Leeds Arts University Repository (CREST)
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446 research outputs found
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Votive Cards
No full textThe output is a set of 52 cards and accompanying box designed by Barker to operate both individually as small votives and as cards that can be played and laid out in a Tarot type presentation.
Research Process: The cards were designed in consultation with various community groups, including ‘Life Hacks for a Limited Future’ and other members of the Leeds Older People’s Forum. Their format and colour were designed to be of use to a variety of ethic groups and people of diverse cultural backgrounds.
Research Insights: The feedback from users was that the use of strong colours was of particular interest to multiracial groups and that men in particular liked the fact that you could also play card games with them. An online version was also designed to respond to Covid driven lockdown, but this was not a success as people missed the human contact associated with storytelling that was vital to the way a Tarot type reading would evolve.
Dissemination: This artefact was a central exhibit for the ‘Miracle’ exhibition, September 22nd - October 23rd 2021 at the Immanence Gallery in Paris. The exhibition was hosted in conjunction with a conference centred on the continuing influence of the votive in contemporary society and the card designs were used for the poster of the colloquium "Faits et gestes votifs" (Campus Condorcet - Paris), in the framework of which the exhibition was held. The exhibition was presented in the radio program "Mauvais genres" on
France Culture, one of the main national French radio programmes
Reflections of a practitioner-researcher in the field of Widening Participation in arts education
No full textThis article provides an auto-ethnographic narrative to offer insights into my experience as a practitioner–researcher working in widening participation (WP) in post-compulsory education (PCE). It relates how I came to join the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) Practitioner Research Programme (PRP). It provides insights into the role of WP practitioner and manager and offers a reflection upon my experiences as an early practitioner–researcher conducting research in the field of WP. Writing in the first person, I reflect upon the positionality within my professional practice as someone who is immersed in the context that is being researched. I make my story as authentic as possible in order to throw new light upon knowledge in the field of widening participation (WP) practice. This immersion has enabled me to increase my professional knowledge and to establish a stronger voice in and for WP practitioners in the profession and for learners in the WP community. This empowerment has come about as my knowledge of the factors influencing the context of my work has expanded. I hope that it will be of interest to other researchers working in the field of WP and that they will accept my invitation to contribute to this conversation and reflect upon their own journey
Exploring the black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) student experience using a Community of Inquiry approach
No full textA ‘Community of Inquiry’ approach was used to explore the black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) student experience in a university situated in the north of England. Research facilitators were recruited from the postgraduate student population to explore with participants their experiences of learning in the institution. It was found that some of the white academic staff were not confident in talking about issues to do with race and racism. It was also discovered that students from BAME backgrounds may be experiencing isolation in their accommodation and on their courses, while at the same time feeling they needed to ‘overperform’ in order to succeed. The cumulative effect of this could lead to students’ dissatisfaction and the non-continuation of their courses. The Community of Inquiry was effective in identifying possible strategies for improving the student experience
Drawing age
No full textThe output is a journal article comprising of a reflection on the author’s current art practice.
Research process: Barker has continued to explore the use of allegorical visual narratives to communicate and make meaningful experiences. The research consisted of a series of imaginative drawings made in response to his own aging body and the memories he has of his childhood. A second narrative developed from conversations with a neighbour was also constructed as a test to check whether or not a private narrative could be externalised.
Research insights: The development of this work allowed Barker to test audience reaction to an allegorical narrative about aging in various formats, from an exhibition of large scale drawings, to a presentation to the group, ‘Life hacks for a limited future’, to a more theoretically sophisticated audience who read about drawing. The use of text to reflect upon drawnings, alongside spoken word presentations has allowed the allegorical potential of the work to reach a much wider audience than working in any one area. In particular more older people have been brought into dialogue with the work, because as a result of giving a presentation to the older people’s group, Barker was asked to develop a blog post for the Leeds Older People’s forum. The development of conversations about how it feels to inhabit an aging human body has revealed a direction for practice that has unexplored possibilities. The artist is now researching how votive practices can be integrated into his allegorical narratives and he has been given a commission to produce work exploring how to visualise the body for a variety of health and socially engaged community practices.
