Category Archives: RESEARCH

Bibliography for a co-operative art school

Bibliography for a co-operative art school

This page includes bibliographies and reading lists on co-operative art education, alternative art schools, radical pedagogy and self-organisation. Complied in conjunction with the research project A co-operative art school? This bibliography accompanies the directory of alternative art schools and resources for a co-operative art school. For a collectively compiled syllabus on art education and radical pedagogy see the Radical Pedagogy Research Group. Continue reading Bibliography for a co-operative art school

September Update 🏮🍂

September Update 🏮🍂

The days are getting shorter, the evenings are cooler, and we’ll be spending more time indoors. I usually dread this time of year, but I’m looking forward to getting a lot of work done. At least that’s the plan. Invariably, something always blows my plans out of the water; overcommitting, unexpected workloads or crises, and burn out. But I’m learning to pace myself and take time off. Working longer hours doesn’t necessarily mean getting more done, in fact if you’re tired or stuck it’s better to take a break or even a nap.

I recently found some time to return to the co-operative art school project for the first time since lockdown and it’s very exciting! Those who’ve been waiting to hear the outcome of the survey will be happy to know that it should be ready in the next couple of months. I have no social science training so I have no idea what I’m doing. I make it up as I go along, taking several different approaches, especially as the sample is quite small and the perspectives so diverse.

Plans and developments in the pipeline; I’m putting together a funding application for the next stage of the co-operative art school project, working on some writing and interviews and planning to publish an open call for the 2nd issue of URgh! on co-operatives in the arts. More on these and other developments in the next newsletter.

For the time-being I wanted to let you know that there are still a couple of slots for free Artquest One to One advice sessions in Oct/Nov. So head on over there if you’d like to discuss your practice and plans for the future. Be the first to find out about new Artquest One to One dates as soon as they’re posted by signing up to the Artquest newsletter, it also comes with a great selection of opportunities.

The Autumn 2023 Art+Critique online course starts in about a month and there are four places left. The course is popular beyond the M25 and it is more affordable as an online course with hybrid off-site visits, so the format is the same. We have just completed one year of a pilot peer support group for those who want to stay in touch after completing the course. I’m still working on a  couple of new shorter courses so stay tuned for updates.

Wishing you a prolific and satisfying autumn 🏮

📌 Artquest One to One
Free one-to-one remote advice sessions for London-based artists
Book a free Artquest one-to-one advice session to get feedback about your work, build a strategy for an upcoming project, get practical career advice, discuss the logistics of operating as an artist and find out about other arts organisations and how they can support you.

🍒 Art + Critique
Critical & Contextual Studies in Art Practice Online, Autumn 2023
17 Oct 2023 – 5 Mar 2024, Tuesdays 18:30-20:30 BST/GMT+1
£ 435/£ 348 Concessions (student, unwaged, disability)
This course integrates practice and theory to address our concepts of art, how they are transformed and the problems of making art in the broader context of social conflict.  The syllabus offers a solid background in essential histories and discourses of contemporary art to help artists address questions about their practice and its context: about what art is, how it is judged and how it relates to society. The curriculum emphasises critical inquiry in art practice and research and supports participants as they develop their practice and research in a series of lectures, seminars, workshops, group tutorials, off-site visits and assignments. The curriculum fosters experimentation and collaborative study in a community of peers.

URgh!#1 at the (Slow) Marathon

URgh!#1 at the (Slow) Marathon

URgh!#1 July 2020 on Alt. Art Education. Front Cover by Emma Edmondson
URgh!#1 July 2020 on Alt. Art Education. Front Cover by Emma Edmondson

URgh! #1 has arrived and it looks great! Thanks to Footprint Workers Co-op and to all the contributors for their amazing work!

The zine launch is on Sat, 25 July at the (Slow) Marathon, get your printed or digital copy on the day from this page. Continue reading URgh!#1 at the (Slow) Marathon

Interview with Feral Art School

Feral Art School: an interview with Jayne Jones and Jackie Goodman

Feral Art School is a Hull-based co-operative founded in 2018. The art school offers courses in drawing, painting, printmaking and textiles, as well as day schools in fashion and documentary photography. I caught up with Jayne Jones and Jackie Goodman to find out how they set up the co-operative and hear more about the programme, their working methods and expectations for the future. Read their fascinating insights on coops, the ambiguities of their structure and the challenges and debates around funding and accreditation.

Continue reading Interview with Feral Art School

Self-organisation for a co-operative art school – Antiuniversity Now! 2020

Self-organisation for a co-operative art school

A workshop on self-organisation and collectivity for a cooperative art school

Fri, 12 Jun 2020, 6-9pm
All welcome, please book your place
This event is part of Antinuniversity Now! Festival 2020, 6-13 June

Continue reading Self-organisation for a co-operative art school – Antiuniversity Now! 2020

Artquest Research Residency at Conway Hall Library

Artquest Research Residency at Conway Hall Library

As higher education gears up for two more weeks of strikes about pensions, casualisation, workload and pay levels, and independent unions continue their campaigns on wages, outsourcing and zero hours contracts, the extent of the reforms that the 2010 student protests and occupations were fighting becomes all too clear.

