Fourteenth International Conference on Design Principles & Practices

Abstract

This paper stems from a community-based art and design project entitled Shifting Ground, which was developed in 2019 and involved newly arrived migrants, as well as second-generation migrants, now living in the city of Cedar Rapids, USA. Based on the participants’ cultural heritage, the project addressed the creative process as a vehicle for dialogue and as a means of finding a sense of place in the new culture. The initiative started with a ludic interaction with the migrant citizens, followed by two ceramic sculpture workshops, and ending with an exhibition that brought together the participants and their families, some local artists and representatives of public authorities. The research focus mainly on the used methodology for the development of the co-creation work with the participants, particularly on the notion of action as a way to interact and develop the ceramic sculptures, as well as to promote the participants social and cultural integration. In this context, the concept of action is analysed as a central characteristic of the artistic practice in question and by its performative dimension, which is considered as a political tool for the empowerment of a dislocated community. In order to deepen the notions of practice, action, and performativity, some theories are taken into account, such as Hanna Arendt’s concept of action, Louis Althusser’s notion of practice, and J. L. Austin concept of performativity.

Presenters

Antonio Gorgel Pinto
Assistant Professor and Researcher, Design and Multimedia, IADE, Faculty of Design, Technology and Communication, European University, Lisboa, Portugal

Paula Reaes Pinto
Assistant Professor and Researcher, Art and Design, CHAIA | School of Arts | University of Évora, Évora, Portugal