Art Practice as Research: Inquiry in the Visual Arts

Front Cover
SAGE, 2005 - Art - 265 pages

This book will publish in a new edition on December 1, 2009. We are no longer supplying instructors with complimentary review copies of this edition. * If you need an urgent desk copy of the existing edition for a class this semester, please call 1-800-818-7243 and we will be pleased to process your request.

"In this rich and layered reflection on visual arts practice as research, Graeme Sullivan launches a passionate and convincing case that rewrites the definitions of ′art′ and ′research′ as it unapologetically claims for the visual arts the respect and admiration of the academy."--Jessica Hoffman Davis, Harvard University

Art Practice as Research: Inquiry in the Visual Artspresents a compelling argument that the creative and cultural inquiry undertaken by artists is a form of research. The text explores themes, practices, and contexts of artistic inquiry and positions them within the discourse of research. Author Graeme Sullivan argues that legitimate research goals can be achieved by choosing different methods than those offered by the social sciences. The common denominator in both approaches is the attention given to rigor and systematic inquiry. Artists emphasize the role of the imaginative intellect in creating, criticizing, and constructing knowledge that is not only new but also has the capacity to transform human understanding.

The book is divided into three content areas that provide a unique framework for carrying out inquiry in the visual arts:

  • Contexts for Visual Arts Research is a historical review that positions the visual arts as a culturally grounded and institutionally bound area of artistic and educational inquiry
  • Theorizing Visual Arts Practicepresents the thesis that visual arts practice is a theoretically robust area of inquiry and a transformative approach to creating and critiquing knowledge
  • Visual Arts Research Practicesdescribes a range of strategies and approaches to planning and carrying out visual arts research
is a historical review that positions the visual arts as a culturally grounded and institutionally bound area of artistic and educational inquiry.

Art Practice as Researchis perfectly suited as a text for courses in art education, the visual arts, as well as general research methods courses in education and the humanities. This will also be an invaluable reference for anyone with an interest in interdisciplinary research in the social sciences and the role of imaginative inquiry in human understanding.

A blog by Graeme Sullivan welcoming contributors interested in discussing ideas and sharing information about art as a form of research Praise for this text:"Sullivan challenges our assumptions about what constitutes research practices and in doing so presents a ground-breaking analysis for visual arts practice as research. This compelling image-text book opens the possibilities for the construction of new forms of knowledge in our increasingly visual world." --Dipti Desai, New York University "Sullivan provides a timely and excellent introduction to the emerging field of visual cognition and educational research." --Pradeep A. Dhillon, University of Illinois

"Art Practice as Research is long overdue. Graeme Sullivan eloquently crafts a methodology text and articulates for contemporary visual artist-researchers how arts practices are, in fact, rich forms of research inquiry." --Rita L. Irwin, University of British Columbia, Canada

"Sullivan′s text is an important addition to the literature associated with research, critical inquiry, and arts education. I wish that such a text would have been available at the time that I was working on my dissertation. I will recommend it to my graduate students and colleagues." --Doug Blandy, University of Oregon

"Art Practice moves through a description of accepted methods of research in the sciences. A person interested in art research would be well-served by the foundation Sullivan provides." --COMMUNICATION RESEARCH TRENDS

 

Contents

IX
3
X
4
XI
6
XII
10
XIV
11
XV
13
XVI
15
XVII
16
LVI
118
LVII
121
LVIII
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LIX
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LX
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LXI
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LXII
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LXIII
131

XVIII
18
XIX
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XX
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XXI
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XXIV
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XXV
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XXVI
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XXVII
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XXVIII
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XXIX
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XXX
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XXXII
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XXXIII
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XXXIV
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XXXV
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XXXVI
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XXXVIII
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XXXIX
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XL
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XLI
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XLII
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XLIII
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XLIV
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XLV
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XLVI
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XLVII
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XLVIII
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XLIX
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LI
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LII
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LIII
109
LIV
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LV
117
LXV
133
LXVI
135
LXVII
138
LXVIII
140
LXIX
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LXXI
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LXXII
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LXXIII
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LXXIV
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LXXV
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LXXVI
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LXXVII
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LXXVIII
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LXXIX
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LXXX
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LXXXI
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LXXXIII
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LXXXIV
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LXXXV
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LXXXVI
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LXXXVII
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LXXXVIII
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LXXXIX
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XC
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XCI
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XCII
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XCIII
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XCIV
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XCV
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XCVI
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XCVII
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XCVIII
Copyright

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About the author (2005)

Graeme is Director of the School of Visual Arts, Penn State University, and Professor of Art Education. He is the former Chair of the Department of Arts and Humanities, Teachers College, Columbia University. He received both his PhD and MA in Art Education from The Ohio State University. Since the early 1990s his research has involved an ongoing investigation of thinking processes in visual arts and studio-based research practices. These ideas and approaches are described in the new edition of Art Practice as Research: Inquiry in the Visual Arts (www.artpracticeasresearch.com). Graeme has published widely in the field of art education and in 1990 received the Manual Barkan Memorial Award for scholarly writing, and the 2007 Lowenfeld Award for significant contribution to the field of art education, both from the National Art Education Association. Graeme is also the author of Seeing Australia: Views of Artists and Artwriters (1994). Graeme maintains an active art practice and his Streetworks(www.streetworksaert.com) have been installed in several international cities and sites over the past fifteen years.

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