The call for papers for publication in issue no. 9 of the 2nd series of the journal PSIAX: Studies and Reflections on Drawing, which will have the theme “Drawing and Gesture”, is open.

 

We invite researchers, artists and thinkers to contribute to the next edition of PSIAX, which aims to explore gesture in drawing and imagery.

 

Gesture is a moving trace, an inscription of the body in drawing and image. Beyond its aesthetic value, gesture can carry thought, intention, and emotion, becoming a field for reflection on artistic practice and its symbolic, cultural, social, and technological implications.

In this issue, we are looking for contributions that examine gesture as an expression of visual thought, its ability to represent internal and external relationships, and its role in constructing narratives and imaginaries. How does gesture manifest in the relationship between body and medium? In what ways does gesture transcend the material dimension to become a sign or symbol?

 

In today’s context, where technologies expand and redefine artistic practices, gesture acquires new meanings. How do digital interactions, artificial intelligence, and new media reshape our relationship with drawing and image? What remains of gesture in this new landscape?

 

We also wish to explore gesture as a means of experimentation, record, and thought, broadening the understanding of drawing and image as living forms of expression and world recognition.

• How can gesture in drawing and image reveal not just an aesthetic trace, but also emotion and thought in action?
• How can gestural drawing represent external relations of reality?
• How can we understand gesture in drawing beyond the bodily/material relation?
• Is gesture a symbolic manifestation?
• How does the relationship between gesture, image, and thought transform in the contemporary context, shaped by technological advances and new cultural paradigms?
• How can the act of drawing become a space for reflecting on our perceptions of the world and the construction of visual narratives?

For this edition, we are interested in publishing drawings, artistic projects, images, articles, essays, contextual or critical texts that address, problematize, and engage with representations of gesture and gesturality.

Any format submitted (text or project) for evaluation must be sent by October 31, 2025, in Portuguese, Spanish, French, English, or Italian.

 

Submission Guidelines

For textual contributions (articles, essays, texts):

• Length: between 11,000 and 21,000 characters (including spaces)
• Must include:
  • Abstract (max. 300 words) in Portuguese and English
  • 4 keywords
  • Biographical note (max. 50 words)
• The main text must not contain any identifying information about the author(s).
• Must be submitted via the OJS platform in Times New Roman, font size 12, line spacing 1.5, justified alignment.
• Footnotes and references in font size 10, single spacing, formatted in APA 6th edition.
• References must be integrated into the text. Quotes up to 3 lines must appear in quotation marks within the text, followed by the proper reference. Quotes longer than 3 lines must be separated from the main text in Times New Roman, font size 10, single spacing, justified, and indented 4 cm from the left margin.

For artistic project contributions (drawings, artistic projects, images):

• Limit of 10 images per submission.
• Images must be in .jpg or .tiff format, minimum size of 7.5 x 10 cm, 300 dpi.
• All images must be identified in both the text and file, accompanied by a technical description and referenced.
• Must include:
  • Abstract (max. 500 words) in Portuguese and English
  • 4 keywords
  • Biographical note (max. 50 words)

All articles and projects will be selected by the editorial committee and then subjected to a double-blind peer review process. The committee reserves the right not to publish works that do not comply with the review recommendations.

 

Submission link: https://ojs.up.pt/index.php/psiax

 

* PSIAX is a periodical active since 2002, publishing studies and reflections on drawing and images. It is jointly directed by the Faculties of Architecture and Fine Arts of the University of Porto and the School of Architecture, Art and Design of the University of Minho, being edited by the research units i2ADS and Lab2PT.