Community Arts Research Articles

Research on the Construction of Urban Art Community under the EPS Perspective Valve: Theoretical Framework, Mechanism and Realization Strategy

Research on the Construction of Urban Art Community under the EPS Perspective Valve: Theoretical Framework, Mechanism and Realization Strategy

Exploring the Painting Artist Perceptions Towards Their Career Sustainability in Pokhara

This qualitative study investigates sustainable career perceptions among painting artists in Pokhara, utilizing pseudo names for participants: Ram, Hari, Purnima, and Kalpana. Through purposive sampling, semi-structured interviews was conducted to gather insights. Thematic analysis was applied to identify patterns and themes within the data. Ethical considerations, such as informed consent and participant confidentiality, was strictly followed. By employing these methods, this study shed light on the intricacies of sustaining an art career in Pokhara. This study reveals how personal passion and adaptability influence painting artists’ careers in Pokhara, emphasizing their contribution to personal fulfillment, the art community, and society. It underscores the importance of resilience, personal branding, financial awareness, and gender dynamics in navigating challenges. Art communities and organizations can use the insights of this study to develop collaborative initiatives that support artists, encourage networking, and nurture emerging talents, ultimately contributing to a thriving art community.

Akuntansi Seni Jaranan Pada Masyarakat Kalibaru Dengan Pendekatan Etnografi

The research aims to depict and interpret accounting practices within the Jaranan art community and understand the accounting concept within the cultural context of Jaranan art. Cultural art is created by humans as a symbol of belief in the surrounding environment, reflecting back to the creator to follow their teachings. The Jaranan art in Kalibaru is known as Jaranan Campursari Turonggo Sakti. The author observes Jaranan art in Kalibaru as an organization and a means of livelihood for artists involved in this Jaranan art group. Data were obtained from informants (members of the Jaranan art cultural group) through in-depth interviews and documentation. The reconstruction of the accounting concept within Jaranan art indicates that the community views accounting as something that could be done merely as an imagination without undergoing the recording process, which complicates the task for administrators document it. Instead, they rely solely on values of honesty and responsibility.

“链上的艺术”: 元宇宙视域下NFT数字艺术发展与审美价值探索

The integration of digital technology with cultural consciousness has led to its widespread use in the field of culture and art. Digital art has become a popular cultural phenomenon, promoting the development of this field. As digital art gains wider acceptance as a form of artistic expression, it is increasingly used in creative works. This paper focuses on digital art as a research subject to explore its design thinking and aesthetic value. This text presents a systematic analysis of the current situation and attributes of NFT digital art, including its financial and social domain attributes. Practical cases are used to illustrate the emergence of NFT digital art in Chinese culture and market. The relationship between NFT digital art and aesthetics is thoroughly examined in terms of aesthetic thinking. The study also delves into the redefinition of aesthetics in the digital era, offering new perspectives on its future development. This paper focuses on the artistic creation of NFT digital art in historical restoration, virtual reality, and augmented reality experiences. It reveals the value transcendence of NFT digital art in the historical meta-universe. The paper forms a value-generating circuit model of NFT artwork starting from technology through theoretical sorting and multi-level comparison. The meta-universe field is the subject of study, with a focus on the centralized, decentralized, and de-centralized artwork value negotiation modes of digital auction platforms, virtual art communities, and interactive art worlds. The text comprehensively discusses the evolutionary trends of technical and economic value bubbles, social and usage value highlighting, and aesthetic and contextual value stabilization presented by NFT artworks.

Imagery and compositional solutions of rural landscape in Sverdlovsk/Ekaterinburg painting art of the last third of the 20th century

The article examines the relationship between the theme and its plastic realization in rural landscape painting art of Sverdlovsk/Yekaterinburg. At the height of the landscape genre owing to the active involvement of the professional artistic community in it, the works of outstanding masters acquired independence and freedom of expression. Analysis of compositions and imagery in works of similar motif showed a wide coverage of the surrounding reality in the depiction of villages as reflected in the choice of themes and active search for means of artistic expression.

