Gray's School of Art

Fieldworks: Transdisciplinary Practices and Public Engagement

We invite research proposals exploring transdisciplinary approaches to fieldwork, engaging embodied, sensory, and material knowledge within contemporary art and allied disciplines.

Award

MRes | MPhil | PhD | MSc by Research

Start Date

Usually February and October - at individual School's discretion

Research Opportunities

Summary

We seek PhD proposals that critically examine innovative fieldwork practices in contemporary art and related fields. Our focus is on practical, experimental and "speculative fieldwork" approaches and particularly posthumanist perspectives, where traditional boundaries between disciplines, species, and knowledge systems are blurred, opening up new ways of understanding and engaging with the world. Through embodied, sensory, and material ways of knowing, this PhD would explore how artist-researchers collaborate across disciplines—including scientific disciplines such as ecology and zoology and within explicitly transdisciplinary projects—to challenge conventional aesthetic frameworks and reshape knowledge structures.

We are particularly interested in proposals that approach these collaborations from feminist or other critical perspectives, considering how interdisciplinary practices can question and transform dominant cultural narratives. Proposals might explore how knowledge is generated and shared through practices that span the arts, sciences, and humanities, offering new insights into ecological and social relations, multispecies interactions, and the role of aesthetics in rethinking human-nature relationships.

Applicants should have a strong interest in the politics and practices of public engagement, especially through participation and partnerships with art organisations, community groups, or other cultural institutions.

The research might examine how collaborative projects in public spaces or exhibitions can foster community interaction, invite diverse perspectives, and promote social change. We encourage candidates to consider the ethical dimensions of fieldwork in both its content and methodologies, examining how speculative and experimental practices contribute to broader societal conversations.

Ideal candidates will have a background in contemporary art, social sciences, or humanities, with an interest in field-based research and interdisciplinary collaboration. This research offers an opportunity to contribute to a growing field of inquiry at the intersection of art, transdisciplinary sciences, and public engagement.