Posted on 31 Mar 2003
The ACUADS newsletter is an ad hoc publication from the Australian Council of University Art and Design Schools. It aims to communicate information about activities of the Council Executive, research interests, and events and activities related to the visual art and design sector.
Contents
- ACUADS Executive Meeting
- ARC Stocktake of Humanities and Creative Arts Research
- ACUADS 2003 Annual Conference
- Foundation Studies Benchmarking Project
- Australian Council New Media Cultures Indigenous Protocol Guide
- Craft Arts 10th Anniversary Education Feature
- What’s On? – ACUADS 2003 Seminar Program | CREATE.ED 2003 Conference | C–2–C: Creator to Consumer In a Digital Age | Southern Cross Packaging Design Awards and Conference
- News and Information – Academic Vacancies | Executive Secretary and ACUADS Office at ANU
1. ACUADS Executive Meeting
The next ACUADS Executive meeting will be held at the ANU School of Art (Canberra) on Thursday 13 March 2003.
Agenda items include:
- ARC Stocktake of Humanities and Creative Arts Research
- Publications Data Base
- Foundation Studies Benchmarking project
- ACUADS – 2003
- Seminar program
- Annual Conference 2003, Hobart
- Links with ANCCA
- RSVP: Alison Munro at ANU School of Art,
- ph: 02 6125 5805, e-mail: ACUADS@anu.edu.au
2. ARC Stocktake of Humanities and Creative Arts Research & AVCC Audit Report
Immediately following the December ACUADS Executive Committee meeting, a letter from Professor Vicki Sara, CEO Australian Research Council, advised university Vice-Chancellors that the ARC was undertaking a review of the Humanities and Creative Arts (HCA) disciplines. The review, scheduled for completion in June 2003, aims at assisting universities to develop strategies to support HCA research on the basis of performance indicators derived from systematic and comparative information.
Professor Sara’s letter states:
“The review will stocktake research performance at the national level, benchmarked against international best practice. The result of the stocktake will be a better understanding of research outcomes and impacts on the economic, social and cultural benefits for Australian research in the HCA disciplines. The objectives of the stocktake are to:
Establish appropriate performance indicators for the Humanities and Creative Arts (HCA) discipline cluster; Identify strengths and opportunities for HCA research in Australia; Develop appropriate benchmarks for HCA research in Australia; and Assess the strengths of international linkages and participation in international research networks.“ Professor Sara also indicates the ARC will seek assistance in the review process with Professor Sue Rowley, Executive Director for Humanities and Creative Arts, writing to university Deputy and Pro- Vice Chancellors (Research) detailing the request for input. On behalf of ACUADS, the Chair has written to the ARC indicating the Council’s concern to be involved in the project and inviting Professor Rowley to attend the next executive meeting at ANU on 13 March 2003. Heads of Art and Design Schools are urged to contact their own university research DVC/PVC about these matters.
The ARC initiative has followed the November AVCC Audit of Year 2001 Publications Data, and its recommendations that Refereed Designs and Major Creative works categories not be included in the 2002 Data Collection. ACUADS has written to the AVCC protesting this recommendation and offering to join an expert group needed to carry out the additional work needed on criteria for these areas. Copies of relevant correspondence has been sent to Heads of Schools.
3. ACUADS 2003 Annual Conference – Call for Papers
Survey: Current art and design research and practice within Australian tertiary art and design schools Venue: Tasmanian School of Art, University of Tasmania, Centre for the Arts, Hunter Street, Sullivans Cove, Hobart Dates: 1 – 4 October 2003 Professional Convocation: 1 October 2003 Conference: 2 – 4 October 2003 ACUADS AGM: 4 October 2003
NB: The week selected for the conference is the 2003 AVCC University “Common Week”.
Call for Papers Key Dates:
31 March 2003 – 1st Closing Date for Receipt of Abstracts Abstracts must have been submitted by 31 March by those wishing to have their papers formally refereed. 30 April 2003 – 2nd Closing Date for Abstracts Abstracts can be submitted by this date by those who don’t wish to have their paper refereed. 31 May 2003 – Closing Date for Receipt of Papers for Refereeing 31 July 2003 – Final Closing Date for Receipt of Completed Papers Includes papers revised following referee reports and for those papers that do not require refereeing.
Introduction
Rather than set a theme for the 2003 conference, the 2002 AGM agreed to let the conference content be set by the current interests of Australia’s art, craft and design practitioners, historians and theorists. We also acknowledged that not all art/design school-based art, craft and design practice meets the criteria of formal academic research, and that our recent conferences have tended to privilege traditional academic research over traditional creative practice. The 2003 conference aims to include the full range of practices.