A Study on the Sustainability of Handicraft Artisans in Telangana State - A Case Study of Karimnagar District

Although it is a common misconception that Indian handicrafts have a long history of international fame or recognition all over the world, the reality is different because the starving and impoverished handicraft artisans who produce them do not receive any fame or recognition. This priceless cultural treasure is under attack from both internal and external forces for several reasons. The study investigates a variety of issues affecting artisans who work on handmade goods. Many Indian and foreign tourists have long been drawn to the beauty and charm of its handicrafts. The talented artisans may create beautiful items of crafts from basic materials. To improve their quality of life, however, the artisan community must be helped with several issues. The issues related to various problems of handicraft artisans such as financial, production, labor, technical, marketing problems etc. Finding the strengths, eliminating the flaws, seizing the possibilities, and being well-prepared to face the problems by turning them into new opportunities are all important for the sustainability of handicrafts. The opinions of respondents regarding the strengths, problems, prospects (opportunities), and challenges have been gathered so that their perceptions can be thoroughly studied, with the help of consultation with various experts working in this field and references of secondary data. Here, the main goal of this paper is to look at the problems and difficulties that handicraft artisans face as well as the future of the handicraft industry. This will help with strategic planning and decision-making as well as help identify the best course of action for strengthening the position of handicraft artisans who work in the handicraft industry.

Theological and Historical Aspects of the Epistolary Legacy of Schema-hegumen Ioann (Alekseev), St. Ioann of Valaam, the Valaam Elder

The article introduces the personality and epistolary legacy of Schema-hegumen Ioann (Alekseev), who pursued asceticism at the Valaam Monastery of the Transfiguration of the Saviour from 1901 to 1958. After the revolution, the territory on which the monastery stood became part of independent Finland. Consequently, the Elder spent most of his life detached from his homeland. During the Winter War of 1939–1940 between the Soviet Union and Finland, the brotherhood was evacuated deep into Finland, where they founded the New Valaam Monastery. From 1945 to 1957, the monastery was under dual jurisdiction: administratively, it was under the Finnish Church Administration, while canonically, it belonged to the Moscow Patriarchate. Since 1938, Schema- hegumen Ioann had been fulfilling the duties of the spiritual father of the monastery, giving guidance to Russian-speaking pilgrims. At the New Valaam Monastery, the ascetic became widely known as an experienced spiritual mentor. His spiritual disciples included priests, laypeople, former members of the Imperial Court, representatives of the artistic community, and ordinary individuals. Many of them received spiritual guidance from him through correspondence, which was eventually published In 1956, a collection of his letters in Russian was released at New Valaam. From 1961 to 1963, the letters were published in the émigré journal L’Eternel (The Eternal) in France. In the USSR, the Elder’s letters became known in 1958 in samizdat (underground press) format, reproduced using typewriters. In 1985, a portion of the letters was presented in the “Journal of the Moscow Patriarchate”. The collection has been reprinted multiple times and translated into other languages. In Russia, starting from 2000, the Valaam Elder’s letters have been published almost every year, becoming a kind of “handbook for the modern Christian”. Schema-hegumen Ioann did not aim to construct a logically refined theological system; his service was focused on caring for those in spiritual need. When expounding on fundamental doctrines, he relied on the Gospel and the teaching of the Fathers of the Church. His theology was not an intellectual discipline or a theory of the world’s order but an experiential communion with God, rooted in personal transformation experience. In his letters, he sometimes touched upon the issues of the contemporary church life and politics. The article highlights and analyzes the principal theological and historical aspects of the epistolary legacy of the Valaam ascetic.

