Visual Culture Research Group (VCRG), UWE

Description

The Visual Culture Research Group (VCRG) is a group of cross-disciplinary art and design practitioners, historians and theorists interested in visuality and visual culture. Its purpose is to generate new knowledge and innovative methodologies by putting practitioners into conversation with writers. Much of their work critically explores the relationship between ‘making’ and ‘thinking’, practice and theory and there is an overarching concern with challenging cultural representations of under-represented groups.

The Group’s research is divided into strands, which currently include:

• Visualising histories The visualising histories strand aims to increase the visibility of under-represented and as-yet untold histories of creative practice. The strand includes work on women’s art history, queer histories and feminist activism/curation.

• Lifestage research Lifestage research is a new strand of research activity, which aims to critically explore the process of transitioning between one stage of life and another. Examples of current projects include members’ work on maternal art and post-natal wellbeing, ageing, and photographic work on grief and mourning.

• Cultural education The cultural education strand investigates the contexts within which art and design education takes place with a view to developing innovative thinking about curriculum development. Examples of research in this strand include members’ work on the integration of critical and contextual studies in art and design education, and the role of the art school in the age of neoliberalism.

• Clothing cultures The clothing cultures strand investigates the production and consumption of clothing and textiles as well as the politics of display. Work in this strand includes members’ work on writing on international fashion exhibitions and editorship of the Clothing Cultures journal (published by Intellect).

The VCRG also acts as a forum for curriculum development in Visual Culture. Members teach critical thinking to all undergraduate and most postgraduate students in Art and Design at UWE Bristol as well as undertaking PhD supervision. The VCRG provides extra-curricular support for Art and Design students at all levels including their cross-disciplinary, cross-level screening/discussion series Watch Wednesday and annual Undergraduate Research Symposium.

Offers funding

No, this infrastructure does not provide funding.

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University of the West of England, Bristol
Bristol