Night Study Session 5: Constellating Study Practices... ELIA

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre is a hub of arts activity right in the heart of Skibbereen. Its two main galleries house contemporary art exhibitions that intrigue and inspire, presenting artwork by local, national and international artists and a programme of guided tours, gallery talks and free gallery resources such as the Discovery Box for families and Children's Activity Sheets.The three Artists' Studios provide space for Irish and international artists to work on site and to meet the public and the Dance Residency brings top-class contemporary dancers, choreographers, performers and musicians to Uillinn to develop new work and present it to the public throughout the year.The vibrant and diverse education programme enriches the visitor experience through workshops, masterclasses, dance and discussion platforms and encourages equality of access for people of all ages and cultures through its long-term programmes and projects.Many of the programmes and events are free of charge.Perfect for rainy day activities, or to relax and enjoy a delicious coffee and cake in the sunny, sheltered courtyard courtesy of The Coffee Shop at Uillinn, West Cork Arts Centre has something for everyone.With an average of 20 programmes and events every week, keep up to date on all that Uillinn has to offer by following on facebook and twitter and check outwww.westcorkartscentre.comRegistration Charity Number (RCN) 20026035

Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre

A series of weekly sessions exploring the core themes of Glenn Loughran's exhibition Night Study at Uillinn

West Cork Arts Centre

Night Study Sessions

Night Study Programme
These weekly sessions are centred around the core themes of the exhibition, and each will be led by a guest speaker.

The exhibition <a href="https://westcorkartscentre.com/event/glenn-loughran/" title="https://westcorkartscentre.com/event/glenn-loughran/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Night Study</a> presents a unique collection of artefacts collected from over a decade of artistic exploration and experimentation by artist and educator Glenn Loughran. The works serve as traces of events of enquiry, a diverse constellation of things that have mediated practices, from artistic research to critical pedagogy to social engaged engagement.The Night Study ProgrammeThese weekly sessions are centred around the core themes of the exhibition, and each will be led by a guest speaker. The sessions are free, but places are limited so they must be booked through eventbrite.Prior to each session, those who have booked will receive a paper by the guest speaker to read before attending the session. At the beginning of the session the guest speaker will contextualise the paper and then facilitate a group discussion where participants are encouraged to interpret the ideas in their own way and contribute critically to the conversation.Constellating Study Practices Through Artistic Research in Turbulent TimesEducation is a creative act, or to be more precise, education is an act of bringing something into the world that did not exist before. Gert Biesta, The Beautiful Risk of Education, p.11Today, we are experiencing wildly irrational and unpredictable changes in the organisation of democratic societies. Our nervous systems have become lightning rods for affective fluctuation. We laugh one minute and tremble the next. The spectres of hard and soft authoritarianism infiltrate our environments, our bodies, and our brains. In response, we need to seek active and elastic ways to gravitate collectively around political uncertainties, the lack of institutional agency and urgency at times of national populist pressure. Through artistic and educational modes of exchange, we aim to build alternative spaces for public debate, to constellate… and ventilate… together. Inspired by the work of Walter Benjamin, we aim to re-engage his anti-fascist pedagogy for our turbulent times, and to build a transnational, constellation curriculum through studying, studioing and protocoling.Following on the collective reading practices developed in Night Study Session 4 with Prof. Mick Wilson, the final Night Study session will develop a collective writing practice through an experimental format of protocol writing. Protocol writing is a subversive, anti-authoritarian act of performative recouperation and repositioning through collective narrative forms. Reflecting on the creative, political potential of protocol writing, Re’al Christian, Carin Kuoni and Eriola Pira write;While the widely used systems and modes of communication write and recycle preexisting protocols, new, equitable protocols are more often found at a grassroots level, in our communities, in our collaborations, conversations, and practices of care for one another, those intimate, interpersonal minglings, or what Fred Moten refers to as “talking amongst ourselves” (p. 16).To prepare for this session, we would like you to consider some of the Protocol examples presented in the Padlet link <a href="https://padlet.com/ELIAnetwork/constellating-through-artistic-research-in-turbulent-times-560lh7a4sq96j50j" title="https://padlet.com/ELIAnetwork/constellating-through-artistic-research-in-turbulent-times-560lh7a4sq96j50j" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">here</a>, and, in your own time, draft a single-page protocol addressing an issue that is of significance to you, in your current context.This protocol will serve as an ice-breaker at the start of the collective writing process developed during the session with the ELIA Artistic Research Community.About the ReadingAs for Protocols: An Introduction The reading for the session is pages 12 to 20 of the attached text/PDF link <a href="https://westcorkartscentre.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/PACIFIC_NEWSCHOOL_112124_accessible_fixed2.pdf.pdf" title="https://westcorkartscentre.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/PACIFIC_NEWSCHOOL_112124_accessible_fixed2.pdf.pdf" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://westcorkartscentre.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/PACIFIC_NEWSCHOOL_112124_accessible_fixed2.pdf.pdf</a>In the introduction to As for Protocols, Re’al Christian, Carin Kuoni, and Eriola Pira critique the common understanding of protocols as technologies of power and regulation in disciplinary societies arguing instead for protocols and protocol writing as a tactical manoeuvres that “can be embodied, appropriated, reengineered, and otherwise used for our own ends to build equitable models of engagement”(p.17).As for Protocols brings together contributions by twenty-four international artists, writers, scholars, musicians, architects, and scientists who explore protocols across various fields, foregrounding opportunities for creating new protocols that are inclusive and equitable. Through essays, artworks, interviews, and scores, the book speaks to protocols as practice—neither conventional mannerisms nor abstract concepts, but material processes, relational affinities, shared responsibilities, and mutual care. The As for Protocols publication began as an online Seminar Series developed over twelve sessions from September 2020 through May 2022, and ending with a symposium. Taking place on zoom, the multidisciplinary participants—including Jesse Chun, Mary Maggic, Shannon Mattern, Rashaun Mitchell + Silas Riener, and Robert Sember, focused on particular aspects of protocols involving language and communication; equitable networks; global health and development; data aggregation and narrative systems; culturally-specific community agreements; and scientific research.About the ELIA Working Group on Artistic ResearchThe ELIA (European League of Institutes of the Arts) Working Group on Artistic Research is comprised of academics and practitioners from higher arts education institutions across Europe who engage in discussions, projects, and advocacy related to the principles and practices of artistic research. The group explores critical issues such as the relationship between artistic research and Open Research, the historical precedents of copyright in art and science, and the practical and conceptual implications of these developments for artistic research and its distribution. Current members include: Glenn Loughran, Florian Dombois, Stephen Broad, Michaela Glanz, Jørn Mortensen, Ellen Røed, Veerle Vandersluys, Maria Topolčanská, Claus Peder Pedersen.

Night Study Session 5: Constellating Study Practices... ELIA

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Night Study Session 5: Constellating Study Practices... ELIA

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