In order to define parameters of new theoretical approach comprehensive review of different network approaches has been conducted and it was triangulated with existing and newly gained knowledge about literature on art and housing both in Serbia and in the UK. It provided a more precise understanding of how network approach can be used in studding art practices and housing transformation in cities.
In the second phase of the project fellow conducted the field work. Main method of collecting data was ‘following the actors’ through semi-structured interviews and participant observation. During the first-year extensive interviews with 9 UK and 6 Serbian key artists and cultural workers have been conducted and recorded. In parallel 20 less formal conversations with community representatives, organizations in social art development sector, policy makers, philanthropic foundations, curators, housing institutions, grassroots actors and initiatives. Fellow was engaged in participant observation process by fallowing closely work of several groups and projects in Serbia and UK.
In order to create model of network mechanisms the fellow conducted in-depth analyses of art property guardianship phenomena on meta, mezzo and local level. It includes discussion of the structural conditions of the artists engaged in live-work property guardian schemes and their potentials to act at sites of struggle over the regeneration of council housing in London. Following this, the fellow mapped how this condition has been domesticated, on the level of urban space, by a mobilisation of networked actors. Finally, fellow has been looking at best practices of social art and housing by examine their specific structural place within restrictive networks. Fellow summarised the results in two case studies one from UK and one from Serbia.
In order to validate the new theoretical approach and to identify and analyse similarities and differences between contexts in UK and Serbia fellow conducted comparative case study. This work was focused on best practices of culture-led housing regenerations: Balfron Tower in London, UK and Sava Mala in Belgrade, Serbia. The approach engages three problems: anti-socialist urban transition on meta level, relationship towerds history on mezzo level and networks of mutual relations on the micro level. The results show significant differences regarding the involvement of art in housing regeneration.
Art and Housing Classroom was established gradually during two-year period. Once a month, the fellow organised internal meetings with artists, activists and institutional actors in order to discuss sociograms and situation in the field. In addition, two big public events were organised at LSBU: Winter Roundtable Series ‘Housing and Regeneration Struggle in South London’ in 2017 and the international conference ‘Art and Housing Struggles: between art and political organizing’ in 2018.
Material presented during the Art and Housing Classroom events are available Open Access and are shared on the web site of LSBU Research Centre for Digital Story Making.
The fellow presented elements of this research on 21 occasions (conferences/symposiums/invited lectures) in 8 different countries during her two-year fellowship.
