The absenting subject: research notes on PhDs in Fine Art

Abstract

This article draws on a research study of submitted PhDs and interviews with a small group of artists. Research processes adopted by this diverse group manifest an exacting scrutiny of what it means to undertake research, that is, how research process can conceive of a subject of enquiry and adequately approach that subject. We find a high level of questioning about the legitimacy of research methodological assumptions about how and in what ways research methods become valid. For instance, is research that pursues and reinforces a proposed subject more useful to a depth of practice than one that resists any resolved confirmation of its subject because that subject is porous to its prevailing conditions both internal and external? We propose that such accountability, in relation to more conventional approaches to research, is entirely relevant to the development of vital research cultures in Fine Art.

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