Does formulating new research methodologies through art make sense today and how can they contribute to social democratization processes facing contemporary challenges?

Cultural animation was one of the first methods used in post-1989 Eastern Europe as part of the democratization process that started with the fall of communism in the region. Based on the British perspective of community arts, cultural animation worked with local communities engaging people in cultural/artistic projects, and believing that local involvement is the basis of a democratic society.

Today, cultural animators have their own congresses and institutions, the topic is researched and taught in universities, and it receives state funding. However, for over a decade this perspective has been undergoing a theoretical crisis, focusing more on practices than on conceptual development of the perspective. This is accompanied by the crisis of participation in arts. How to strengthen and reformulate the cultural animation methodology, so that it continues to enhance the processes of democratization of culture and does not contribute to social stratification?

For the last three years, I have been conducting research on the activities of the creative and research group "Pracownia", which is a pioneer of cultural animation in Poland. I engaged artists and scholars in research residencies. Based on my research I developed a new methodology for qualitative research through art, which I called the 6-Moves Methodology. This is a shift from animation understood as engaging in active action to animating a research attitude and critical thinking.

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Suggested reading:

Maja Dobiasz-Krysiak, "More Than a Photograph: An Analysis of the Photographs of the Interdisciplinary Creative Research Center “Pracownia” Using the Six-Moves Typology in Arts-Based Research," in: Qualitative Sociology Review.