A lot of the current posts concern discussion indirectly or directly of
creative practice within the university though mainly in the context
ofcreative writing programs. There is a growing discourse about creative
work in the university environment and some of you may be interested in the
new book Practice-led research, Research-led practice in the Creative Arts
edited by me (Hazel Smith) and Roger Dean, Edinburgh University Press, 2009.
About creative practice in the context of the university, and the
relationship between creative practice and research, it includes essays from
a wide range of authors across many different disciplines. The book is
available from amazon UK, EUP and many other bookshops and websites. Below
is the product description:

This book addresses one of the most exciting and innovative developments
within higher education: the rise in prominence of the creative arts and the
accelerating recognition that creative practice is a form of research. The
book considers how creative practice can lead to research insights through
what is often known as practice-led research. But unlike other books on
practice-led research, it balances this with discussion of how research can
impact positively on creative practice through research-led practice. The
editors posit an iterative and web-like relationship between practice and
research. Essays within the book cover a wide range of disciplines including
creative writing, dance, music, theatre, film and new media, and the
contributors are from the UK, US, Canada and Australia. The subject is
approached from numerous angles: the authors discuss methodologies of
practice-led research and research-led practice, their own creative work as
a form of research, research training for creative practitioners, and the
politics and histories of practice-led research and research-led practice
within the university. The book will be invaluable for creative
practitioners, researchers, students in the creative arts and university
leaders. Key Features *The first book to document, conceptualise and analyse
practice-led research in the creative arts and to balance it with
research-led practice *Written by highly qualified academics and
practitioners across the creative arts and sciences *Brings together
empirical, cultural and creative approaches *Presents illuminating case
histories of creative work and practice-led research

About the Authors
Hazel Smith is a Research Professor in the Writing and Society Research
Group at the University of Western Sydney. She is author of The Writing
Experiment: strategies for innovative creative writing (2005) and
Hyperscapes in the Poetry of Frank O¹Hara (2000). Hazel is also a widely
published writer, performer and new media artist. Her latest volume,The
Erotics of Geography, 2008, is accompanied by a CD-Rom of works with Roger
Dean. Roger Dean is a Research Professor in the MARCS Auditory Laboratories,
University of Western Sydney. He has published five books on improvisation,
and is a former university president and medical research institute
director. A composer-improviser, he is the founder and director of the sound
and intermedia ensemble austraLYSIS, of which Hazel is also a member.


Prof. Hazel Smith
Writing and Society Research Group
College of Arts (Bankstown 1.1.163)
UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN SYDNEY
Locked Bag 1797
Penrith South DC NSW 1797
tel: 9772 6400
email: [log in to unmask]
See also my webpage at www.australysis.com