Twenty-First International Conference on the Arts in Society

  • Modeling Life Systems: Art, Algorithms, Ecologies
  • 10-12 June 2026
  • Department of Theatre Studies, School of Philosophy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece + Online

2026 Themes and Special Focus

The Twenty-First International Conference on the Arts in Society offers an interdisciplinary forum for discussion of the role of the arts in society. It is a place for critical engagement, examination, and experimentation, developing ideas that connect the arts to their contexts in the world – on stage, in studios and theaters, in classrooms, in museums and galleries, on the streets and in communities. We seek to build an epistemic community where we can make linkages across disciplinary, geographic, and cultural boundaries. As a Research Network, we are defined by our scope and concerns and motivated to build strategies for action framed by our shared themes and tensions.

The Twenty-First International Conference on the Arts in Society features research addressing the following annual themes and special focus.

  • 2026 Special Focus—Modeling Life Systems: Art, Algorithms, Ecologies
  • Theme 1: Pedagogies of the Arts
  • Theme 2: Arts Histories and Theories
  • Theme 3: New Media, Technology, and the Arts
  • Theme 4: The Arts in Social, Political, and Community Life

Plenary Speakers

The Twenty-First International Conference on the Arts in Society will feature plenary sessions by some of the world’s leading thinkers and innovators in the field.

Georgia Kotrestsos

Georgia Kotrestsos

Visual Artist, Researcher, and Founder, THE ΤΕΛΟΣ SOCIETY, Greece

Jo Raphael

Jo Raphael

Associate Professor, Deakin University, Australia

(Online Plenary Session)

James Bridle

James Bridle

Writer, Artist, and Technologist, Greece

Research Network Chairs

Daniel Tucker

Daniel Tucker

Research Network Chair

(English)

Dr. Pilar Irala-Hortal

Dr. Pilar Irala-Hortal

Full Professor, Universidad San Jorge, Zaragoza, Spain

(Spanish)

Local Conference Chair

Dr. Clio Fanouraki

Dr. Clio Fanouraki

Associate Professor, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Local Conference Committee

  • Achilleas Chaldaeakes, Professor, Department of Music Studies, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and; Member of the NKUA Administration Council National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
  • Dimitrios Drosos, Professor, Dean, School of Philophy, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece
  • George Pefanis, Professor, Head of the Department of Theatre Studies, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Scientific Committee

  • Alexia Altouva, Asssistant Professor, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Lily Alexiadou, Laboratory Teaching Staff, Department of Theatre Studies
  • Michaela Antoniou, Laboratory Teaching Staff, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Smaragda Chrysostomou, Professor, Department of Music Studies, NKUA
  • Kaiti Diamantakou, Professor, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Titika Dimitroulia, Professor, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Maria Konomi, Assistant Professor, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Marios Koukounaras-Liagkis, Professor, Department of Theology, NKUA
  • Ilia Lakidou, Laboratory Teaching Staff, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA
  • Vassilis Zakopoulos, Assistant Professor, Department of Theatre Studies, NKUA

Conference Partner

Media Package

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Conference Hashtag: #ICAIS26

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