Research and Practice RV001

Below you can find all my thirteen activities for the module research and practice in order. This module helped me refresh some skills in Turnitin, critical thinking and Studynet that I had from my BA and made me understand them better. This module has also taught me to use different research methodologies to benefit my research in order to base my arguments and design decisions on a solid a reliable information source. The organisation skills that I have refined over this module have been crucial to the improvement of my research and selection of investigative work. My tutor has been a crucial in guiding me with how to polish my ideas and how to research for information more efficiently. My tutor has also given me the opportunity to calm my anxiety around my MA project, giving me detailed and descriptive feedback and reading recommendations. Now I can see my process from the beginning of the activities and captured my development and improvements in my critical thinking and efficiency research methods. I can now design and take creative decisions in a more professional way.

Why do you work in the way you do?

A lot of my work process is affected by anxiety and insecurities. I tend to doubt myself constantly and this module has helped me to keep judging myself, but in an efficient way that actually benefits my research materials and critical thinking. I would say I feel less likely to make mistakes than in the past because now I am aware of more skills about research methodologies and understanding, recognising and tracking sources and to prioritise and organise my investigative time and relevant topics.

How do you develop solutions by creative problems?

By calming down my self-doubt and researching examples of relatable data similar to the problem, by understanding the source of the problem and the consequences and by proposing a reflective and experimental range of solutions with different outcomes to choose the most beneficial one, it is a very strategic process that happens in my critical thinking. The creativity part is what forms the raw idea into a real and consistent idea proposal.

How does your work relate to other, current activity in your field?

Activity 13:

 1) You should take some time to consider your response to each question and make some notes as you do so:

Which     parts of the programme have you enjoyed most so far? Can you say why?

I would say I enjoyed being able to post on Tumblr the most. I did not have any online creative community friends yet, but I am sure I would. Meeting new creative people and having creative conversations stimulates me in a joyful manner. Also, the spoken presentation in act 12 was a challenge because I did not like my voice and I am not very experienced in video editing. This really put me out of my comfort zone and I realised how much fun and freeing it is to present work in this format.

Which     parts of the programme did you find easiest to work through? Can you say     why? Did you find the easier parts of the programme the most enjoyable or     not? Again, can you say why?

The easiest part of the programme was creating the Tumblr blog. I think this is also the reason I enjoyed this activity so much. I really enjoyed spending time reading and looking at other’s creative work in a blog format. This is because there is no rush or expectancy for comments as in the IDI forum or studio. In Tumblr, I am a stranger talking freely to other creative strangers. Something about sharing ideas this way is very liberating and put out a lot of judgment for feedback besides being visually attractive and fun to use.

Which     parts of the programme did you find the most difficult and challenging?     Can you identify the cause or causes of these difficulties? If you did     find parts of the course difficult and challenging, how did you cope with     these challenges? Did you use any particular strategies?

Besides enjoying the spoken video presentation, I feel that with this activity was the one I learned most from. This is because I have never completed a presentation in this format. It was a huge challenge to pronounce the English correctly in my video slides. I am also not familiar with video editing so I spent many hours figuring out the video editing software, DaVinci Resolve. I really liked this activity and I decided to choose the spoken video presentation and not a poster because I wanted to learn how to present in a video media format. However, it took me a while to put the activity together.

What     were the overall strengths of your working process? Can you state why you     think these were particularly effective?

I would say that the research into different research methodologies took me a while as I trying to understand act 08 and 09. This is because it is not clear or easy to present these methodologies, approaches or concepts. Online, my tutor helped me clarify my understanding and corrected me because I was lost, but now that I have understood the utility and differences between practice-based research and practice-led research. I can also see how important and how relevant these are for creative research and my own investigation in my MA project. I think understanding these methodologies will help me gather the best information towards the final MA project outcome.

  What     were the overall weaknesses of your working process? Why were these     problematic? How did you overcome any difficulties you experienced in this     area?

I would say that due that to the topics learned in this module being totally new for me, I had to find information myself. This was a difficult because in the research and activity process, I was not sure if what I was doing was the correct thing to do. The module activity were really free and independent to do, therefore all my classmates were working on the same topic but related to their own project and interests. Due to this, their feedback and approaches were totally different to mine. I would say that this module took me more time to independent investigation process and more time reading and understanding new concepts and methodologies than others.

