Drawing on Conversation

Practice oriented research, especially in the arts,
has been the focus of much debate in recent years,and
the question of whether artistic activity can be
considered valid in academic research terms continues
to provoke commentary from many perspectives. This
book details a self-reflexive exploration through
contemporary drawing practice, derived from a
philosophical concern as to the nature of the
relation between our meaningful engagement with the
art object, and our inherent predicament as human
beings in a social world. The focus is on drawing in
terms of praxis, embracing the inescapable
subjectivity of artist and art work. The drawing act
itself becomes an inextricable part of hermeneutic
enquiry. The development of an original
methodological approach paves the way for further
work in which drawing practice, characterised as a
useful research tool, potentially crosses
disciplinary boundaries. As such, this book offers a
valuable contribution to the general debate about art
practice as research, and should also be of interest
to anyone who is interested in how understanding can
be achieved through creative response.