Contribution of Female Leaders in Sports and the Attitude of Males towards Promoting Gender Diversity in Beijing, China

This study aims to explore the perceptions and attitudes of male leaders in Chinese sports organizations regarding gender diversity. The research will involve male teachers, instructors, and organizational leaders at Beijing Capital Institute of Physical Education. A questionnaire will be used to assess the demographic profile of the respondents, the leadership role of women martial artists, and the contributions of women in the martial arts community. The study targeted around 150 respondents. The results show a significant correlation between male leaders' attitudes towards martial arts education and their perception of the contributions of female leaders in the industry. This suggests that male leaders can play a crucial role in creating an equitable and representative leadership landscape in the sports industry. Their positive attitudes towards gender diversity can foster an environment where all individuals, regardless of gender, have equal opportunities to succeed and contribute to the growth and success of the sports industry.

Modeling the Creative Milieu of Cosmopolitan Cities: Shanghai, 1912–1948

This research paper gleans insights from significant historical cases to unravel the essence of a ‘creative milieu.’ Our study scrutinizes the factors that shaped artists’ settlement patterns in Shanghai during the Republican era (1912–1948) by constructing both global and local spatial regression models across three pivotal years, thus unveiling seven distinct variable categories. We argue that paramount among these attributes are individual art intermediaries, art schools, and art organizations. Furthermore, our inquiry acknowledges the diverse and idiosyncratic characteristics inherent to artistic communities and delineates between attributes of particular relevance to the Chinese context and those adaptable within a Western paradigm.

Censorship and the Nationalization of Dance in India: An Overview from 1947 to the Present

In this essay, I present a broad overview of the intersections between dance and censorship in independent India. I try to explore the consequent exclusions within the mainstream dance discourse and practices as they were shaped by hegemonic forces of nationalism. I also look at how the changes in instruments and objectives of censorship reflect changing visions of nationalism. Thisessay broadly examines two major forms of censorship, both of which have been crucial in the appropriation and reconstruction of dance as an integral part of the nationalist cultural identity of India. First, there are the overt forms of censorship, which have been enforced by instruments of state power like legislation and statutory bodies. The post-independence government enacted the Madras Devadasis (Prevention of Dedication) Act 1947 and Cinematograph Act 1952 ostensibly for socialreformandprotectionofpublicmorality,butineffectthey carried forward socio-political biases of Orientalism and colonialism into the postcolonial project of constructing the Indian imaginary. The process necessitated the elimination of hereditary artist communities and professional women performers (and many of their movement idioms) from mainstream practices of dance, even as their art was decontextualized and reconstructedtosuittheofficiallysanctifiedhighculture. This mode of erasure also influenced popular forms ofdance, especially those appearing in Indian cinema, by inscribing them with nationalist notions of womanhood, sexuality, and, more recently, religious majoritarianism. Second, I trace the covert operation of censorship, in which state institutions play a key role in the support and promotion of art. Through selective funding and promotion, conferring privileging labels like “classical,” and presiding over the formalization and classicization of dance, these institutions helped fit dance practices within the nationalist framework of a normative Indian cultural identity that is predominantly Hindu and rahminical. This process resulted in hierarchization, stigmatization, and even omission of certain dance practices, some of which I have highlighted in this essay. The sustained influence of direct and indirect modes of censorship created standardized codes of aesthetics and performance practices, contributing to a chilling effect and leading practitioners to censor themselves. Finally, I argue that the centrality of dance in the national cultural discourse enabled its use as propaganda to censor negative actions of or perceptions about the government. The phenomenon, which may be described as artwashing, has become increasingly prominent in the contemporary context of Hindu majoritarian nationalism seeking to launder itsexclusionary tendencies in the process of redefining Indian cultural identity on its terms. Thus, I argue that censorship in the domain of dance has played not just a repressive role but also a productive role by enabling discourses of nationalism. It has acted as a tool of governmentality, by which nationalist ideologies have been established and reinforced to public, such that they are no longer confined to the sphere of the state but have percolated down to the conduct of individuals.

