definingpractice

ask yourself questions - lots and continuously

why do you make work?what’s your work for?what do you want from your work?

what do you get from your work?what is your work about?

who is your audience?where does the work go?

what do you like doing?

building a reference point(s)

connections

art history

music

dance

writing

general history

geography/place

contemporary practice science

materials and process’s

understand what you work with

become an expert

TO ROLLTO CREASETO FOLDTO STORETO BENDTO SHORTENTO TWISTTO TWINETO DAPPLETO CRUMPLETO SHAVETO TEARTO CHIPTO SPLITTO CUTTO SEVERTO DROPTO REMOVETO SIMPLIFYTO DIFFERTO DISARRANGETO SHAVETO OPENTO MIXTO SPLASHTO KNOTTO SPILLTO DROOP

TO FLOWTO SWIRLTO ROTATETO SMEARTO FLOODTO FIRETO IMPRESSTO INLAYTO LIFTTO CURVE TO SUPPORTTO HOOKTO SUSPENDTO SPREADTO HANGOF TENSIONOF GRAVITYOF ENTROPYOF NATUREOF GROUPINGOF LAYERINGOF FELTINGTO COLLECTTO GRASPTO TIGHTENTO BUNDLETO HEAPTO GATHER

TO ARRANGETO REPAIRTO DISCARDTO PAIRTO DISTRIBUTETO SURFEITTO SCATTERTO COMPLEMENTTO ENCLOSETO SURROUNDTO ENCIRCLETO HIDETO COVERTO WRAPTO DIGTO TIETO BINDTO WEAVETO JOINTO MATCHTO LAMINATETO BONDTO HINGETO MARKTO EXPANDTO DILUTETO LIGHTTO REVISE

TO MODULATETO DISTRILLOF WAVESOF ELECTROMAGNETICOF INERTIAOF IONIZATIONOF POLARIZATIONOF REFRACTIONOF SIMULTANEITYOF TIDESOF REFLECTIONOF EQUILIBRIUMOF SYMMETRYOF FRICTIONTO STRETCHTO BOUNCETO ERASETO SPRAYTO SYSTEMATIZETO REFERTO FORCEOF MAPPINGOF LOCATIONOF CONTEXTOF TIMETO TALKOF PHOTOSYNTHESISOF CARBONIZATION

67-68TO CONTINUE

reflective practice

reflection

in action - (while doing something)

on action (after you have done it)

your making - contextual framework

social political

personal

critical/theoretical

historical geographical

institutional cultural

social context

Making and seeing an image always takes place in a social context. The way it is seen and how it is seen are culturally constructed.

Audience for work - who is included/excluded/implicated on the ways an image is produced, circulated and consumed

political context

Specific political issue

broad political issue

gender - race - ethnicity - sexual orientation - class - disability - religion

personal contextBiography - narrative of the selfparticular issues - memoriesWhat motivates/ drives you?Your particular skills as an artist/ designer/writer/photographerWhat strategies do you use when the work is not going well?How do you relate to the forces that in part condition what you know and in which you make things?

critical/theoretical context

Does your work relate to particular critical debates about contemporary art and design practices?

Is your work informed by/engaging with/contesting particular theoretical frameworks/issues?

historical context

Understand how/whether your practice relates to a tradition, with a history

How knowledge relates to periods in time.

geographical contextLocal, regional, national, international, global.

Where do you make your work?

Do you make your work in relation to a particular place?

studio home church city rural cyberspace

institutional context

MA Course - school of design

Your educational background/experience

Your professional background/experience

Your family background/experience

cultural context

In it’s broadest sense - ‘a whole way of life’ - this relates to all the other categories.

More specifically, what works of artists, designers, writers, filmmakers, photographers, musicians are important to you and your work - why?

mapping your practice

Any other contexts worth considering?

Importance

Overlapping

change - evolution of practice

why develop context?

vacuum moving forward

learning growing

position aspiration

photo archive

reflective journal

databasesbibliography

studio work/portfolio

storage by colour coding

- analysis- discussion- background- methodology- projects- review

concept maps

practice-based research proposal

Practical – moving forward – the doing

Practical – moving forward – the doing

Keep keywords in mind - spectacles and sieves – helps focus and select.

Colour code to identify different types of information.

Each article/book/moment – interrogate consistently – What? Why? Who? Where? How? When? It makes comparison easier.

Note quality of information – clarity, accuracy, precision, brevity, depth, relevance, rigour, consistency, reason, effective analysis, synthesis.

The role/place of documentation

questioning

making reading

analysing

ana

lysi

ng a

nalysing

writing diary reflective journal

tape recordingphotographingquestionnaire

making noteswriting reviews

D

D

D

making-thinking

learn

implement

ideation

choose

research

define

prototype

ideation (idea generation) – is the

process of creating new ideas.

generation of Data

1 - what is known?

3 - How?Practice based methodology

methods

4 - so what?

critical analysis

interpretations / meanings

formal framework

criteria

discussion /conclusions

2 - why

external rational

structure / timescale

sieves

play

review of context

issue problem raised in practice challenge

stage 1

• finding the need• begin to wonder – what if...• could this be better – personal

dissatisfaction• recognising gaps – professional stimulus• raising questions• strengths and weaknesses

stage 2

• the identification of a ‘hunch’ – leading to an identifiable question

• so what....the wider significance - why is your research needed?

• how are you going to develop an appropriate methodology? gathering, generating relevant

• what do you hope to gain by undertaking research?

stage 3

• Initial search for information that supports your hunch

• Initial feedback – peers

stage 4

• No apparent external rationale – could the work be too indulgent/idiosyncratic for a research project

stage 5

• Refocusing the initial proposal based on your discoveries so far

stage 6

• Mapping the terrain

• Surveying the context – to increase understanding

• Selecting what is relevant – evaluating critically

• Identifying gaps

Stage 7

• Identifying a question

• Using this to develop a plan

• Aim, objectives, rationale, methodology, projected outcomes and outputs

• Ethics?

stage 8

• So far

• Planned the journey

• Mapped the terrain

• Located your position

• Now – crossing the terrain

• Modes of transport – methodology and methods

stage 9

• Interpreting the map

• Evaluate – what is valuable, relevant, significant?

stage 10

• Conclusion - so what?

• Critical evaluation – making visible

• Identification of future research

to conclude - research should Be required and relevant – clear – an external, professional

and personal rationale – a need

Be intentional – envisioned, proposed, prepared for, strategic, planned, focused

Be disciplined – rigorous, critical, ordered – it is a structured investigation

Develop a research approach – initiation, context, methods, making findings visible

Be revelatory – contributing new /alternative perspectives and insights

Be public – open to public and future use