Art-based research and the craft practice in organisations

The article explores how the art-based (AB) approach may be applied to social research, as well as its methodology and practical concerns that have emerged from the primary literature that has investigated the phenomena over the years. Many studies have been conducted on the subject, but few of them go into detail on how to evaluate art-based research (ABR) in terms of outcomes and empirical evidence, how to duplicate its approach, and, most significantly, how to adapt it to organisational contexts. Some contemporary research attempt to engrave the advantages of the arts by defining models and, in part, by comparing creative work with craft. The paper emphasises the fine line between art and craftsmanship and the role of the latter as a way of technical use of materials by artists doing research within organisational contexts by using four case studies from two different European projects (the Interreg Italy-Slovenia DIVA project and the Horizon EU HEPHAESTUS project, which is still in progress). This work highlights craft as a practice of study and transfer of art-based approaches in organisations, combining technique and creative resource utilization.