Skip to main content
Thesis defences

PhD Oral Exam - Laurel Marie Hart, Art Education

Her Mind’s Eye: Women’s visions of urban life explored in a place-based social/mobile photography community, online and on the ground


Date & time
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Cost

This event is free

Organization

School of Graduate Studies

Contact

Sharon Carey
514-848-2424, ext. 3802

Where

Engineering, Computer Science and Visual Arts Integrated Complex
1515 St. Catherine W.
Room EV 2.776

Wheel chair accessible

Yes

When studying for a doctoral degree (PhD), candidates submit a thesis that provides a critical review of the current state of knowledge of the thesis subject as well as the student’s own contributions to the subject. The distinguishing criterion of doctoral graduate research is a significant and original contribution to knowledge.

Once accepted, the candidate presents the thesis orally. This oral exam is open to the public.

Abstract

This dissertation employs community action research and arts-based research to explore the collaborative development of a women's mobile photography community called Her Mind's Eye.

Her Mind's Eye is an exploratory, creative and contemporary women's mobile photography community that exists both physically (through in-person meetings) and digitally (in online social media spaces). The group was designed to support women in learning and inquiring into mobile photography, new technologies, and Instagram, within an encouraging, flexible, and supportive mobile art creation community.

At the same time, it looks at the woman's uses of the social/mobile photographic medium itself, finding that it was used for: personal memory keeping, communication, jumpstarting relational connectedness, and, experiencing an increased sense of awareness of one's environment, and of other's ways of seeing in being in cities. Through this community, we expanded the possibilities of collaborative and informal education, meeting in-person and on the social media platforms Facebook and Instagram. We found that these social media applications can be utilized to create "real life" connections between diverse individuals with like interests, in order to form city-based, digital/physical composite networks of people interested in artistic development. Simultaneously, we investigate how experiences of physical places (the cities of Montreal and Vancouver) can be shared in the digital world.

In addition to developing new networks and opportunities for creative growth, the group has a goal of exhibiting and promoting each woman's artwork, and exploring women's views and experiences of living in urban environments. Her Mind's Eye held one exhibition during the time of this study, and several more afterwards.

Lastly, it was found that the presence of group traits and structural supports similar to those present in feminist pedagogy, such as an ethics of care, and sense of community, were fundamental to the successful operation of her mind's eye.

Finally, emerging from research origins, Her Mind's Eye was a micro-SMP community, containing several clearly delineated boundaries in terms of group size, committed participation, and a defined focus. This made for a very successful community of inquiry and creativity, that however poses questions for long term group sustainability.


Back to top

© Concordia University