Dr. Anita McKeown

School

National College of Art and Design

Keywords

Crowdsourcing, Digital Re-mix, Live Art, Psychogeography, Representation, Self-appointed, Serial Interventions

Abstract

This study explores the potential of a Situated Art Practice that integrates the ethics and design principles of the domain known as ‘Permaculture’ to develop a critical praxis for Creative Placemaking (Landesman, 2009). Creative Placemaking (CP), established in the USA, is a sub-field of the domain known as ‘Placemaking’, and is considered to be the latest iteration of the evolving effort to embed Arts-led processes within the domain of cultural regeneration. The thesis makes an original contribution to the evolution of CP by outlining a critical praxis for CP as a situated process of co-production for self-organisation.
The thesis overall incorporates a scholarly dissertation, an intertwined practice-based arts narrative, and body of artwork in support of the argument. In total, the thesis is offered as an original contribution to the sub-genre of Situated Art Practice within the evolving field of CP. The methodology is informed by the Situationists’ dérive. Considered as an immersive, extended dérive, the method of engagement grounds an eco-social commitment by integrating permaculture design principles within a Situated Arts Practice. The emergent praxis is proposed as an operating system for CP, which enables the re-deployment of resources and services in a creative, effective manner.
Expanding upon the foundational characteristics of CP as defined by Markusen and Gadwa-Nicodemus (2010), the research proposes a trans-disciplinary, Open Source and resilient model of praxis. The proposed framework includes a nascent evaluative matrix and practical method to develop permaCultural resilience (defined as the ability of a location to adapt to changing conditions initiated by a systemic Arts-led process). The initiation of self-organised CP can be achieved through the creation of opportunities to reveal and actualise local potential and resources, allowing for emergent adaptive behaviour building upon foundations of resilience from the inside out.
In conclusion, the research offers fresh perspectives on the potential of Situated Art Practices within an eco-social open-ended, transferable and non-formulaic process of CP. It is hoped that future scholars, will instantiate their own work to re-imagine existing place-narratives that include diverse understandings of place and continue Creative Placemaking’s evolution.