Dr Ari Chand is a Designer/Illustrator and practice-based researcher with experience in Secondary and Tertiary Education, Illustration Theory and Practice, Natural History Illustration, Drawing theory and Practice, Character Design and Concept Art, Design History and Theory, design research, to key areas of core teaching in Visual Communication Design and Creative Industries Education.

His research focuses on understanding the complex way a socio-cultural framework for understanding Design into the 21st century is relevant to how humanity will undertake the complex issues of our time. Research is practice-based at the University of Newcastle and looks at the development of a theoretical framework based on the combination of seminal concepts, habitus (Pierre Bourdieu) and tacit knowledge (Michael Polanyi), to interrogate and scope out the nature of style and design process within design practice. Future key focuses include creativity research, visuospatial cognition, and decolonising design.

With a forthcoming book in 2021 with Intellect entitled ‘A Designerly Way of Being: Habitus, Tacit Knowledge and Design Practice’.

His illustration work is mainly comprised of traditional drawing, watercolour, ink, acrylic or digital illustration. In 2019 was a finalist in the Sir William Dobell Foundation and National Art School’s Biannual 2019 Dobell Drawing Prize.

As a Singer-Songwriter he also In 2018 released is Album 13 Track Album entitled‘ High Tide’ with Threebirds Records: https://open.spotify.com/album/0gNUOYnIaNi2kbw3OwIm23

Other Projects Include: Interdisciplinary Research Group: CindER (Creative Industries Educational Research); Kathryn Grushka, Kristi Street, Susan Kerrigan, Rachel Buchanan. Creative Industries Extension to 2019 & 2020.

• Art Masters Class Program (Newcastle High School): Research Project, Newcastle high School, Dr Kath Grushka, Rory Davis(Masters Candidate, Education).

• High Performing Students Program: Art/Science Project, DVCA Funded Longitudinal Research Project 2013- present. (Dr Kath Grushka, Dr Neville Clement, Dr Miranda Lawry, Mr Andy Devine). Inaugural Member of the ‘Creativity in Higher Education Network’ led by Professor Philip McIntyre, Associate Professor Susan Kerrigan, Dr Janet Fulton and Dr Michael Meany.

‘Higher Education students who intend to enter future creative industries are attempting to become creative professionals in a world that is rapidly reconstructing itself. As a group the Creativity in Higher Education Network (CHEN) is intent on helping those students move past common beliefs and myths about creativity and help them draw, instead, on the authoritative, well-reasoned, empirically tested, peer-reviewed research into creativity. ‘ https://www.creativeresearchhub.com/chen

In 2020 He has been funded alongside Dr Andrew Howells, Dr Jane Shadbolt, Dr Caelli Jo Brooker, Mr Carl Morgan and Mr Alex Barnes-Keoghan to set up a ‘Drawing Education Network’.

Research Expertise Key areas of investigation include Bourdieusian Practice Theory, Cultural Production, Design Ethnography, Tacit knowledge and the Design process. Ari has also been a Research Assistant on the large-scale research project and HEPPP funded “ Creative Industries Careers- Re-imagining Regional and Remote Student’s opportunities’. The project supported regional and remote High School students facing the prospect of the decline in the traditional areas of farming, mining, and manufacture to re-imagine their futures and aspire to work in Creative Industries.

Teaching Expertise Drawing and Illustration, Visual Communication Design History, Theory and Research. Secondary Teacher Education in Visual Art and Design Education, Visual Art, Design and Technology Pedagogy. Post graduate and undergraduate pre-service teacher education in Visual Art and Design Education. Courses taught include: Teaching and Learning in Visual Art, Design in the areas of teaching strategies, assessment, classroom practices and curriculum design. Tertiary Teaching in Design Research Methodology.