SAR SIG subgroup: Artistic Essaying Research and Pedagogy Group by Haris pellapaisiotis

Artistic Essaying Research and Pedagogy Group Jez Coram Emily Huurdeman Expanded, hybrid and experimental forms of essaying in practice-led research and pedagogy Central Questions for the group: 1. To what extent should we expand the essay through hybrid and experimental forms? 2. How should we produce essays in our current personal-aesthetic-political-technological conditions of crises? 3. To what extent can hybrid and experimental forms of essaying act as practice-led artistic research? 4. How can essaying as practice-led artistic research inform pedagogical approaches? The intention for this group is to bring together practitioners and theorists working and researching in the arts, or related fields, to consider and develop creative critical approaches to hybrid and experimental forms of essaying based on the above questions (as a starting point). The aim is to develop an international collective of individuals concerned with the potentiality of creative critical essaying, and how these hybrid and experimental forms of essaying may exist as practice-led artistic research and praxis. Then, how these praxes may inform pedagogical approaches. At its core the group is intended to be inclusive, accessible, interdisciplinary, cross-disciplinary, and even off-disciplinary to encourage tangential and lateral associations and pathways through individual and collaborative praxis. When / where: Five online meetings a year (Zoom or Teams), and one potential face to face meeting as part of the conference Provisional structure for meetings: 1 or 2 talks, presentations, or shows of work in progress (Individual or collaboration), based on group refinement of the research questions / areas of inquiry, followed by discussion. How: I would take up the role of organising the meetings and admin for the group. I would be looking for someone to share responsibility for the group and support facilitation. Potential contributions: As a group agree plans for collective exhibitions, conference talks and papers, articles, and special issues.

Proposal: Workshop (90 minutes)

What happens when the essay becomes something we fold, cut, photocopy, staple,
distribute, exchange, annotate—and build together?

Abstract:
In contrast to the notion of the formal essay as a single-author, written output, we are
developing essaying as a collective praxis that extends the essay to a multi-vocal
and plural practice. In doing so we experiment with multi-modal and hybrid formats,
including lecture performances in which we collage different media and ways of
knowing together. Through our collective practice, we develop methods for essaying,
which are shared and tested in educational workshops in the context of artistic
research. We are currently developing and testing essayistic zine-making as an
artistic research method.

For this conference we propose an essayistic zine-making workshop:

What happens when we build an essay-zine together? When we fold, cut, photocopy, staple, distribute, exchange, and annotate together?

Through sharing together through fragments of different media: writing, talking;
drawing, performing; photographing; copying.

Through thinking together: through handling, assembling, collaging, placing,
replacing.

Our workshop uses essaying as a methodology of critical, dialogic, and public
engagement. In the workshop, participants will be introduced to our approach,
guided through the collective essay-zine making, and encouraged to share
reflections in discussion. Following the session, our collective will make the
production run of the zine, bind it, and have it ready for free release during the
conference to prompt further discussion, extending beyond the session.

The session will oscillate between reflection and production, asking:
- How do we produce the world through language, and how does language
produce us?
- What happens when critical thinking is assembled rather than argued?
- Can the essay be something that moves between hands rather than stays in
one voice

EH NOTES 07-01-2026

Workshop preparation:

Inlay #1:

Title workshop

Burb

Names

Inlay #2:

Abstract

Call to join the SAR SIG

Form: A6 Cut edges – 6 internal pages

Workshop: Black A5 paper – mat with print margins – trim off –

Collaging, Assembly

Borders: Cut, raw edges, black print with white border

Accentuating the borders

Inversion of color – negative space

Cutting edges –

Pencils :

Zine aesthetics –

Ontent:

Text:

Visuals: Metaphor, Artwork, music video, drawing

Black surface – putting together black –

A5 black paper – mat - assemblage inverstion of color / paradox –

High contrast / sharpies / grey paper /

Drawing paper – laser printer – grey copy paper –

University -

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