Art and design researchers can contribute in interesting ways to engaging citizens, policy makers, private partners and other participants to participate in public space (issues). The methods of doing so are, however, underexplored. Therefore, the FP7, Marie Curie Multi-ITN project ‘TRADERS’ (short for ‘Training Art and Design Researchers in Participation for Public Space’) researches the ways in which art and design researchers can ‘trade’ or exchange with multiple participants and disciplines in public space projects and – at the same time – trains them in doing so.

Five early stage art and design researchers and one sociological researcher (link) will test and develop a specific method on which art and design researchers can rely when working on public space projects in participatory way, being intervention, play, multiple performative mapping, data-mining and modelling in dialogue. These researchers will also investigate how these methods fit in a larger methodological framework that can guide future artists and designers (or researchers and practitioners in other disciplines) to work in participatory and public space contexts.

TRADERS brings together a wide range of disciplines such as visual arts, design, architecture and music. TRADERS allows to bundle the strength of the different disciplines to commonly approach other (non-A&D) disciplines and sectors.

The project commenced on 1 September 2013 and will run over four years (until 31 August 2017).