English, although submissions in French and German will be accepted as well. Punctum’s Editorial Board reflects both its international scope and the diversity of contemporary semiotic research and theory. Punctum invites submissions (original papers, review articles, book reviews) across this wide range of semiotic fields and methodologies on an ongoing basis, and regularly puts out calls for special issues with guest editors.