Cumulus: Contemporary Art Working Group

Abstract

Dr Jones co-chaired the Cumulus Contemporary Art Working group session, hosted by University of Lapland, Rovaniemi. During this session the research landscape and ambitions of the working group were determined and discussed. Those in attendance were international colleagues from other H.E Art and Design institutions, and members of the Cumulus Network. Led by Dr Jones and with Mr Skiles, from Ringling College, Florida, they facilitated and debated the role of the contemporary art working group. To do this they applied it to the main Cumulus 2019 conference theme of ‘Resilience and Intelligence’ within Contemporary Art practice and research. To facilitate this session, the example of S.H.E.D was provided by Jones as a UK example, of how an artistic research project has created live project briefs, working with interior design students at University of Derby, and works between H.E and cultural and educational partners in order to extend the debate on current issues, practices and research. The working group used S.H.E.D as a provocation to discuss modes of practice and/or research, challenge notions of resilience, role, responsibility, and where ideas or acts of resistance within Contemporary Art can be shared and discussed (publicly), within a globalised frame of reference. S.H.E.D was used to allude to how a mobile design project could act as a research platform for the exchange and generation of knowledge through the invited modes of participation, collaboration, inspiration and mentorship Through which, the ambitions of the wider contemporary art working group was also emphasised and reconsidered, as a discursive and dissemination space for innovative processes in art and design pedagogy and practice.