Continue reading Artquest Research Residency at Conway Hall Library

Feral Art School: an interview with Jayne Jones and Jackie Goodman

Feral Art School – A new Art School for Hull - www.feralartschool.org

Feral Art School: an interview with Jayne Jones and Jackie Goodman

Feral Art School is a Hull-based cooperative founded in 2018. The school offers courses in drawing, painting, printmaking and textiles, as well as day schools in fashion and documentary photography.  They have a textiles studio and darkroom for Feral members to use as studio and teaching spaces on a cooperative and collective basis. They’ve organised exhibitions in pop up spaces and last summer they hosted the event What Artists Want: What Artists Need, to explore the future of art education, with contributors from organisations and alternative art schools from across the UK. 

Jayne Jones is a painter and Jackie Goodman is a multi-disciplinary artist and writer. They are founding members and project managers of Feral Art School. I caught up with them to find out how they set up the co-operative and hear more about the programme, their working methods and expectations for the future.  They shared fascinating insights about coops and the ambiguities of their structure, membership and constitution, and the challenges and debates around funding and accreditation.

Continue reading Feral Art School: an interview with Jayne Jones and Jackie Goodman

URgh!#1: alternative art education

URgh!#1: alternative art education

The first issue of URgh! on alternative art education includes critical essays, histories, documents, guides, interviews, fiction, poetry and visual art on alternative art schools, study groups, peer-led and self-organised education, collectivity and collaboration, co-operative art education, mutual aid, alternative economies, creative labour and the critique of neoliberal reforms in higher education. URgh!#1 on alternative art education launches on Saturday, 25 July 2020 at the Alternative Art Education (Slow) Marathon.

DOWNLOAD PDF or scroll down to ORDER A PRINT COPY

Continue reading URgh!#1: alternative art education

Festival of Alternative Art Education 2020

Festival of Alternative Art Education 2020

The Festival of Alternative Art Education 2020 has been postponed! It will now take place on 25 July 2020 at Conway Hall, bringing together alternative art schools, peer-support groups with stalls, workshops, discussions, screenings, tours, installations, performances, the exhibition The Secret Is Out: on the theme of cooperation and the launch of URgh! Zine on self-organised, DIY, peer-led art schools and collectives. Continue reading Festival of Alternative Art Education 2020

Self-organisation for a cooperative art school

Self-organisation for a cooperative art school

Fri, 12 Jun 2020, 6-9pm
Online via Jitsi Meet
All welcome, please book your place
This event is part of Antinuniversity Now! Festival 2020, 6-13 June

A workshop on self-organisation and collectivity for a cooperative art school Continue reading Self-organisation for a cooperative art school

OPEN CALL: URgh! zine #1 on Alternative Art Education

OPEN CALL: URgh! zine #1 on Alternative Art Education

Submissions are open for the first issue of URgh! on alternative art education. The zine will explore and document alternative art education in self-organised, DIY, peer-led art schools and collectives.

Continue reading OPEN CALL: URgh! zine #1 on Alternative Art Education

Conway Hall Residency: Interview 1

Conway Hall Residency 2019: Interview 1

Listen to the first interview with Nick Kaplony from Artquest on the Conway Hall Research Residency. We explore the objectives of my research at Conway Hall, the idea of a cooperative art school and some of the key concerns in my practice, such as the legitimising role of the institution and the need for alternative models of art education.

Continue reading Conway Hall Residency: Interview 1

Resources for a co-operative art school

Resources for a co-operative art school

A directory of art and education co-operatives and resources on co-ops and co-operative education (mainly in the UK). Complied in conjunction with the research project A co-operative art school? These resources accompany the directory of alternative art schools and bibliography on alternative and co-operative art education. If you would like to recommend a resource please use the contact form to get in touch.

Continue reading Resources for a co-operative art school

A co-operative art school? Workshops at Conway Hall

Workshops for a co-operative art school

What would a co-operative art school look like? How would it work? Who is it for and what would the benefits be? Come along to a series of workshops at Conway Hall to discuss these questions and collectively explore potential models for a co-operative form of art education. Please click here for more information on the workshop series. To book please follow the links below.

Continue reading A co-operative art school? Workshops at Conway Hall

Workshops for a co-operative art school

Workshops for a co-operative art school

This series of workshops will explore potential models for a co-operative form of art education. The workshops are participatory and experimental, progressing through stages and open to anyone who would like to contribute. You do not have to come to all workshops, but if you can that would enhance continuity between sessions.

Continue reading Workshops for a co-operative art school

A co-operative art school? Survey

A co-operative art school? Survey

This questionnaire surveys the current level of interest in the creation of a co-operative art school, the potential values, formats and structures of the school, and the questions that we should be asking. All fields are optional, please fill in the survey with as much information as possible. Please refer to the FAQ for background information on each question. The survey data will be collected, collated and shared anonymously for the purposes of this survey only. Your personal data will not be shared.

Continue reading A co-operative art school? Survey

A co-operative art school?

A co-operative art school?

A co-operative art school? is a research project on co-operative education, alternative art education, radical pedagogy and self-organisation, with the ultimate aim of raising awareness about cooperative art education and starting a co-operative art school. The project is supported by an Artquest Research Residency at the Conway Hall Humanist Library.

What would a co-operative art school look like? Who is it for and what would the benefits be? How would it work? These are some of the questions that this research project will address. If you would like to contribute you can fill in the survey or scroll down for more ways of getting involved. Please check back soon, this page will be updated regularly with more information and resources. To receive updates please join the mailing list.

Continue reading A co-operative art school?