Design and Planning of International Artistic Research

What does it mean to design a doctoral programme in artistic research today? This question frames the work carried out within the IartNET Design and Planning of International Artistic Research Working Group, which focuses on the creation of a new PhD programme in innovative artistic research at the Accademia di Brera.

Conceived within the framework of the Florence Principles on the Doctorate of the Arts (2016) and the Vienna Declaration on Artistic Research (2020), the initiative aims to define an advanced doctoral pathway capable of integrating artistic practice, theoretical inquiry, and project-based experimentation. At its core lies the recognition of artistic research as a field in which knowledge is produced through practice, and where artistic and design processes operate as both subjects and methods of research.

The working session marks a key step in the development of the programme, building on the presentation of the doctoral project by Fabio Iannotta and Domenico Quaranta and opening a space for exchange with invited experts and members of the Scientific Committee on Postgraduate Education and Internationalization. The process contributes to the progressive consolidation of the programme’s conceptual and structural framework.

Currently under development in view of ministerial validation within the PNRR framework, the PhD programme is scheduled for internal evaluation in January 2027, with a possible launch between October and November of the same year. It is conceived within the Department of Design and Applied Arts, bringing together the experimental and multidisciplinary approaches of the Schools of New Technologies for the Arts and Artistic Design for Industry.

The programme is envisioned as an associated doctoral structure, developed in collaboration with institutional and private partners, and articulated through a set of research trajectories that reflect its interdisciplinary nature. Within this context, the PhD functions as a space for advanced training and experimentation, with a strong international orientation, supported by global recruitment and the adoption of an appropriate language of instruction.

A distinctive feature of the project lies in its understanding of artistic research as a form of Research and Development (R&D). This perspective foregrounds the production of outcomes that are not only theoretical but also applied and project-based, fostering connections with the productive sector and encouraging the involvement of external partners. In this sense, the programme aligns with broader shifts from STEM to STEAM, promoting the integration of artistic, scientific, and technological domains.

Within this framework, the group’s work has been structured as a phased development process aimed at strengthening the cultural and scientific identity of the doctoral programme, more precisely defining its positioning in relation to contemporary challenges, and expanding its network of collaborations with cultural institutions, research contexts, and productive sectors. At the same time, attention has been given to aspects related to the program’s organisational sustainability, the definition of the doctoral board, and the conditions for funding scholarships.