Introducing the Asia Pacific Artistic Research Network channel for the Journal of Artistic Research

The development of artistic research has had a strong focus in Europe and the former British colonies, reflecting the critical restructuring of educational institutions and research policymaking in the wake of extensive debates on art’s role in knowledge production. Throughout the Asia Pacific region, initiatives to support artistic research have been sporadic, and not always well networked across disciplines and national contexts. For this reason, the Asia Pacific Artistic Research Network (APARN) was formed as a partnership between the University of Melbourne, and Institut Seni Indonesia Yogyakarta to provide a connection point for artistic researchers working in, from, or to the region.

APARN is now established as a Special Interest Group at the Society for Artistic Research, and has over 160 members in our Google Group, which is open to all artistic researchers working in and from the region. Part of the function of the SIG is working through issues of coloniality in artistic research, and in developing the artistic research community to include a broader reach of practitioners from across the region.

The overall goals of the network are to:

• Map artistic research initiatives and activities in the Asia Pacific region
• Provide a regional framework for practical collaboration between individuals and institutions
• Develop an understanding of local cultural dynamics influencing artistic research activities in the Asia Pacific region

Toward these goals, APARN has held annual meetings since 2019, and a forthcoming book Rebordering the Archipelago to be published by Perimeter Editions in 2024 as well as contributing to other artistic research events in Indonesia, India, and the Philippines. The 2024 meeting will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - keep an eye on the APARN website at http://aparn.net and a call will be placed via SAR Announcements - register on the Research Catalogue to receive announcements from the Society for Artistic Research.

This channel is intended to both be a place where JAR’s content that is relevant to the region can be highlighted, and a space where other kinds of submissions can be hosted that illustrate the diversity of artistic research practices in the region.

The APARN Channel

The APARN Channel is launching with three exciting articles emerging from presentations at the APARN 2023 meeting “The Matter of Art” which was held in Yogyakarta in July 2023:

1. Dominique Lammli explores Art in Action Research as a grounded methodology for artistic research,
2. Ika Yuliani considers materiality in Jatiwangi Art Factory’s New Rural Agenda featured in documenta15,
3. Dyah Retno researches the processing of waste clay as a medium for ceramic works.

Further submissions from this event will appear in the channel in the coming months.

As well, we draw attention to historical publications in JAR that address issues from the region, including:

Premjish Achari on what art wants from artistic research; Ella Reidel’s exposition on Ghost Cities in China; Srisrividhiya Kalyanasundaram’s investigation of classical Indian philosophy and aesthetics from JAR issue 20; and Geetanjali Sachdev’s investigation of the pedagogic possibilities of rangoli and kolam floor art practices from JAR issue 26. 

We welcome proposals for contributions to the channel - please contact the editors Danny Butt, Kurniawan Adi Saputro, and Gunalan Nadarajan at [email protected]