Reflection, Lore and Acting: The Practitioner’s Approach

The article discusses how the practitioner’s – i. e. the actor’s − knowledge and experiences could form a base for artistic research. As an example the author uses actor Ann Petrén’s Master thesis and his own PhD. The author presents how the term lore could offer a useful concept to describe the different levels of bodily experiences, knowledges and even theories present in the actor’s work. The discussion about artistic and academic research could take the form of a dispute about rationality, where theory and rationality often is seen as hostile to the artistic identity. In this discussion the author argues that the artist can not, and should not, take the powerful - and questionable - position of being objective. The practical work of the artist could instead be scrutinized from the position of the reflective practitioner, a position that touches the concept of situated knowledge.