Art of decision : exploring citizenship through art and technology

Abstract

This thesis represents a step forward in the creation of art for social change by presenting an interdisciplinary approach that informs the creation of artwork to raise awareness of citizenship. It presents a body of work that is interdisciplinary and offers a new way to look at citizen engagement. This thesis sets out to explore the possibilities that creative applications of multimedia and technology, in combination with an artistic approach and aesthetic sensibilities, offer for the development of new approaches that raise awareness of citizenship in a manner that compliments current initiatives. In order to explore citizenship, it draws from citizenship theory and social research methods to create a novel mixed-method interdisciplinary approach to art creation. It presents a review of citizenship theory and outlines responses to the current situation of citizen disengagement in Ireland. It proposes that multimedia and technology, used in an artistic way, and in combination with social research methods offer new ways to engage citizens. Multimedia, used in an artistic way can offer new ways to enliven the presentation of factual information. In combination with social research methods, it can be used to generate participant-authored content that presents unique perspectives on the issue being presented.