Many of us are familiar with the increased popularity of arts-informed and arts-based research, which both integrate the arts with research processes. What if, however, art is research? How do artists engage in research through their practice and how do artists understand their art within the context of research? 

Supported by a SSHRC Partnership Engage Grant (PEG) and in collaboration with the Community Research Platform (CRP), the project is being conducted by an interdisciplinary team of representatives from both McMaster University and Centre[3] for Artistic and Social Practice (C[3]).  

This project will generate a deeper understanding of how artists are seeking knowledge and engaging in their own processes of inquiry through their artistic practices. It will additionally facilitate a nuanced understanding of how we might consider artistic process as research, encouraging us to think differently about the relationship between the arts and academia. 

The research team includes Cathy Paton (postdoctoral fellow), Colina Maxwell (Social Practice Director, C[3]), Alexe Bernier (PhD Candidate and CRP intern), Chris Sinding (Professor, School of Social Work), Sarah Sproule (Social Practice Coordinator, C[3]) and Erin Kuri (Research Coordinator).