Art as a Social-Ecological Practice

Increasingly, artists are working with social organizations, neighbourhoods, and civil society initiatives on issues such as climate change, social justice, and social cohesion. High expectations are often tied to these projects: art is meant to bring people together, make different perspectives visible, and open up pathways to sustainable development. Yet whether and how these expectations are met has rarely been investigated empirically. Many assumptions about the social impact of art rest on interpretations of individual works rather than on systematic study of artistic practice and its impacts.

Project aims

The project is part of the Art as Social Practice training and research programme, coordinated by Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences. Alongside RIFS, the project partners are the Hessian Theatre Academy and Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (HfMDK). RIFS supports selected artistic projects and investigates the socio-ecological benefits they generate. The project’s central question is: under what conditions can artistic practices contribute to transformations towards sustainability, and where are the limits of that contribution? Using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, the project examines the impacts on the institutions involved, on audiences, and on the public sphere, among other things. The research is carried out in close collaboration with the artists, so that the findings are relevant to them and can feed into the design of projects as they unfold.

Expected outcomes

The project will develop an evaluation approach that systematically captures the diverse and often indirect effects of art. Drawing on the case studies, it will produce an evaluation report for the funding body, as well as academic publications and practical recommendations for artists, cultural institutions, and funders on how socially and environmentally engaged art can be realistically assessed and effectively designed.