Shapes of Discourse
Exploring the Transdisciplinary Dynamics of the Toyin Falola Universe
Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju
Comparative Cognitive Processes and Systems
Exploring Every Corner of the Cosmos in Search of Knowledge
The work of Toyin Falola, unique transdisciplinary scholar across the humanities and social sciences, is defined by an oscillation between scholarship, creative writing and institutional organisation.
Beyond these external expressions, however, is it possible to discern within this ceaselessly unfolding creativity an internal cognitive configuration, of unifying shapes of discourse, of engagement with reality across various disciplines, perhaps unconscious even to the creative intelligence working out these expressive forms?
Exploring the ultimate unity of knowledge is a primary human endeavour, facilitating cross-fertilization between the perspectives and methods of various disciplines, generating insights that would not otherwise have emerged, and Falola's work is particularly strategic for such exploration.
This seminar will examine the entire scope of Falola's work, from scholarship to autobiography to poetry, to publishing initiatives and institution building.
It will do this both in a synchronic manner, tracking its development across time, and in a diachronic mode, mapping the current configuration demonstrated by his productivity.
Within this matrix, particular landmarks will be identified as guides to Illuminating the inward dynamics of the whole, enabling assessment of its significance for scholarship, for creative writing, for interpersonal development and for institutional organization, along with the exploration of questions of how a scholar or writer may adapt this paradigm to their own use.
The total body of scholarship mapping Falola's achievement, from explorations of his early work on Ibadan to Abdul Karim Bangura's monumental two book examination of the epistemic implications of Falola's work, will be brought to bear on this subject.
I have been fascinated by Falola's development since I came across his name as the author of book after book in stacks of different disciplines at the library of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in 2004.
His productivity continues to grow, dwarfing what already looked extraordinary in previous years.
This seminar is an opportunity to reflect on modes of creativity, of inter-disciplinary penetration, on collaborative work, of styles of mentorship, of interface between scholars and publishers in developing the various book series Falola has initiated and oversees, in other words, how to develop a global scholarly network without an official office and without dedicated research funds, since its my view that Falola's network may benefit from external funding but is not dependent on it.
The significance of such a paradigm is increasingly highlighted by a globalized world and the foregrounding of the value of virtual networks in the wake of COVID-19.
All interested people may reach me on this email address.
I have been studying Falola's work since 2018 and recently opened a website, Matrixes : Falola, to archive my research on his work, published both in the scholarly journal Yoruba Studies Review and in various online platforms. The website complements the Facebook page, Exploring Toyin Falola, I use in organizing my writings and those of others on his work and the Exploring Toyin Falola blog dedicated to my Falola research.
The website link at "Who is Toyin Falola?" and the Facebook essays "Toyin Falola and the Caravan of Thought : African History on a Global Stage in a Multifaceted Lens: An Exploratory Framework" Parts 1 and 2 provide my overview of his creative trajectory. My video Life Rhythms: El Anatsui and Richard Serra gives shape to these ideas in relation to philosophical values emerging from the work of sculptors and installation artists El Anatsui and Richard Serra.
Toyin Falola is not informed about this initiative in the name of the independence of the idea.
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