| PHD RESEARCH

Dr Karen David has successfully completed her practice-based PhD in Fine Art. CoVE, the exhibition that forms part of the project for her PhD, was exhibited at the University of Worcester’s Art House building in November 2023.

Karen’s project 'Commune of the Viable Essence: Creating Myth in Artistic Studio Practice through Fictional Narrative' examines fiction as a tool for practice-based research. Through historical characters resident in an imaginary abandoned commune, a search for a mutation of what the critic Clement Greenberg's called art’s 'viable essence' - a substance that the residents believe holds both material and spiritual qualities – takes place. Karen activates the imaginary commune by exploring how fiction and material elements can ‘collaborate’ to produce fresh artworks and new myths.

Supervisors: Dr. John Cussans, Dr. James Fisher, Dr. Richard Allen

External Examiners: Dr. Mark Rohtmaa-Jackson, Dr. Lucy Sames