What     do you think you have learned to date while studying at MA level? Please     try to be specific in your response. Are there specific areas or skills     that you would like to explore further?

I have learned how to properly investigate and gather information in a coherent cohesive manner that is relevant to my MA project ideas. I have also learned how to discard or measure the level of importance and hierarchy that each area of information should have. This is so that my research does not look like a compilation of random pieces of information and I think this knowledge helped me to organise and prioritise my research. I have also learned about new methodologies and ways of presenting my research and ideas. I am definitely not an expert in video editing, but I have learned how to put together a spoken-video presentation and this is something that took me lot of effort. Overall, I think my mind has a more straightforward and organised thought process to develop and based an argument for my MA project on. So far, my MA project has evolved and become something that makes sense and can be explained and supported with real life facts. This contrasts with the beginning that was only a dreamy idea of something in my mind. It made me feel that my ideas can be something useful and relevant to society and the research process and research methodology has been a huge tool for me when collecting and presenting the MA project this way.

The areas I would like and I plan to focus on further are actually the level of realistic possibilities on how my project can actually happen. I know it may not be the case, but I want for my project to be refined enough to look attractive and be considered for a real-life project.

  Which     aspect of the programme inspired you the most? Why did you find this     particular aspect of inspiring?

Activity 12 really pushed me to do something new and work towards the presentation of my MA project. I definitely spent more than a week figuring out the video editing software, DaVinci Resolve because I wanted to create a professional spoken presentation. This type of work towards the benefit of my project inspired me and put me in the mindset of aspiration goals and I am very pleased that I completed the video spoken presentation.

What     do you feel you need to do to improve your learning process in the next     modules?

I have started to contact local NHS workers and alternative wellbeing coaches to include as much detail of real-life practices towards the function of my design. This is something that I want to keep doing and gather as much information as possible. This is because I want my project to be truly useful and beneficial in function and form, not just be a good idea with good arguments. I want to be something beyond a good idea with arguments to a solution for an existing problem.

What     range of new skills and techniques did you learn and how do you think this     new knowledge will impact on your future development as a creative     practitioner?        

Video-media     presentation format

Blog     sharing creative feedback

Practice     lead and practice based research methodologies

Organization     and refinement of research information

  In     what direction do you see your practice heading now?

Activity 11: Reviewing and Improving your Blog

Does your blog present a critical record of what you have done so far?   Yes, I have been uploading each activity from act01 until today to my blog. I have also updated and shared both formats of the text and imagery from the PDF presentation document so that it is easy to read, but the reader also has access to the text if they need it.  

Is your blog a clear reflection of your theoretical and practical work? I want to think so. This will depend on how good my work is, but so far everything related to this module is uploaded and shared in the blog. This is so other people can understand the topics and understand my work from my point of view.  

Are you reflective enough in your writing and thinking? Yes, this is why I have updated the information so far, including the text format in text posts and the images from the PDF document pages as images. I have also included the references for each activity.  

Have you used the appropriate style when presenting your writing? Is your writing clear? Are there grammatical and syntactical inaccuracies? I think so. So far each activity has been approved or corrected by my tutor, so I assumed that this was good enough to keep advancing. English is my second language; therefore I always take extra time to polish the grammar which is usually the most tedious part. However, my tutor has made no critiques about it so far; therefore I assumed it was correct.  

Act 10 text

 We would like you to work in a creative way on your idea of ‘Movement’.

Movement is the tool that living creatures have to advance and therefore evolve. Since the beginning of life, cells started becoming stronger, more complex and surviving longer due to the capacity for movement when seeking shelter, food and other cells to unite with. Even in current times, the human body is composed of cells that still follow this path of movement to develop. In the subconscious, the human kind travels as nomads to also seek shelter, food and to unite with some of its kind. Therefore, the movement is not an immediate benefit, but is an important step in the progress of the wellbeing in any living creature, especially humans. The mental illnesses have increased drastically over the COVID-19 pandemic due to people not moving as freely and as socially as they wish.

