Centre for Creative Arts Research (CCAR)
Leaders
Members
- Prof Daniel Carey
- Dr Steven Hadley
- David Kelly
- Prof Patrick Lonergan
- Marc Mellotte
- Dr Catherine Morris
- Martha Shaughnessy
Overview
Founded in 2019, the Centre for Creative Arts Research (CCAR) aims to further enhance NUI Galway’s mission to develop and support interdisciplinary research activity across the spectrum of humanities, culture, and social studies. Situated within the University’s Moore Institute, the Centre fosters interdisciplinary research, public engagement, and policy impact in the arts. Researchers within the Centre develop culture-led research projects, partnerships, and funding bids at a national and international levels.
The University’s activities in the areas of cultural research are founded upon partnership with a wide range of professional organisations, including the Abbey Theatre, Druid Theatre, Galway International Arts Festival, and others. This Centre provides focus for the research activities arising from those partnerships, serving as a launchpad for the development of activity in such fields as cultural and creative industries, arts management, and cultural policy alongside continuing work in creative arts practice-as-research and education.
Research
Staff within CCAR have worked in partnership with The Audience Agency and Galway 2020 to deliver the Monitoring and Evaluation activities, and also carry out work in such areas as:
- social media analysis,
- perception of place and
- capacity development for the cultural sector.
Legacy Projects
Arising from Galway’s designation as European Capital of Culture for 2020, the university has supported the development of cultural legacy projects within the university. These explore the themes of Language, Landscape and Migration; they address aspects of European culture, identity, and creative cities; and they connect with the University and its wider communities. These projects run from 2019 to 2022.
Visiting Fellowships & Artist-in-Residencies
Throughout 2021-22, the Centre will host Visiting Fellowships and Artist-in-Residencies that will aim to engage new publics in the humanities and arts practice and research.
Conferences & Events
A regular CCAR Seminar Series stimulates new research and debate about arts and culture in practice and research. Discussions consider the role of arts and culture in society, addressing issues of creativity, cultural value, policy and impact. As the Centre develops, we will seek to interrogate the structures, functions and impacts of cultural policy and practice globally, with a research focus on both cultural production and consumption.
NUI Galway and CCAR hosted the University Network of European Capitals of Culture event for 2020, presenting an online journal that includes videos, articles, artworks, and more.
View the special issue for the University Network of European Capitals of Culture, March, 2021 on the theme of “European Capitals of Culture: The Art of Reimagining”.
Publications
Hadley, S. (2021) Audience Development and Cultural Policy. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Audience Development and Cultural Policy
- Provides a new understanding of the relationship between audiences and the arts
- Fundamentally changes the idea of audience development and its relationship to cultural policy
- Argues that arts management has misunderstood arts marketing and audience development
Encouraging more – and different – people to attend the arts remains a vital issue for the cultural sector. The question of who consumes culture, and why, is key to our understanding of the arts. This book examines the relationship of audience development to cultural policy and offers a ground-breaking perspective on how the practice of audience development is connected to ideas of democratic access to culture. Read more…
Contact
For queries related to the Centre, please contact: mooreinstitute@nuigalway.ie