Synopses & Reviews
The state of not knowing or engaging with the unknown is an important aspect of all research. For artists it is crucial, as the making process often balances a strong sense of direction with a more playful or meditative state of exploration and experimentation. Art practice is not only a valid mode of philosophical enquiry but also provides ways of thinking and articulating knowledge that are not utilized by other disciplines.
On Not Knowing emerges from an interdisciplinary symposium organized by Kettles Yard, University of Cambridge, in 2009. The volume, particularly relevant within the current emergence of the pedagogic turn within art practice and curation, is an important contribution to current debates around the creative process.
On Not Knowing puts the artists voice at the heart of these discussions and will inspire anyone interested in visual culture, interdisciplinarity, philosophy and art in education.
Synopsis
The state of not knowing or engaging with the unknown is an important aspect of all research. For artists it is crucial, as the making process often balances a strong sense of direction with a more playful or meditative state of exploration and experimentation. Art practice is not only a valid mode of philosophical enquiry but also provides ways of thinking and articulating knowledge that are not utilized by other disciplines. Since the Artists Placement Group in the late 1960s and 70s, the kinds of creative problem solving regularly used by artists have been applied in a variety of contexts beyond fine art, from science to the social realm.
On Not Knowing emerges from an interdisciplinary symposium organized by Kettles Yard, University of Cambridge, in 2009. The volume, particularly relevant within the current emergence of the pedagogic turn within art practice and curation, is an important contribution to current debates around the creative process.
Divided into a collection of theoretical texts and a section devoted to artists contributions, the book contains essays including:
On the value of not knowing: wonder, beginning again, and letting be”, by Dr Rachel Jones, Assistant Professor at George Mason University.
Leaping ahead of yes and no: Heidegger and the knowing unknowingness of art”, by Gary Peters, Chair of critical and cultural theory at York St John university.
Making without words; the role of the nonverbal in an artists production”, by Dr Jyrki Siukonen, Finnish Academy of Fine Arts.
Mapping Secrets: The case of Experimental Ruins”, by Luce Choules, artist, and Neal White, artist and Associate Professor of Art and Media, The Medial School at Bournemouth University.
On Not Knowing puts the artists voice at the heart of these discussions and will inspire anyone interested in visual culture, interdisciplinarity, philosophy and art in education.
About the Author
Elizabeth Fisher: Elizabeth Fisher is Curator of Exhibitions at Kettles Yard, University of Cambridge.
Rebecca Fortnum: Rebecca Fortnum is an artist and Reader in Fine Art, University of the Arts London.