The Potentials and Pitfalls of ‘Art in Research’ Methodologies: Foregrounding Memory and Emotion in Planning Research

ABSTRACT

The article draws on a two-month project with forty-four high school students in Reston, Virginia to suggest that ‘art in research’ methodologies might be useful to shift away from the problematic histories of planning as solely a technical endeavor based in masculinist conceptions of legitimate research. I propose that we can radically reimagine planning research and practice as an emancipatory endeavor for its participants, suggesting that the iterative and longer art-making process may usefully complement traditional qualitative planning research, specifically helping to uncover relevant memories and emotions of participants.

KEYWORDS:

• Arts-based research
• planning research
• teenagers
• memory
• emotion
• qualitative research

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank the brilliant and creative students of South Lakes High School and Matt for his excitement, trust, and support.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Raksha Vasudevan

Raksha Vasudevan is a doctoral candidate interested in young adult geographies, feminist ethnography, and critical planning pedagogy. Her work examines the socio-spatial mobilities of young people in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic to articulate the ways in which young people move about and (re)claim city spaces as a means to assert their identities and sense of belonging, despite a state that may or not recognize them. Raksha has a Masters of Urban and Regional Planning and a Bachelor of Architecture from Virginia Tech. Previously, Raksha worked as an intern architect, taught small children, and managed the sustainability program of a national membership organization where she worked with city sustainability directors and local elected officials.