In 2017 Zirkus|Wissenschaft was happy to welcome Riikaa Juutinen from Finland. She supported the organization and coordination of the conference UpSideDown | Circus and Space. Riikka also gave us some insights into working as a circus science intern (see below) and wrote articles on circus studies for the homepage, e.g. her overview on contemporary circensic research.
Hey! My name is Riikka and I´m a Social Anthropology student from the University of Tampere, Finland. In the summer semester 2017, I´m doing my Erasmus internship here in Münster, at the Zirkus|Wissenschaft project. I am currently working on my master´s thesis which deals with the themes of mobility and mobile lifestyles of circus people, so that´s my link to the fascinating world of circus. It´s typical for people researching circus to have a personal background in circensic arts, but for me that´s not the case. I have always been attracted to circus, but never gotten to know it well. Therefore it's a splendid opportunity when I can combine my thesis, the Zirkus|Wissenschaft project and getting to know what circus really means!
I was searching for circus research projects in the internet, because I preferably wanted to do my internship in some project which combines theory and practice. As my master´s thesis deals with the themes of circus, I came across this project. I actually just sent an E-Mail to Franziska Trapp and asked, whether she would be needing an extra pair of hands with this project. She was immediately welcoming me very warmly, and here I am!
This project is interesting to me in many ways. As I have mentioned in the previous comments, my thesis deals with circus research, although my focus is more on mobility of circus artist, not researching circus itself. The project gives me a great front-row possibility to familiarize myself with circus as a research field, not to forget the possibility of hearing all the interesting presentations at the upcoming conferenc UpSideDown - Circus and Space! I really have to say I´m pretty excited about the conference. Working in this project is also very valuable in terms of gaining experience in conference organizing, as I get to participate in organizing and being responsible for big and small issues.
All of it! It´s my first academic conference in which I´m part of the organizing team, so this is all kind of new for me. That´s why I´m really excited about the fact that the conference is coming closer every day! I´m looking forward to listening to all the speakers, as I think we will be hearing many really good and interesting presentations. Of course I´m also waiting for being a part of the group of the speakers – not presenting my own work, but as an interviewer. The main thing that I´m looking forward to is although having an inspirational time, as well for me personally and all the speakers and audience too!
I have been making the conference preparations, like being in touch with the speakers about the accommodations during the conference and working on the program booklet, so all the little things you have to prepare in order to create a successful conference. During the conference I will be responsible for the guest care – so basically making sure that everyone gets their coffee and feels nice. I will also be interviewing Jimmy Gonzalez, so I will be on the stage as well! Besides this, I am working on the publication of the last conference, the Semiotics of the Circus. Altogether, my tasks vary quite a lot, but that´s what makes it so interesting!
I think all in all it was a great idea to come and make my internship in this project, as well for me personally but also considering my future career. It is a great opportunity to peek into the world of academic research and conference arrangements. I´ve also got the idea of how deeply networked the world of research is – and I have gained many contacts that I wouldn´t have if it wasn´t for this internship. Also, I have had the opportunity of writing all kinds of texts, which is naturally always a good thing!
All in all, I would say the conference was just as I expected it to be! Three days of organizing things, putting everything to their proper places, answering questions and waking up terribly early. Besides this, for me the conference was about having intriguing conversations, meeting many interesting people, building up networks and getting great tips for my own thesis. Furthermore, it was about listening to interesting and inspirational presentations from people all around the world!
Waking up so early! No, seriously I can´t think anything too challenging or difficult. I must say, that since Franziska had been putting such enormous work (thanks to her for it all!) into the organization of the conference, everything went pretty smoothly. I think the biggest challenges were with sticking to the timetable, but I also do think this is a rather common problem for any conferences. My role was rather much invisible for the audience, since I was working “behind the scenes” quite a lot, taking care of organizational things. This suited me well and besides, I got my chance to be on stage too, when interviewing Jimmy Gonzalez. This was definitely the most exciting part of my tasks, even though I wasn´t the one giving a presentation. Good practice, I would say.
I´m taking home a load of experiences of conference organisation! Also, a great insight into the world of circus research. This is really important for me, it really has given me a burst of inspiration concerning my own thesis. There are no circus researchers back in my home university, and it has been so cheering to notice that there actually are people out there who do research on these topics. The time here has also given me an opportunity to create contacts and networks, which, I´m sure of it, will prove to be important also in the future. All in all, I have to say my time here in Münster has been even better than I expected and I am astonished to realise it´s over! This might be the time to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who have been part of my time here!
And thank you, Riikka, for sharing your experience with us!