Camilo-thesis outline

⇄. Thesis Outline

Index

Introduction

1. Manifesto

1.1. Manifestos on Publishing practices

1.2. The manifesto as a tool to diffract

2. Glossary

2.1. Challenging the Glossary Structure

2.2. Glossary as a world-building tool

3. System

3.1. The publishing practice as a living complex system

3.2. Weaving different realms: an inter-connected world.

4. Experiment

4.1. Playing with the system: Threads and weaving. Speculating on possible connections and processes

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

[500 words approx]

The purpose of this thesis is to unpack and explore separately each component of the project 'Glossary for a Diffractive publishing practice'. This project is part of a collaborative publishing practice I'm working on with my friend Maria Paris. It is an experimental project that aims to connect multiple vocabularies from different practices of publishing with vocabularies of other realms, in order to reflect and expand the vision of our practice.

The components are the glossary, the system, the experiment, and the manifesto. The glossary component is seen as the matter of the project. It refers to what is the project composed of. The system component is taken as the organization of the project, it explains how the project is organized. The experiment component refers to how the project moves and how it is been activated. The manifesto component is the intention. It refers to what the project aims for.

In the first chapter, I will explore the manifesto component of the project by stating the publishing manifesto as a tool to reflect on the practice, but furthermore as a tool for diffraction. I will show examples of manifestos from the book Publishing Manifestos made by Miss Read and articulate them to expose how by stating a mission for a future publishing practice we are reflecting proactively on the present of it. Afterward, I will introduce the term 'diffraction' to make clear that the approach of questioning the practice goes beyond a reflective attitude. A diffractive approach is going to be explored by the text Diffracting Diffraction by Karen Barad and it suggests a process of reflection that is committed to be engaged while questioning.

In the second chapter, I will reflect on the glossary component, by thinking about what is a glossary beyond a list of words, and what are the potentialities of using such a structure for a publication. I will introduce the glossary as the common element inside a publication that creates meaning to a specific world inside a book. I will be looking at the collaborative workshop I made called "Glossary of glossaries" as an attempt to challenge the structure, and I will articulate the ontological capabilities by bringing the idea of world-building from the texts of Ursula K. Le Guin and Tiger Dingsun.

In the third chapter, I will explain the system component, by describing how this system of words looks like and why it suggests seeing the publishing practice as a complex system. I will approach the publishing practice as a living system by recognizing its complexity beyond single descriptions or tags. For that, I will introduce an example of this from the text "soap" by Fabio Morais in which he describes the almost empty tag of saying 'Artist Book' to refer to a publication that is full of complexities. Furthermore, I will expose the interconnected capabilities of the system by describing the ontological inseparability described by Karen Barad and Donna Haraway. This will give me the opportunity to clarify why the link between different realms.

In the fourth chapter, I will attempt to exemplify the experiment component by threading connections among the words by speculating about outcomes and giving examples. I will explain what do I call a thread and how the weaving process can activate an experimental activity that can bring up practices or present already existing projects.

Chapter 1: Manifesto

[1500 words approx]

Manifestos on Publishing practices.

• Show relevant manifestos that during history had questioned the current practices and proposed new possibilities. (dfg: Why to publish noise?)

The manifesto as a tool to diffract.

• Introduce the word diffraction and articulate the differences with reflection.
• If the manifesto is an act of reflection over the practice, how would it be as an act of diffraction?

Chapter 2: Glossary

[1500 words approx]

Challenging the Glossary structure

• Expose the workshop 'Glossary of Glossaries' and articulate it with the reflections generated. What is the structure of a Glossary and what aspects of it I would like to experiment with?

Glossary as a world-building tool

• Exploring the glossary as the element of the book capable of creating worlds from a system of words.

Chapter 3: System

[1500 words approx]

The publishing practice as a living complex system

• How does the publishing practice nurtures itself by unbanning the border of the discipline?
• How not to define projects and publications using tags or words?

Weaving different realms: an inter-connected world

• Recognizing the interconnection of discourses in which words are translated into actions.
• From sympoiesis to collaboration. What is in-between?

Chapter 4: Experiment

Playing with the system: Threads and weaving. Speculating on possible connections and processes.

• As an exercise of making this project a tool for creation for small-publishers on arts and active the project as a manifesto. I'm planning to 'thread'(make connections) some nodes of the system to suggest routes over it as different manners to activate and give concrete ideas. A thread would be the action that makes a connection between two or more different words and brings up a specific type of reflection. Multiple threads as reflections over the practice. Maybe, they suggest a prototype, a new word, and an action. Something that would give the opportunity to experiment. Not to prove a sort of modularity, but to entangle the multiplicity of it, and be able to ground it by giving more questions, reasons, materials, and ideas for the actual publishing practice.

The idea is that these threads together can weave attempts to activate the glossary as a manifesto by entangling among each other. These threads can be given by collaborating with other small publishers that contribute to the glossary.

Bibliography

Bibliography:

• Intra-actions - Adam Kleinman (Mousee 34 - Karen Barad)
• Diffracting Diffraction: Cutting Together-Apart - Karen Barad
• Staying with the Trouble by Donna Haraway
• Dancing at the Edge of the World - Ursula K. Le Guin
• Against World-building by Nick James Scavo
• Chimeric Worldling: What Can Graphic Design Learn from Poetics and World-building? by Tiger Dingsun
• Soap - Fabio Morais
• Publishing Manifestos - Miss Read 2018
• Here and now? Explorations in urgent publishing - Insitute of Network Cultures