Abstracts
Therefore, this call for papers is an open invitation, we just want to know what you’re working on. Please send abstracts of no more than 500 words. These will be considered by the conference committee to determine their place within the conference program. Proposers should indicate within the covering email whether they would like to have their paper formally refereed. The conference program and sessions will be developed accordingly. We are hoping that this process will open up the conference more effectively to artists, craftspeople and designers working within tertiary institutions as well as to other academic researchers who often find that ‘‘themed’ conferences tend to be exclusive.
Refereeing
Following acceptance of abstracts, people who indicated that they’d like their paper to be refereed will be invited to prepare their full papers for formal double blind refereeing by peers. Referees will advise the committee on how best to accommodate the proposed papers within the conference: by either approving them for presentation and publication, or just for presentation, depending on the nature and intent of the paper.
Convocation 1 October 2003
The 2000 ACUADS conference initiative of informal meetings and workshops has been continued at each subsequent conference, becoming an established and valued component of the event. The 2003 pre-conference day will focus on three areas of interest: research, teaching and learning and art and design school management. The research component will be an opportunity for academics to discuss proposals under development, e.g., where funding has not yet been secured but where there may be opportunities to strengthen applications by workshopping ideas and perhaps drawing together collaborative teams from other schools. The teaching and learning sessions will provide opportunities for sharing information about new courses and subjects, administration and policy and for discussing issues of concern. The management sessions will provide opportunities for school administrators and heads of school to discuss issues and opportunities of mutual concern.
Students
Research Higher Degree student participation (papers and attendance) in our 2003 conference is encouraged. Please ensure that this invitation is extended to RHD students within your institution.
Exhibitions
We have paved the way for a limited number of exhibitions of work, discussed within the conference program, to be presented in a range of galleries and spaces within the school and city during the period of the conference. There is no funding available to support exhibitions, however, if the artists and designers concerned are able to get work to Hobart, exhibitions are possible. The intention here is to make stronger connections between the ideas discussed at the conference and the art and design work created around them – something of a return to the actual practice, to the core business of making and presenting art and design work. More details will follow about this opportunity, however, if you’re interested and want to find out more, call Noel Frankham or Yvette Watt on 03 6226 4300.
Registration
Details of how to register will be provided in the next conference update. Please note that the viability of our conference depends on your participation. Please try and break the pattern of late registrations by taking advantage of the early bird rate. It is very difficult for our conference organisers if registrations are left to the last minute. Recent ACUADS conference programs have suffered unnecessary deletions (particularly of social events and special functions) due to apparent lack of numbers, only to find that actual attendances were sufficient to have included the activity. Your timely registration will improve the quality of your conference experience.
Travel and Accommodation
We will advise of our conference accommodation options in the next update. We will endeavour to secure good rates with airlines and the ferry, and to provide accommodation opportunities from billets to five star hotels and apartments.
Web Page
We will attempt to repeat the 2000 conference arrangements by facilitating on-line registration, or at least providing the registration form electronically.
Noel Frankham, Conference Committee Chair and Yvette Watt, Conference Co-ordinator, (ph) 03 6226 4300.
4. Foundation Studies Benchmarking Project
At the Executive meeting in December it was agreed that the Executive would prepare a questionnaire to go to members to determine current practice in relation to ‘foundation’ studies or those units within their program aiming to introduce students to the degree course.
Issues to be addressed in the questionnaire to include:
- name of unit/s
- duration
- course structure
- staffing levels, including details of coordinator’s position
- progression issues e.g. mandatory completion
- resourcing.
More information will be available following the next Executive meeting in March.
5. Australian Council New Media Cultures Indigenous Protocol Guide
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Board of the Australia Council recently launched New Media Cultures – Indigenous Protocol Guide. New Media Cultures is written as a first point of reference in planning work with Indigenous practitioners or Indigenous cultural material, and is one of five Indigenous protocol guides published by the Australia Council. The guides reflect the complexity of Indigenous Australian culture, and provide information and advice on respecting Indigenous cultural heritage.
PDF versions of the guide can be downloaded from the Australia Council’s web site: http://www.ozco.gov.au/resources/publications/indigprotocols/newmedia/index.htm or requests for printed copies can be made by e-mailing publicaff@ozco.gov.au.
6. Craft Arts 10th Anniversary Education Feature
Ken Lockwood has written reminding Art Schools that the deadline for the Craft Arts 10th Anniversary education feature will be the end of February 2003. Heads of Schools are requested to supply direct to Craft Arts about 8 colour transparencies of student work for inclusion in the editorial, this year to be written by Ted Snell.
