Research Catalogue

Off-Season is a female collective active since 2023. Its members come from diverse disciplines, areas of research and geographic backgrounds. We all share the view that in today’s neoliberal economies of increased privatization of public spaces and natural resources it is urgent to rethink bathing culture as a medium -or perhaps antidote- to a culture of exhaustion and extraction. Baths have served as vital sources of healing, connection, collectivity, and cultural heritage for countless generations, embodying the enduring relationship between human and non-human worlds.

This research introduces Psychoformism, an innovative artistic style synthesizing form, emotion, and subconscious energy into a unified aesthetic expression. Positioned within the broader discourse of art history, Psychoformism proposes a fluid, dynamic visual language that transcends traditional bodily representation. The style aims to shift the viewer's role from passive observer to active participant by visually embodying internal emotional states as forms that emerge from subconscious energies. Psychoformism thus provides a conceptual and practical framework for exploring deeper psychological engagement and subjective perception within aesthetic experiences. As proposed by the author, “Form is emotion itself; emotion emerges from within the body and transforms directly into visual form.” (A. Babak, 2025)

This research explores the phenomenon of Cosplay as experienced by Cosplayers themselves through a subjective lens. A project that stems from specific personal attitudes and inclinations to the practice of Cosplay — コスプレ kosupure — in relation to japanese entertainment media. The focus of the analysis resides in individuals influenced to the point of bordering on obsession, surrounded by characters from works of Japanese animation, illustration and graphics — Anime, Manga and RPG — culminating in the practice of donating one’s body through the practice of interpretation, assimilation and appropriation. Consistencies and idiosyncrasies between assumptions and experience are addressed starting from Japanese imagery, cultivated by years of tactile and vivid experience of this practice as carried out in Italy. The impact and perceived impact of the journey facilitated a firsthand, lived experience through my month-long stay in Toshima, one of Tokyo’s twenty three special districts. The reiteration of this practice in the country accredited for the birth and export of Cosplay, put to test the skills and preconceptions developed over years of experience and virtual exploration. Analyzed the ideological presuppositions set forth by Luca Vanzella in Cosplay culture: fenomenologia dei costume players italiani, found within my personal experience in Italy, the same were used as a key to reading and interpreting the experience in Japan, analyzing points of contact and divergence. Through this paper I wish to document the vivid aspects of a research at a still embryonic state, without rushing to judgment. A vision that is not intended to be faithful to reality as a focused image, but rather as the perception of light imprinted in the first impact with the retina. It represents, in its essence, an investigation that reports testimonies and subjective experiences, exploring with individuals the value placed on their choice of character, the reasons for choosing to lend one’s body to such practice. The unambiguous presence of the self, versus, the assumptions of loss of identity and desire for escape in the link between Cosplayer, performance act and self-perception. Analyzing the relational dynamics between Cosplayers and those shared personas, with a focus on the figure of the otaku and the way it relates to this practice. This printed object consists of 2 main parts; the first visual and graphic and the second textual and theoretical. Bound together by the “japanese stab binding” technique, that has been appropriated in correlation to the practice of Cosplay. Becoming not only a physical link, but also a key conceptual and graphic element. Giving body and matter to the characters that make up the term Cosplay.

AS this is an informal tale, restating my master’s studies. AS I was in the midst of a Uturn, entering formal art education, my hopes and expectations were unclear but deeply felt. AS ever, I feel compelled to question, review, examine some more. AS every question gives an indication to the inner world of the questioner. AS if I want to know if there is a pattern or a path? AS a collector I have documented, framed and reflected with words and stored. As curators act I showcase my creative learning journey.

The artistic research project Creative (Mis)Understandings: Methodologies of Inspiration is a collaboration between sound makers / compoers / performers from an indigenous community in Taiwan (Tao on Lanyu/Orchid island) and from Europe. There is a high urgency to transform traditional songs into new artisttic forms, creating new ways of forwarding important traditional knowledge to the next generations. This collaboration also sheds a different light on the question, what it means to create something "new" in the eurpopean context.

Wixárika crafts are a testament to resilience and adaptability, they have been preserved since pre-Hispanic times. The evolution of some of these over the past century, influenced by global movements in the 1960s, has created a niche for Wixárika art and craft. Influenced by tourism, new styles, colors, and symbols have been introduced, serving as a form of resistance against the erasure of traditional knowledge and practices 500 years after the colonial period. Tsik+ri has gained global popularity as a method to create decorative geometric yarn pieces, but this craft not only provides insights about Indigenous cultures, experiences, and embodied knowledge, but also raises discussion about land and cultural appropriation by non-Indigenous individuals. In this exposition, I present a series of workshops held in the region of the Arctic Circle, where a development project is taking place to improve and enhance the use of sustainable wool by revitalizing craft heritage in a multicultural way. The method of this study is Art-Based Action Research. The study makes visible an essential feature of this textile artifact: its ability to transcend geopolitical and cultural borders, embodying a unique fusion of heritage and contemporary design. Indigenous craft practices from the Mesoamerican Wixárika culture, such as the Tsik+ri, are rooted in the multicultural identity of Mexico. The workshops served as platforms to communicate the culture and challenges of Wixaritari to Arctic and international contexts. This research sustains that implementing craft practices in the context of contemporary art requires profound knowledge and respect for its origins.