Movement is also therapeutic due to the explained reasons. For example, the actions of moving to healing or improving have been deeply studied and practiced by physiologists, yoga instructors, Pilates instructors, fitness coaches, physiologists and psychiatrics who encourage daily walks.

You should begin by considering how you would respond to the following questions:

How would you develop the topic?

I think in order to include movement in a creative practice related to interior architecture, it is necessary to consider the main focus of movement for the contemporary user which are:

Visual movement: The visual effect that an object suffers by perspective or illumination that makes them appears visually in movement.

Physical movement: The action and suggestion of a space to use, done by movement or transit around the space.

Circumstantial movement: The encouragement of power that a space has to make the user feel moved or to introspect. This focus of movement is not only to encourage the movement within the framed design space, but also to make the user want to practice movement by itself, like when going to an art gallery. The circumstantial art may not be accessible to visit every day, but encourages the user to see art elsewhere and be more creative themselves.

What would the final outcomes be?

The final outcome should be a place that can transmit movement by the focus of the design. The visual, the physical and the circumstantial should be the base of the concept design so that in each part, movement becomes present in the user’s mindset.

What methodology would you choose for your creative investigation into the topic of ‘Movement’?

Practice-based research:

Due to the necessary format of text in the investigation analysis, the result and analysis of a creative artefact, this indicates to me that the best methodology is practice-based research. However, this methodology can be used with other ones too for the final outcome.

I will talk with a professional that is dedicated to encouraging movement in life of user for their wellbeing and also practice it myself and study this through my own experience, resulting in a better space for more users to gain an efficient and positive impact via movement.

 “Movement” is a wide topic and this will give you freedom when you are developing your own ideas and using your own discipline.

Via practice based research, I will have the tools to experience how movement really impacts my mind and my perceptions of surroundings. Everyone is different and my experience does not mean that it is going to be the correct one. This practice has to be balanced with interviews with at least 2 different practices of movements that relate to my design proposal. For instance, this could be the combination of 3 opinions and experiences towards visual, physical and circumstantial movements, including mine. I think this can be a rich piece of research to base my design ideas on.

Kinetic art artist interviews and users as visual movement

Yoga, Pilates and fitness coach opinions and experiences such as physical movement.

People who have travel, move country or change opinions drastically as circumstantial movement.

Visit a kinetic art exhibition

Practice those physical activities

Please write a short proposal of between 300 and 400 words in length on how you would develop a creative research project on ‘Movement’.

I think that I will use the practice-based research methodology to create this research project because I will have to focus the information on the effects of creative artefacts like paintings, sculptures and dance that are based on creative work that generate topics for research. I would say that this research needs to focus on a specified research area like the impact on the socialisation, mental health and wellbeing of the users. Due to this, my analysis is focused on specific points where I can create new arguments based on these creative practices. This information can also be used on how to display and present the creative work/activities to a determine population or community.

It will benefit the outcome and the way that the movement in creative practices can be displayed in museums or spaces for the targeted community.

The space can be a gallery area that displays kinetic pieces and the paintings indoors and the sculptures outdoors whilst hosting indoor and outdoor therapeutic activities that encourage movement like yoga, Pilates, mindfulness and Zumba.

Act 9

How would you define your practice in relation to the concept of practice as research, practice-based and practice-led research?

so far in my practice have used without having knowledge of “practice as research methodology” because I have develop my ideas and argument mainly on the effect of arts like music, dancing and other fiscal activities as therapy and mental/emotional health, therefore  practice as research methodology was a way that I have start to creating my investigation without knowing that this was a specific methodology, now I have been developing more in details my ideas and attached them to an specific  real existing site and real community so I have starting to actually speaking  with the users of that community by social distance walk and conversations, which show me and drive me to  experience with the users how certain project and design will fell and impact this area, I will not say I have put myself in the shoes of those users because I cannot physically moved there for a week or 2 to actually experience how my design and concept ideas will actually impact the environment, life and mindset but from a practical point of view  practice based research is a type of methodology witch I get very closed with those practices and interactions with the users, and finally I think that practice lead research is a path witch I am looking forward to get with real interviews to mental health professionals and entrepreneurs, so far I have spoken with the owners and coordinators of a yoga retreat space but this was by email and very brief, I think the practice lead research methodology  will enriched me and help me to achieve the outcome of my research work, i am very lucky to found a methodology that encourage and support me research process i will say that practice led research is a powerful tool with prove and explain any argument correctly academically and realistically.

