Joey Young

Collecting Meaning:  A Study on Collecting as an Artmaking Practice

This thesis explores how we practice creativity and construct narratives through the act of building collections. It examines collecting as both an innate creative impulse and a learned process. Using arts-based research and narrative inquiry, the study considers how our collecting habits reflect the ways we process information and express personal artistic interests.

Composed as a boxset of four, handbound books, this thesis publication was inspired by Dayanita Singh’s (2017) project, Museum Bhavan, and its layout was designed by Hannah Chosid. Each book in this set is a chapter of the thesis. Included as back matter is a collection of postcards, acknowledging the collections that shaped a dedication to this practice.