Contact zones: relational encounter in contemporary fine art practice

Smith, Roy (2008) Contact zones: relational encounter in contemporary fine art practice. Other thesis, University for the Creative Arts/University of Kent.

Creators:
Smith, Roy
Description/Abstract:

In contemporary art there exists a developing relation between art and viewer, and artist and viewer, to the extent that this can become a relational collaboration between artist and subject, be that subject the artwork itself or the communication between peers. This relational shift in the definition of contemporary art practices attempts to define a way of working that is inclusive and discursive. In recent years the work that exists between artists
and individuals in collaboration has been termed 'relational art'.
In what ways do 'relational' art practices create opportunities for 'relational encounter'? In order to address this question I shall look at the development of social art practice in recent decades and explore the shift from activist practices of the 1980's to current debates concerning the nature of relational practices today, particularly issues concerning spaces of relations and forms of collaboration that accept conversation as its focus and include the contingent aspects of dialogue and encounter in order to explore the relational. Art practice that is not dependent exclusively upon secondary representations within an institutional setting, be that the gallery or museum, but rather a theory of practice that exists within a relational encounter at the primary site that becomes the focus and the intention of the work.

Item Type:
Thesis
Date:
2008
Additional Information:

This thesis has been digitised by the Library at the University for the Creative Arts (UCA), for the purposes of preservation and dissemination.

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Uncontrolled Keywords or tags :
video art, relational art
Depositing User:
Amy Robinson
Date Deposited:
11 Aug 2014 15:19
Last Modified:
19 Sep 2023 10:38
URI:
https://research.uca.ac.uk/id/eprint/1749

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