It is believed that artistic research processes are often iterative or cyclic. Do you agree?

I agree but not only this fact is true for the creative/artistic research, I think even in science, mathematics, biology ,language among others more technical and factual nature of  research or investigative work is always evolving and adding new information, this is why professionals that are passion ate about their discipline at any job really never stop learning because every day something new is created or analysed and this information is a constant cycle, it is naïf to think that at some point is impossible to not keep learning about a topic or discipline.

In creative or artistic research processes the cyclic and iterative movement are more frequent and obvious than in other disciplines, but i think nowadays this is a vastly point to considered when taking and analysis information of research of any kind.

 What is your understanding of the iterative cyclic web model as illustrated in the introduction to the book edited by 'Smith, H. & Dean, R. (2009) which is entitled, “Practice-led Research, Research-led Practice in the Creative Arts'?

i have read a pre-view and some resume of this book online in order to create a inform response to this question, and my understanding is that the author is explaining how globalization and interdisciplinary practices are getting into a relationship of mutual benefit and relevancy to each other, practice led research and research led practice is basically the same methodology but for different purposes,  to investigate gather information and other to practice within a better outcome a determine work or performance, either way one is effect and consequence of the other, and again I don’t think this is something exclusive to creative arts, this methodology can be used and benefits in technological and scientific industries also.

How is a given methodology relevant to your own research proposal?

I think the research lead practice is the most efficient tool for me to used to gather information about how can i benefits the community that my project is based on, I want that my project become a tool for the community and the only way to actually understand this community is by take the lead practice as a research, i have start to do some interviews to locals and collect data from the NHS and official government websites, but this will never reflect as effective the contextualized reality and understanding that the action of to put myself in the position of those users by first person the research led practice will do to my information for design improvement,

Which is the more effective: using one methodology or more methodologies?

Would you use multiple methodologies in your research? Why?

Practice research:

This is a way of researching based on being able to use creative practices for obtaining information that can be analysed for a defined purposed. An example of this is when psychologist analyses a child’s drawings to understand circumstances that they cannot explain. I think this is an example of practice research. This type of methodology can be used in creative research because in nature, the activity of practice is creative. The practice research is based on the act of reacting and doing the practice, therefore creativity of the individuals form part of this methodology. Therefore, many other methodologies of research can be applied to create a combined conclusion of the information. For instance, when researching animals like monkeys, I think practice research can be beneficial when calculating how much awareness an animal can develop, but also observations and experiments among other methodologies. Within the creative practice, practice research should be considered to capitalise as much as possible on the recollection of data for the critical thinking. Practice research should be used as a tool to benefit from art mediums to understand some cultural or social circumstances.

Practice-based research:

This is investigating the art medium’s tools and trying to perform them in first person and understand what content is holding that specific practice result.

When collecting information and analysis for a topic and in the process investigation is the use of a creative artefact, then this is catalogues as practice-based research. As I understand, the methodology of practice-based research is the research where any creative practice or creative object is involved in the development of that work that associates with the text material.

Practice-led research:

This can be applied to many methodologies and I will explain this as the role that an actor takes when performing a character. When doing practice-led research, you investigate and collect as much information as possible to analyse to a new understanding, As a researcher goes deeper into whatever topic is being investigated to gain new knowledge that leads to a new understanding, practice-led research is the practice that leads towards new information research and is different from practice-based research. This is because it is not basing their research on any creative artefact processes and only leads to new information.

Can all methodologies be used in creative research? If yes, why? If not, why not? Please respond by taking into account each of the methodologies listed in the additional support materials.

I think that all these methodologies should be considered when performing creative research because this is the way to prove and support ideas and arguments. Practice-led research in particular is important when trying to explain a new topic and concept. I think that practice-based research can probably get a bit complicated if the researcher does not find access to the creative artefact or object to produce their investigation. Depending on the nature of the investigation, one will be more convenient or necessary than the other.

Are there methodologies that seem particularly appropriate to creative research? Why? Please try to be specific in your analysis.