Description
This paper introduces clowning in the landscape of International Relations (IR). In short, clowning can function as an arts-based approach to peacebuilding that transcends traditional state-centric paradigm, as demonstrated via the work of Clowns Without Borders International (CWBI). But it furthermore introduces clowning in its multitude of functions – strategically, theoretically and methodologically. Various approaches on conflict management or resolution have been discussed across disciplines and periods, yet transformational or transitional approaches to conflict remain notoriously understudied. The mission of CWBI is to use art and specifically clowning as a means to spread and promote laughter, hope and joy to children in conflict areas or regions hit by disasters, in order to generate resilience. Resilience, however, not in its neo-liberal or corporate definition but as a way to explore creativity, emotion and empathy as ways to think and build peace. What IR has quite often forgotten or ignored should be at the forefront of the discipline’s thinking: accepting the world as one of creative practice, inverted thinking and play.