Contact: Ken Lockwood, Craft Arts International, PO Box 363, Neutral Bay, Sydney, NSW, 2089. (ph) 02 9953 8825 (e) klockwood@craftsarts.com.au.
7. What’s On?
ACUADS Seminar Program for 2003
ANU School of Art: Distance Learning When: May 2003 A one-day seminar discussing and surveying current practice and future directions in distance delivery of visual arts and design education. For more information please contact David Williams on (e) Director.ITA.Art@anu.edu.au.
TAFE and Higher Education Interface in Visual/Creative Arts
When: 1 August 2003 Hosted by the Arts Academy, University of Ballarat. For more information contact Allan Mann on (ph) 03 5327 8603, or (e) a.mann@ballarat.edu.au.
Griffith University QCA: The Memorial
When: 22 and 23 August 2003
The seminar addressing the contemporary roles of public memorial sculpture and architecture. Topics for discussion will include artistic and theoretical issues, public policy and commissioning/construction considerations.
Speakers and participants will include – some yet to be confirmed – Janet Laurence (Artist – Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Canberra & Australian War Memorial, London), Sam Di Mauro (Artist – Childers Backpackers Memorial, Queensland), Tim Hill (Architect – Donovan Hill, Brisbane), John Stafford (Director, Public Art Agency, Arts Queensland) and numerous others.
Further details will be forthcoming in due course – information is available from Paul Jolly at QCA (p.jolly@gu.edu.au).
Illuminating the Exegesis: Symposium
On Friday 28 March, the Arts Academy at the University of Ballarat will host a one-day symposium examining the ‘creative thesis’ in research degrees in a range of arts disciplines in Australian universities. Illuminating the Exegesis will draw together perspectives from a range of creative fields to examine the nature, purpose, expectations and challenges of the written component of the creative thesis. Keynote speakers include Dr Jeri Kroll, Assoc. Prof. Of English and program Coordinator of Creative Writing at Flinders University, South Australia, and Dr Robert Nelson, Assoc. Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, Faculty of Art and Design, Monash University, Victoria.
For further information please contact Joy Rothwell on (03) 5327 8603 or j.rothwell@ballarat.edu.au.
CREATE.ED 2003 Conference at RMIT
The Faculty of Art, Design and Communication at RMIT University is hosting CREATE.ED 2003, a major, refereed conference in Melbourne in October. The conference will focus on teaching and learning in creative industries, and will allow participants to network, debate and listen to conference sessions dealing with e-learning and the application of new technologies to the teaching of creative disciplines.
Conference organizers invite papers from academics, teachers and practitioners in creative industries. Papers will be fully peer reviewed and published in print and electronic form. More information on the submission process is available at the CREATE.ED web site: http://www.rmit.edu.au/adc/create-ed or by contacting Laurie Armstrong on (ph)03 9925 3923 or (e) laurie/Armstrong@rmit.edu.au.
C–2–C: Creator to Consumer In a Digital Age
A free series of industry one-day seminars is being held throughout Australia in February-March 2003, organized as part of the Creator to Consumer research project hosted by RMIT. Examining technology, markets and skills relating to contemporary publishing and book production, seminars will be held in Perth on 24 February, Adelaide on 26 February, in Sydney on 28 February, and in Melbourne on 4 March. For more information contact Dean Mason on (e) dean.mason@commonground.com.au or (ph) 03 9398 8000.
Southern Cross Packaging Design Awards and Conference
Southern Cross Packaging has announced their 2003 design awards program for students. Entry forms and design briefs will be distributed to Art and Design schools in late February, and the awards close on 6 June.
The Southern Cross packaging Design Conference will be held at ZINC, Federation Square Melbourne on 24 March. Topics will include developing and working with design briefs, judging criteria and rationale for their awards. The conference fees will be $40/$30 and registration must be made by 12 March.
For more information about the design awards or annual conference, please contact Jen Salem, Southern Cross Awards Manager on (03) 9690 1955, or by e-mail at vicdiv@packcoun.com.au.
8. News and Information
Academic Vacancies
See national newspapers or university web sites for positions vacant at NTU, Deakin and University of Canberra.
Executive Secretary and ACUADS Office at ANU
Alison Munro has been appointed as the new Executive Secretary for ACUADS and will be based at the ANU School of Art in Canberra. Until the office arrangements are finalised, please contact Alison via David Williams office telephone (02) 6125 5805, or e-mail Director.ITA.Art@anu.edu.au.