Factory workshop: Happy Writing! (Writing as Research)
Led by David Maroto
21 October, 2017 Cologne (induction meeting); early bird seminar, followed by face-to-face meetings.
25 November, 2017 Amsterdam;
16 December, 2017 Oldebroek;
17 February, 2018 Epen;
17 March, 2018 Arnhem
It goes without saying that writing is a fundamental part of research. However, how does writing exactly articulate with the research process? What is specific about writing artistic research? How is writing a theoretical essay different from writing in the context of a practice-led research?
Writing can be an expression of a previous work of research: you read relevant bibliography, follow some research methods, and produce an outcome that is expressed in an academic essay. But it can also be methodological, in that writing dictates the direction of the research and the way it is conducted. Here, the text works performatively. It does not only express the research but, in that expression, becomes the research itself.[1]
The workshop is intended to support the students in developing their writing skills. We are going to examine and discuss writing samples of the students themselves – two per session. It could be a chapter from your thesis draft (how the contents of the research can be best expressed and structured; how to use bibliography, references, etc.), or a piece of creative writing from an art project you are currently working on. The only condition is that this writing is connected to your own artistic research.
The induction session, on 21 October, is divided in two parts. A group seminar, early in the morning (allowing you to participate in the Mad Tea p, when notions such as artistic research, practice-led research, academic writing, and creative writing, will be introduced and discussed, accompanied by salient examples (artistic, academic, literary) and bibliography. This will help to set up a critical vocabulary for future sessions. In the afternoon, I will be conducting face-to-face meetings with those students interested.
Happy writing!
[1] Haseman, B. (2006) A Manifesto for Performative Research. Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture and Policy, no. 118 (February), pp. 98–106.