Personal Information
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Given name: Alex









Surname: Gaja Ortega









Email: alex.g@buv.edu.vn









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Your contribution
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Title: Constructing Situated Creative Agency: Context-Driven Conceptualisation in Artistic Research









Format: Workshop (3)









Main language: English









Abstract:
This training explores how situated creative agency emerges through context-driven and practice-led conceptualisation processes in artistic research. Drawing on case studies from Vietnamese art and design education (including projects engaging with ethnic minority cultures, heritage practices, and hybrid visual identities) the workshop reframes conceptualisation not as idea generation, but as epistemic positioning. Through guided exercises, participants contrast decontextualised project framing with context-embedded approaches, map their own cultural and methodological positioning, and examine how visual, material, and embodied knowledges shape artistic stance. The session foregrounds cultural hybridity as both tension and resource, highlighting how agency is negotiated across local traditions, globalised aesthetics, and institutional research frameworks. Participants produce a visual conceptual map linking context, method, and agency, generating transferable models for artistic research across diverse cultural settings.

Keywords: Situated Creative Agency, Context-Driven Conceptualisation, Artistic Research Pedagogy, Cultural Hybridity, Practice-Led Methodologies

Structure (~90 minutes)
1. Introduction: Framing, Case studies, Key terms clarified 
2. Contrast Exercise: Participants contextually reframe a project twice
3. Positioning Mapping: Guided scaffold to map context, influences, methods, and agency.
4. Sharing & Reflection 

Alignment with SAR Conference:
This workshop responds directly to themes of endangered conceptual worlds and minoritised knowledges by examining how artistic conceptualisation processes sustain culturally situated forms of visual and material knowledge production. Through cases from Vietnam (particularly projects engaging in minorities’ contexts and hybrid visual cultures) the session highlights how agency is constructed within layered social, historical, and institutional conditions.










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Short biographies of the presenter(s):
- Alex is a lecturer in Contemporary Creative Practices at British University Vietnam, teaching contextual studies, research-led inquiry, and studio-based design. With academic backgrounds in Architecture and Education, Alex has gained professional and research experience across Spain, Poland, France, Japan and Vietnam. Since relocating to Vietnam in 2015, Alex has combined design consultancy for international firms with a career in higher education. Alex’s teaching emphasizes reflective, critical, and culturally responsive approaches to cultivate students’ artistic and contextual thinking. Since 2021, Alex has supervised nearly 200 undergraduate research projects and contributed as a guest lecturer and mentor at universities across Vietnam.










Previous presentations or iterations of the research:
This training is based in five deliveries a core research module of the Contemporary Creative Practices degree (British University Vietnam), where the strategies have been systematically developed. Related research was presented at:
University of Stirling Teaching and Learning Conference 2025 (“Redefining Creative Inquiry”)
2025 Communities of Practice Conference at BUV (“Reshaping a Research-based Module”)
Asia Pacific Artistic Research Network Conference in Thailand (“Beyond the Classroom”)














Requirements
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Additional information:
This is a structured, participatory training designed for approximately 20 participants. It combines a short conceptual framing with guided individual and small-group exercises leading to a visual conceptual map. The session draws on documented classroom practice and prior conference research. Participants may optionally share digital copies of their maps for comparative reflection and potential future research, subject to informed consent. 
Outline 
1. Introduction: Framing, Case studies, Key terms clarified 
2. Contrast Exercise: Participants reframe a project twice (Decontextualised and Context-embedded versions)
3. Positioning Mapping: Guided scaffold to map context, influences, methods, and agency.
4. Sharing & Reflection 










Spatial and technical requirements :
Flexible room layout with movable chairs and tables to enable small-group work. Projector and screen for short visual presentation (slides + case examples). Whiteboard. Participants will require paper (A3 preferred), markers, and pens for conceptual mapping. No specialised software or devices required. I can bring my laptop and other necessary printed materials.










Potential risks or ethical concerns:
The workshop includes discussion of projects engaging with minoritised communities and cultural contexts. Ethical considerations will be explicitly addressed, including respectful representation, informed consent, and avoidance of extractive research practices. Participation in sharing outputs is voluntary. Any documentation collected for future research will be anonymised and used only with explicit consent. No sensitive personal data will be required.










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