Performance, Structure and Functions of Riddle Game in Həba Community

The Həba (Kilba) people live in northern Adamawa State of Nigeria. Həba is the people, while nya Həba is the language. The people have many rich verbal arts which include folktales, songs, proverbs and riddles. This study aims to examine the performance, structure and functions of riddle game as one of the genres of oral literature. The data for the study was obtained through recording of riddles performed in natural settings. Also, the people older than the researchers were interviewed in order to gather information the functions of riddle game in Hǝba community. Descriptive survey was employed for the study in order to interpret, describe, explain and discuss the data in its natural state. Qualitative method was therefore adopted for the analysis of the riddles in the corpus of the study. The result showed that the Həba folk riddles have some peculiar organizational and syntactic structures. The organizational structures include invitation to play riddle game, challenging, unraveling, penalising, and turn-taking. The analysis of the syntactic structure of the riddles revealed that the riddle acts are highly standard expressions that permit little or no variations. The art of riddling constitute part of the ancient educational and recreational systems of the Həba people. As a community art, riddle telling enhances cognitive development, promotes social cohesion and unity among the children. This paper therefore aims to examine peculiarity of the performance, the structure, and the functions of riddle as verbal art in Hәba community.

Портрет художника в контексте эпохи: Саэки Юдзо

The study aims to recreate the portrait of the Japanese artist Saeki Yuzo (1898-1928), a representative of the “yoga” movement, in the context of his contemporary era. The author addresses the transformation of the Japanese art community of the Meiji and Taisho eras, identifies the peculiarities of formation of the “yoga” and “nihonga” painting trends in Japanese art, considers the main periods of Saeki Yuzo’s life and creative work (the first Paris period, the creation of Italian watercolors, return to Japan, the second Paris period). The paper is novel in that it is the first to determine how the traditions of the East and the West are interpreted in the works of the artist. As a result, the author substantiates the thesis that Saeki Yuzo was a follower in the context of European art and an innovator at home; the artist’s contribution marked a new stage in Japanese modernism – the transition from impressionism to Fauvist expressionism.

The Dance of Agencies in AI Art–Beyond the Creator-Tool Dichotomy, a Netnographic Analysis of Reddit Forums

Abstract This article analyzes the impact of generative artificial intelligence (AI) systems on contemporary AI-based art generation practices. As algorithms display nascent creativity, they catalyze philosophical questions regarding the role of technology in artistic creation. However, the influence of AI on art creation, perception, and consumption remains unexplored by empirical research. This article integrates the theoretical frameworks of post-phenomenology and actor-network theory to investigate how generative AI technologies mediate creators’ perception, agency, and imagination. It explores how human–algorithm assemblages may expand possibilities while also obscuring the anthropocentric constructs underpinning art. It uses netnography of artistic communities in the Reddit website to explore the tensions arising as human rationalities and intentions collide with algorithmic logics and constraints. The findings reveal generative AI’s potential to delegate intentionality as well as its potential influence on agency, rationality, and memory. Using empirical grounding, this study elucidates the complex entanglements among artists, algorithms, artwork, and the public in the emerging generative AI terrain.

Documenting Australian Society – Performing Arts Community of Practice

While the performing arts are a vitally important dimension of the cultural life of Australia, the performances themselves are often ephemeral and difficult to document in an enduring form. This article describes a successful, collaborative, community of practice-based model for ensuring the creation and curation of performing arts documentation in Australia. The collaboration involves key national professional and industry organisations and peak bodies, working together to ensure that important documentation is identified, preserved, and made available via the AusStage research and discovery platform.

On public participation in efforts to beautify the towns and cities of Galicia in times of its autonomy. Prolegomenon

This paper is an introduction to studies of Urban Beautification Societies (“UBSs” in the plural) active in times of Galicia’s autonomy (1867–1914). The Societies were community organisations set up in many cities and towns across Galicia from the 1880s onwards with a view to improve the aesthetic in public urban space. To Galicia, years of its autonomy yielded years of considerable expansion of civic freedoms, including the re-enacted right to association. Formed by individuals with university education, UBSs were popular throughout Galicia, their structure frequently reflecting the local cross-section and specificity of social strata. Established in large, medium-sized, and small cities and towns (such as Cracow and Lviv; Przemyśl; Wadowice and Wieliczka), they attempted to reach their goals chiefly through establishing urban parks and green squares (often as not with accompanying infrastructure, such as tennis courts or bowling alleys); planting trees in market and other public squares and along communication routes; developing aesthetically pleasing small architecture; and taking initiative to erect monuments and install commemorative plaques, usually commissioned with eminent artists. The latter – in large cities in particular, where art communities were large and powerful – were occasionally UBS co-organisers and members, and thus capable of considerable influence over any Society activities, potentially including publishing, graphic artists and painters especially prominent therein.

