On Friendship and the Political Imaginary (Fall 2027)

The course On Friendship and the Political Imaginary is an associated initiative of CAPIm. Originally developed in 2021 through the collaboration between Prof. Steven Henry Madoff (SVA New York) and Prof. Mick Wilson (HDK-Valand, Gothenburg.) The course has evolved in the context of CAPIm and is informed greatly by the research of the centre, particularly the work on Mapping the Political Imaginary (2025-2027).

This highly successful, post-graduate level course is taught in English via Zoom, free to EU nationals, 15 credits (ECTS). Includes online lectures, co-reading sessions, seminars, workshops and optional IRL meet-ups: Stockholm, September 25–28, 2026 (attending CAPIm’s Annual Symposium); Barcelona, December 7–9, 2026; Gothenburg; and January 13–15, 2027.

The core is an intensive interdisciplinary reading programme (art theory, criticism, curatorial discourse, cultural studies, anthropology, philosophy, literary criticism and political theory) that draws upon CAPIm’s research, particularly Mapping the Political Imaginary (2025–27) and Artists’ Organising in Times of Upheaval (2026–27).   

Questions addressed include: What is the significance of social relations (friend, neighbour, comrade, ally, kin, colleague, ancestor) amid ascendant authoritarianism, ethnonationalism, oligarchy and neofascism? Whose social relations matter when genocide and mass violence are simultaneously live-streamed and disavowed? What do state-led internationalisms of the non-aligned and internationalisms-from-below have to teach about current re-distributions of violence and resistance? How do practices of relationship respond to dynamics of censorship and pre-emptive compliance with repressive authority? What are the artistic practices, strategies and infrastructures that in this space? 

Previous guests include: Nick Aikens, Adam Benmaklouf, Kathrin Böhm, Jason E. Bowman, Céline Condorelli, Julie Crawshaw, Gary Farrelly, Quinsey Gario, Deborah Jackson, Steven Henry Madoff (co-founder of the original course), Marie-Anne Mancio, Walter Mignolo, Jota Mombaça, Jyoti Mistry, Ratna Mufida, Sarah Pierce, Bojana Piškur, Elizabeth A. Povinelli, Helena Reckitt, Grace Samboh, Sibyl A. Schwarzenbach, Shuddha Sengupta, Thiago de Paula Souza, and Claire Tancons. 

Teaching team comprises: Giulia Menegale, Dr. Michele Masucci, Dr. Nick Aikens, and Prof. Mick Wilson.

Application universityadmissions.se (for international applicants) and via antagning.se (for Swedish applicants). Deadline April 15.