Research Catalogue

Light Paintings: Material Processes, Optical Phenomena, and Artistic Implications. The Miracle of Light and Darkness as a Material Phenomenon

Nine research groups from HKU, Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Fontys, and Utrecht University of Applied Sciences are joining forces with UvH and UMCU to bring a new perspective on healthcare through the arts, supported by the SIA-SPRONG grant. Using a transdisciplinary approach, this research group and its partners are developing new methods, practices, and scenarios within healthcare and well-being contexts—not for, but with each other.

This research investigates how local sourcing practices in the Netherlands can enable the reuse of secondary food-related materials for ceramic glaze production, and how the exploration of existing networks through material research can contribute to the development of new cross-sector collaborations. Through a practice-based approach that bridges ceramic production, design research, and the restaurant industry, the study explores the potential of locally available “waste” materials, such as bones, shells, charcoals, and discarded glass, as viable resources for glaze making. The research combines material experimentation with qualitative fieldwork, including interviews and informal discussions with chefs, ceramicists, suppliers, and material practitioners. By tracing the origins, processing, and transformation of these secondary resources, the study critically examines the environmental impact and opacity of conventional glaze supply chains, which often rely on imported raw materials and energy-intensive extraction and transportation processes. Central to the research is the creation of a material archive that documents locally sourced secondary materials and their behavior in glaze recipes. This archive functions not only as a technical tool for ceramic experimentation, but also as a framework for understanding relationships between material flows, human practices, and local infrastructures. Drawing on the concept of “working in the minor key,” the research emphasizes learning through direct engagement, observation, and collaboration rather than predefined systems. The findings suggest that material research can act as a catalyst for new circular practices and cross-sector networks between restaurants and ceramic industry, fostering shared responsibility, creative exchange, and reduced material consumption. By reframing waste as a site of value and knowledge, this study proposes an alternative, locally embedded approach to glaze production that integrates sustainability, and social engagement.

Mot bakgrund av utomhuspedagogikens positiva effekt på kreativitet så har jag i den här studien undersökt bildundervisning i skogen. I studien använder jag arbetsmetoden A/R/tography och den post-kvalitativa metodologin för att främja ett rhizomatiskt förhållningssätt till undersökandet och lärandet. Studiens fokus är att förändra mål, kravfyllda tankar och ramar för att ge plats åt mer undersökande, experimenterande och fantasifullt förhållningssätt till bildlektionen. Syftet är också att skapa händelser som kan stärka idéprocesser och öka närvaron med omvärlden under bildlektionen genom ett inkluderande och holistiskt tillvägagångssätt. Jag har arbetat med detta genom ett teoretiskt perspektiv som belyser mänskliga och icke-mänskliga aktörers roll i lärandet. Centralt i undersökandet av konstnärliga metoder och material har Jane Bennets begrepp “Thing-power” varit plattformen för att öppna upp en stark närvaro med material och omvärlden. Frågeställningarna som bearbetats är: Hur skapar skogen ett “lärandets rum” som främjar sättet att undersöka material i en bildpedagogisk process? Och: Hur stimulerar perspektivet "Thing-power" en utveckling av bildpedagogiska arbetsmetoder? Frågorna har jag utforskat genom en konstnärlig process med olika händelser som jag i arbetet satt ihop till ett lektionsupplägg i skogen. Två utforskande händelser bearbetas och analyseras utifrån begreppen thing-power, konst-som-görande, ännu-icke-sedda, släta rum och lerbaserad språklighet. Studien har visat hur en större närvaro och uppmärksamhet till de icke mänskliga krafterna hjälper till i konstnärliga processer och att skogen är en plats som gör det enklare att undersöka och experimentera med material på nya sätt.

'Latency Records: The Delay, an Inhabitable Field' analyses a fictional mediated environment by studying the lapses of time involved in its diffusion. Approaching media as a source for new habits of perception over a landscape, it is concerned with the electronic tools used for the representation of nature; in particular those applied for near-real-time broadcast from sensory meteorological tools, webcams or satellites. Introduced with seven images from audiovisual references, punctuated by fourteen quotes from various sources and interwoven to three poems written exclusively for the essay, 'Latency Records: The Delay, an Inhabitable Field' is inspired by humans’ incomprehension of the artificial structures in which they blindly place their hopes for representing the unrepresentable: a living image of the exterior world. In doing so, it delves into humans’ attempts to portray themselves in order to comprehend who they are. Therefore, 'Latency Records: The Delay, an Inhabitable Field' interrogates the instantaneity of these naturalistic archives, ultimately shaping our cognitive engagement with our environment—which acts both as a mirror and a departure from it.

Water covers more than 70% of the earth’s surface, and thus constitutes a major section of the ecosystem on Earth. It is a vital element on earth, all life (as we know it) depends on water to be able to thrive. The climate has always changed a bit, but in recent years, due to greenhouse gases, the climate has experienced extreme changes which have also strongly impacted the global water cycle. From melting glaciers to ocean acidifications, flash floods, and prolonged droughts, disruptions in ecosystems now happens faster than most species can adapt to. Because of global warming, the atmosphere can hold and transport more moisture. Water doesn’t have the opportunity to fully infiltrate the soil. This accelerates the hydrological cycle. While it is still important to decelerate this process as much as we can, it is also important to look into strategies of adaptation and think ahead to a future with water that will be compromised. In this book, we explore water futures through the speculative design approach. This design practice aims to challenge preconceptions, raise questions, and provoke debates. It opened the doors for designers to imagine and explore possible water futures globally. We start with the water spring in India where the Ganga river starts, then travel further down the river stream. We end up in the Netherlands where different rivers connect to the sea. We continue where the river meets the sea and travel to the salterns in France and Croatia. Here water changes form, turning into gas and flowing through the air as evaporating steam in the geothermal region of Iceland. Eventually this book will end up with the condensation of the fog net in the Namib Desert.