Dissemination: The exhibition of the original drawings and associated ceramics was held in Chapeltown from 13 April - 1 December 2020. The blog post about the issues was hosted by ‘Life hacks for a limited future’ as part of the Leeds Older People’s Forum and Barker has spoken about this work at research seminars
Developing critical thinking and professional identity in the arts through story
No full textThis chapter presents an account of a practice-focused research study conducted in an arts education college in England. Narrative inquiry (Clandinin and Connelly, 2000) informed both the methodology and the collection and analyse the data. The study explores direct experiences using story, critical dialogue and narrative inquiry in a Community of Enquiry (Lipman, 2003). The intent is to encourage students of the arts to think critically and creatively, improving their motivation to read and write about the arts. A secondary aim of the study is to explore the formation and identity of the artist. The study is essentially an attempt to fuse horizons of educational research and practice (Scott and Usher 1996, pp.21-22) through practice-focused research. It reports the findings of two pedagogical interventions. The first intervention, designed as a Diary Project, asked students to keep a diary of their experiences of the critical thinking interventions used in the study and to reflect upon and present an account of these experiences, including any changes in their ways of thinking, as they engaged in critical thinking interventions. The second intervention took the form of a Book Club where students, lecturers, and other education practitioners met each week to discuss narrative accounts of the lives of artists. An overarching Community of Enquiry (Lipman, 2003) was used to structure and facilitate critical dialogue across the interventions
Untitled, 2020: Three Perspectives on the art of the present
No full textThe output was a selection of 12 of Barker’s narrative etchings that were exhibited in an exhibition that was designed to explore various influential strands in relation to international contemporary sculpture. See pages of the catalogue/record of the exhibition. Research process: An allegorical visual narrative had been developed by Barker to communicate the experiences associated with buying a house; an at the time distressing situation, because he was also a life long socialist. The research consisted of the making of a series of imaginative drawings in response to the experience. Once the drawings were completed, 12 were developed as prints, using etching and aquatint processes. Research insights: The exhibition of this work placed Barker’s outcomes in an international context. His long-term involvement with visual narrative and focus on the development of visualising processes that enable everyday situations to be given mythical status, was cited as a reason his work had been selected for this exhibition. An exhibition that also included artists of proven international stature, such as Edward Kienholtz and David Hockney. Dissemination: Barker’s 12 etchings were chosen by the artist and curator Thomas Houseago as being of seminal importance in his own development as an internationally recognised sculptor. The Pinault Foundation produced exhibition brochures in both French and English and a multilingual 224 page catalogue was produced to showcase and contextualise the work that had been selected
Rhino
No full textThis output is a look development piece accompanied by tutorial videos demonstrating how the final concept was created. Its primary purpose is to suggest a workflow between industry-standard programs; Zbrush and Photoshop. It also demonstrates what is achievable without the need for thorough, in-depth knowledge of either programme, making the process accessible to Concept Art students in the beginnings of their academic career. Research process: A versatile technique that has emerged out of the need for rapid concept art turn around is the use of 3D. Concept art is still a relatively new field within the creative industries. With the original concept art professionals coming from a wide range of backgrounds, it is only within the past few years that we see undergraduate courses emerging that specialise specifically in Concept Art
Research insights: Still within its infancy is the inclusion of 3D taught within Concept Art. It is becoming more prevalent that professional studios want concept artists who are capable of working in 3D software and so the need for it to be injected into the curriculum is imperative. Industry-standard programs such as Zbrush provide a flexible way of working and can be used at varying degrees to speed up or enhance a concept artist’s workflow. Dissemination: The output was disseminated online via Artstation and Vimeo
Distance Artist: Building the Skills of Future Creatives. Developing Evidence‐Based Criteria for Global Virtual Team Tutoring and Management in Art and Design Education
No full textThis article reflects on six years of research activities in the field of long‐distance collaboration and more specifically on how creative virtual teams operate and respond to challenges set by emerging and developing technologies. Furthermore, it considers how to build, manage and shape a more inclusive virtual team, documenting the methodologies applied in each activity, the experiences of both tutors and students and the educational context in which the international study took place. The project set out with a methodology for observing, managing and developing the interaction dynamics between each creative team member involved in the design of activities and practice of delocalized teams. The project is positioned within the field of educational technology and identifies a set of operative recommendations aimed at educators so that remote creative collaborative work can result most effective. The article explores the potential of virtual teams supporting communication and design
#prank4offices
No full textA quick search of the hashtag ‘prank4offices’ on Instagram reveals evidence of two co-workers engaged in an office prank war with each other. Evident are a range of pranks including; multiple photographs of Justin Bieber's face neatly arranged to cover a desk, tin foil covering a workspace, belongings balanced precariously in a pile, the entire contents of someone’s desk cling film-wrapped to an office chair and a desk surrounded by hundreds of water-filled cups. The two employees are known as Iamronjay42 and Iaminstapauli0 on the photo sharing website ‘Instagram’. Iamronjay42 and Iaminstapauli0 are in fact fictional characters acting out a fictional office prank war. In reality, they are a vehicle for me to think about the process of making office pranks from the perspective of an artist. For me as an artist, making ‘work’ (in the art sense) is often done in the workplace or in everyday situations, utilising everyday ‘stuff’ to construct temporary arrangements. Don’t tell work, but this is often done on company time too. Making work in this way can sometimes feel like being an illicit ‘artist-in-residence’ in the office, and blurs the boundary between artist and worker. This article features a range of the photographs that make up the project #prank4offices. In a contextual statement about the work, it also proposes that there is a ‘sculptural desire’ in the workplace, and that the visibility of vernacular photography is affecting how users of everyday photographs stage scenes for the camera
A feminist marvellous: Chloe Aridjis and the ‘female human animal’
No full textThe recent revival of interest in Leonora Carrington has prompted a number of new approaches to the legacies of her multifaceted oeuvre. A magpie for such debris herself, “Carrington” comes down to us imbued with meaning. Some of the most interesting quotations of Carrington in recent years can be found in the work of the Mexican, London-based novelist Chloe Aridjis (b.1971). Aridjis was a family friend of Carrington in Mexico City, and is known for having co-curated the landmark exhibition of Carrington’s work, Transgressing Discipline (2015), with Tate Liverpool, and for using this curatorial platform within ‘Female Human Animal’ (2018) directed by Josh Appignanesi. Her novels, ‘Book of Clouds’ (2009) and ‘Sea Monsters’ (2019), contain uncanny references to Carrington which might be said to constitute a more nuanced assessment of Carrington’s cult status. This chapter uses the ekphrastic thinking of Chloe Aridjis in order to re-explore Carrington’s feminist marvellous. It draws on unpublished interview material with Aridjis (July 2014). The chapter developed out of an invited keynote lecture for Edge Hill University (30 June 2017)