This conference was conceived by Paul Pickering and Jane Shaw in 2006, when Jane Shaw was a Visiting Fellow at the Humanities Research Centre at ANU. Collective Biography is a growing field within life writing and our remit in the call for papers was deliberately wide ranging and interdisciplinary, covering artistic, political or academic groups; communities; networks; family history, prosopography, institutional histories, as well as methodological reflections and the use of electronic databases for groups and networks. The primary goals of the conference were (1) to get a sense of the scope and shape of the field as it exists; (2) to define that emerging field and (3) to set the agenda for the field as it grows. The call for papers, which went out on websites in Australia, England and the USA, produced a large number of paper proposals. The convenors decided to have no concurrent panels, and therefore just under half of the proposals were accepted, so that a total of 32 papers were presented at the conference. Participants came from Australia, England, New Zealand and the USA and from a range of academic institutions – universities, museums, libraries – and two were independent scholars. There were 63 registered participants.
Many of the papers were outstanding, some truly excellent, and none was disappointing. Together they redefined – or perhaps, more accurately, defined – this new field. Almost all were fresh and original, clearly part of significant ongoing research projects, and few had already been accepted for publication except insofar as they were sections of book projects in progress. A range of important questions was raised. (1) How to structure a book or article about a group or collective, and the relationship between form, method and subject matter. (2) Collective Biography as ‘empowerment’: how does this form allow stories to be told that might not be told individually? (3) The tension between the group and the individual, and the importance of preserving the individual story within the group narrative. (4) The different models that may be needed for cross-cultural and indigenous biographies. (5) What links the group? Is it necessary for members of the group to have met? to be a consciously formed group? to have shared experiences? (6) The strengths and hazards of using technology, and the power of technology in constructing narrative. (7) Ethical issues are raised by fieldwork and interviews (i.e. live subjects) and also with regard to family sensitivities.
The conference produced about a dozen papers that, taken together, will create an excellent volume that will (a) define the field and (b) set the agenda for the field. The convenors are currently writing a book proposal that will be taken to publishers.
The administration by Leena Messina was first class and all aspects of this were efficiently done. Many conference participants commented on the excellence of the administration and the arrangements. The venue, the National Library of Australia, was very good, and the two different rooms used both very suitable. The catering of tea breaks and lunches was of a high standard. The final dinner at the Waters Edge Restaurant was good, but the service was slow; the conference subsidized the cost of the meal for participants and provided wine. Participants were mostly staying at University House. Transport to and from the National Library was provided through cars, taxis, and the use of the bus service. Many people also walked.
The conference ended with the Seymour Lecture, given by Richard Holmes. Combining the conference with the Seymour Lecture was highly successful, bringing greater audiences to both. It was also a pleasure and privilege to have a biographer of Richard Holmes’ stature at the conference.
