Project description
A close look at artists protesting racial segregation
To protest an issue, artists and musicians often stage cultural boycotts – from the Palestinian-led BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) movement to the #BlackLivesMatter, and fossil fuel divestment campaigns. The confrontational nature of these movements has raised the question of how cultural exchange and political activism interact. The EU-funded Beyond Boycott project will investigate the issue from a historical perspective. The focus will be on the global cultural boycott of apartheid in South Africa between 1954 and 1991. The project will target the hidden histories of Western art music performers who challenged sanctions to perform in the country. It will map the extent of boycott breaking and investigate their contribution to a racial classification system.
Objective
"This project proposes to investigate the relationship between Western art music, cultural boycott, and the making of race in apartheid South Africa. In recent years people around the world have been encouraged to participate in political activism by the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, #RhodesMustFall, and numerous fossil fuel divestment campaigns. Artists and musicians, too, have contributed to these movements both as activists and through their work. But in a world where the arts are often celebrated for their capacity to promote peaceful dialogue, the confrontational nature of protest movements has prompted artists, scholars, and activists to ask, How do cultural exchange and political activism intersect? Beyond Boycott addresses this question from a historical perspective by turning to one of the most important precursors of current boycott movements: the global cultural boycott of apartheid South Africa (c.1954-1991). The proposed project develops a social and cultural history of the South African boycott, focusing especially on the hidden histories of Western art music performerscommonly described as classical musicianswho defied sanctions to perform in the country. Through archival research, the project maps the extent of classical musicians breaking of the boycott, before asking how these performers interacted with the anti-apartheid movement, and how their appearances in South Africa contributed to a racial classification system that viewed culture as a marker of race. The main research objectives are to trace the extent of musical activity by international performers in defiance of the boycott, and to investigate the apartheid government's use of these performances to develop racial classifications and to advance political objectives. Beyond Boycott fosters a new area of interdisciplinary research on the relationship between art music, race, and transnational politics."
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been validated by the project's team.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
WC1E 6BT LONDON
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.