Abstract

The world is constantly changing, making it increasingly difficult to keep up. Normal is no longer capable of upholding the promise of tomorrow’s certainty. Welcome to postnormal times! Our thematic discussion aims to dive into this topic, which is new to the academic community of the Central Eurasian region. In particular, we will focus on imagination in its diverse spectrum of representation as a possible solution for coping with the storm of ignorance and uncertainty so specific to postnormal times.

Today, we need creativity and bold imagination to navigate our way to a different worldview. On the one hand, creativity is a well-established and conventional term. On the other hand, it is going through a transformation itself, moving from an atomistic view of modernity to a more collaborative, complex approach. It is through a participatory and creative approach that invests in new epistemologies, pedagogies, and imaginations that we can proceed beyond the current impasse to something better. Therefore, we will draw on three indispensable perspectives on complex and multidimensional imagination, employing a cross-disciplinary approach.

As imagination and creativity merge across three time horizons, we will include them all in our discussion. The past is presented through the spiritual dimension, which is integral to Central Asia’s history. The present reflects on the complexity of cultural entrepreneurship in the rapidly evolving socio-political landscape of Kazakhstan and examines how creative entrepreneurial agencies navigate and reshape sociopolitical structures. The changing tenets and signals from the future have long belonged to artists. While science fiction writers formulate the future in worlds, artists draw images or visual categories. The third chronicle part of our penal will focus on Almagul Menlibayeva’s cyber-textiles, which operate as postdigital speculative platforms that merge traditional craft practices with advanced technologies.

During our thematic discussion, we anticipate collaborative actions on the quest to answer:

-- Why has imagination become a critical tool in postnormal times?

-- What are the opportunities to generate scaling of imagination in our society?

-- How can Hi-Teck amplify artistic work?

-- What are the futures of cultural entrepreneurship in Kazakhstan?

-- In what ways can religious imagination be perceived as an amplifier in a secular society, contributing to its prosperity?