Nature and Sustainability

Arts and Humanities research on Covid-19 often has a bearing on environmental sustainability and the relationship between the individual and their natural environment.  Research on how to help the creative industries weather the shocks of lockdowns has notably explored digital media as a low-carbon alternative to travel and designed digital platforms that enable new forms of virtual co-presence. Performance practitioners have also turned […]

The Arts Are Vital to Emergency Planning: Performance Strategies for Managing Pandemics

About the project Working with strategic decision-makers in Bristol, Glasgow and Newcastle City Councils, the research team investigated everyday innovations (social performances) and artistic interventions (aesthetic performances), to understand how performance can reimagine and facilitate city life in times of social distancing, and how performance theory and analysis might contribute to more nuanced, creative and […]

Walking Publics / Walking Arts: Walking, Wellbeing and Community during COVID-19

About the project Walking Arts/Walking Publics explored the potential of the arts to sustain, encourage, and equitably support walking during and recovering from the pandemic. It examined the impact of COVID-19 on walking practices and how the pandemic informed, and could be informed by, creative walking approaches. The project worked in partnership with experts and […]

Between environmental concerns and compliance: How does media messaging affect motivation and choice between disposable versus reusable face masks?

About the project During the pandemic single-use masks have caused increasing waste as well as a threat to human health as contaminants they contain move into the human food chain when disposed of in the environment. This project explored the question of whether it was possible to make the process of protection more sustainable overall. […]

Grading Gowns: Redesigning One-size PPE to Fit and Protect Female Health Workers More Effectively

About the project This research analysed the design and procurement of PPE (personal protective equipment) for the comfort and safety of healthcare workers. It identified a number of key issues relating to gown fabrication, length, fastenings, and intended wear that impeded safe use by healthcare workers, particularly women and women from ethnic minorities. It investigated […]

Cultural and Creative Industries

Arts and Humanities research during the pandemic has shown how the crisis is galvanising practitioners and stakeholders in the cultural sector to find new models for producing work and for reaching audiences. However, it has also exposed structural inequalities and exclusions for audiences and for the sector’s workforce.   Technological innovations, including hybrid modes of digital and […]

The Application of Motion-Capture Technology in Telematic and Virtual Dance Performance Through a Framework for Long-distance Remote Communication

About the project This project involved the development, testing, and implementation of an open-source software tool for the real-time streaming of motion capture data. The Goldsmiths MoCap Streamer allowed dancers from different locations to meet and dance together in a shared virtual space, with a convincing sense of physical co-presence, direct interaction, and virtual touch. […]

Digital Theatre Transformation: A Case Study and Digital Toolkit for Small to Mid-Scale Theatres in England

About the project This project provided a roadmap for local and regional theatre companies to enable them to develop new, more flexible ways of working to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on live theatre. It investigated, and drew lessons from, the success of Creation Theatre (Oxford) and Big Telly (Northern Ireland), both of which […]

Re-inventing the Live Event

About the project This project interrogated how artists can re-invent the live event in response to the new conditions of production and altered spacial dynamics of performance created by the pandemic. It involved quantitative and qualitative investigation of artist practice and audience engagement during a live events arts festival, organised and pursued followed Covid-19 restrictions, […]

Routes of Infection, Routes to Safety: Creative Mapping of Human-Viral Behaviours on the Bus to Understand Infection Prevention Practices

About the project Public transport use dropped during the pandemic, after government guidance advised against non-essential travel. This added to existing stigma about the dirtiness of buses. SARS-CoV-2’s invisibility to the naked eye, and inconsistencies in public scientific understanding, create challenges in how stakeholders communicate infection prevention and how bus users respond. Research for this […]