Consciousness and Commodity: Towards A Critical Theory of Genre in American Popular Music

Genre, particularly in the popular music industry, can be understood as a perpetual cycle – from the origin of a new sound or ‘scene,’ recognition by critics and tastemakers, commercialization as a canonized genre, and finally its rejection and/or reinvention by a new generation of artists seeking to establish their own new forms. In America, these musical communities have been most often grounded in racial, regional, or sexual preference identities, as these ties have been the most meaningful to listeners. Over time, the reactionary resistance of these artistic communities and practices produces music that is itself codified as a new product line, confirming the relentless cycle of genre. In this paper, I utilize three case studies ranging from the fabrication of ‘hillbilly’ music in the 1920s, Disco Demolition Night and resistance to the popularity of disco in the late 1970s, and the rise and popularization of hip hop in the 1980s help show different moments on the cycle of genre creation and the resistance that emerges. Finally, this paper will point to indications that the advent of streaming music is leading to the obsolescence of the traditional production of genre.
 We are witnessing the rapid rise and fall of new musical non-genres, epitomized by hyperpop, a ‘genre’ that lacks any core common attributes. If genre is a tool to construct the self and, at times, enable communities of resistance, a world without lasting musical genres presents implications and challenges for the future of identity and social change.

SUSTAINING THE CULTURAL HERITAGE: HANDLOOMS IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

Traditional textiles in India have been a reflection of its rich cultural heritage for ages. In today’s global world, these products have been extensively commercialized to the extent of losing their authenticity. The artisan communities need to be abreast with current market trends in order to create a demand for their products. The empowerment of the craft ecosystem demands sincere efforts on the part of craft practitioners to facilitate product diversification and wider market reach. However, artisanal products need to be put at the forefront of any design intervention without losing the essence of the original craft.Himachal Pradesh is not only rich in biodiversity but also in various crafts like metal, weaving, knitting, and painting. In this paper, an effort has been made to catalog the products of traditional Kullu Handloom weaving with the raw materials used, the process followed, motifs and colour palette etc. Moreover, initiatives taken by Ms. Anshul Malhotra, a well-known craft entrepreneur in Himachal Pradesh for popularizing the traditional woven designs of the Kullu and Kinnaur region in India and abroad have been reported. Design interventions made by combining new colors and exploring different combinations of yarns and weaves by Ms Anshul Malhotra would serve as a guiding source for the design and artisan communities alike.

Spinning Circle at the Mill

Spinning Circle at the Mill

AI in the Public Eye

A taster summary of our FAccT 2023 paper in Chicago. Strategies developed within the critical art community – before and since the arrival of powerful new generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and Midjourney – can help to enrich the public conversation on AI and equip practitioners to respond to the fast paced developments in the field.

Sentiment analysis of online responses in the performing arts with large language models

Opinion mining is a technique extracting and analyzing people's opinions from online communities, and sentiment analysis is a kind of opinion mining analyzing attitudes of people toward an object, whether positive, negative, or neutral. Sentiment analysis has evolved alongside natural language processing models and applied to targets such as movie reviews. However, the performing arts have not been subjected to sentiment analysis as movie reviews, despite the apparent need for it. In this study, we used the Korean Funnel Transformer11 language model to perform sentiment analysis on performing arts. This study looks at people's reactions to performing arts in online communities, not just whether they agree or disagree, and shows the problems with applying existing sentiment analysis to performing arts.