The Art of Interaction. Ernest Edmonds

any other walk of life, the artist must conduct at least personal research. For example, an artist might need to work out which kind of paint will provide the best colour range. In fact, art practice can be seen as akin to research in that each artwork is a kind of experiment from which the artist learns, and that influences what is done next. Many artists share this attitude whether they use the word “research” or not. In his classic book The Story of Art, Gombrich even headed his chapter on the first half of the 20th century with the title “Experimental Art” (Gombrich, 1972). The art historian Stephen Bann explained this view of art practice:

      “my own definition of the experimental painter is that he is committed to a particular path of controlled activity, of which the works which he produces remain as evidence. In other words, the direction in which the artist moves is at least as important as the individual statements which record the track that he has taken.” (Bann, 1970)

      From the early years of the 20th century, explicit and public reference to research became an important part of some artist’s lives.