The aim of this thesis is to give an alternative insight to the existing concept of individuality in visual art through an examination of the meaning of being individual for visual art practitioners, particularly for those who operate in an artists’ group setting. This research project is a critique of the seemingly unchallenged emphasis on the individuality and its strong association with creativity in the current British art schools. Cultivating individuality is one of the most important aims in both British and Japanese institutions where I have trained as an artist. Nevertheless, my group-oriented cultural background and my membership of an artists’ group studying in an individually-oriented environment raise questions challenging the meaning of being an individual itself. This thesis has no methodology set up at the beginning, which would usually be the case in a conventional academic thesis. Instead, the thesis develops thought experiments to examine what ‘individual’ means in order to arrive at methodology towards the end. Moreover, this piece of practiceled research is not about the contents of my practice but about the group feeling underlying my practice as an individual fine art practitioner. The investigation into the relational idea of the self of Zen, followed by Charles Sanders Peirce’s semiotics of the Universe of Three Categories, provide the research with a useful visual thinking tool: the triadic diagram. The investigation into the meaning of the individual develops further through an exploration of the concept of ‘groupness’. Definitions of the term are carefully unfolded until the terminology allows us to contemplate different senses of the individual: singularity- and groupness- oriented individual. As a result of the thought experiments examining different ideas of one’s individuality, there emerge several action research practice-led methodologies for the fine art practitioner working in a group situation. One methodology brings groupness into my individual practice, and another introduces groupness situations to other practitioners. The contribution of this thesis is to provide a basis for fine art practitioners like myself to revalue their individuality in harmony with their group membership.

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The Presence of Absence and Other States of Space argues that absence has an underlying presence that links the territorialised space of the non-place and the interstitial space of the border zone. It is posited that disturbed areas are created that interrupt, amongst other things, placial identity. It was also argued that the term 'non-place' has a limited validity in contemporary society. Also, as a fine art, practice-led study, viewing space was continually questioned both with regard to my own practice and to other, mostly contemporary, artists. The research was multi-disciplinary and used observation and reflection to form the basis of studio practice from which exhibition material was then gathered. Ideas were tested in both conventional and unconventional exhibition spaces, predominantly through installation, expanded sculpture and site-specific. Throughout, theory and practice have existed side by side, each informing and being informed by the other in a circular and reflective manner. The academic and practice research base was international and included the UK, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Laos, Norway and United States of America. Primary authors included Marc Augé, Gaston Bachelard, Homi K. Bhabha, Michel De Certeau and Henri Lefebvre and, later, particular resonances were found in Martin Heidegger and Michel Foucault. Visual references were mainly Western and included Belgium artist, Francis Alÿs (b.1956) and Michael Elmgreen (b. Denmark 1961) and Ingar Dragset (b. Norway 1969). The main outcomes have been that absence was identified as an underlying concept especially regarding placial identity; that place was seen as a site of memory and experience in addition to being locational; the term 'non-place' was found to be of general limited validity mainly due to the overwhelming presence of genericness caused chiefly by contemporary economic constraint. In the narrow authoritarian space of the border, a pause was identified that occurred in the everyday life of the user that showed similarity to the user of the non-place. Applied to the process of viewing it was accepted that, whilst the white cube mode of viewing was imperfect, no better system was found where the artwork could be idealised in such a way. As an overall viewing experience for the casual viewer however, it gave a poor outcome. Viewing of art in the everyday created dichotomies that related directly to the duration of display where permanent art could easily become invisible due to its constant presence. Immediate relevance was found in my own practice especially with regard to art exhibition and viewing. The importance of these findings concerns art and architecture where value has to be placed on social and cultural identity that then contributes to placial identity, thus creating presence instead of absence.