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University of the Arts London

Vol. 6 No. 1 (2023)
'PhD Supervision' special issue

Case Studies

I Supervise and I am Supervised

Published 2023-04-25

  • Paul Jackson

Paul Jackson
London College of Communication, UAL

Illustration of PhD student writing at his desk, surrounded by surveillance cameras. Illustration by Paul Jackson, LCC.

Abstract

This article explores the roles of power in creative exchange. In it I reflect on my dual role of being both supervisor and supervisee. Written during the early-2021 COVID lockdown, I relate Foucault’s interpretation of Bentham’s panopticon to both academic supervision and to my commercial illustration practice. When working for art-directors and creative teams, a distant powerbroker (and their approval) offered certainty and security; in a PhD, that might not necessarily be the case. At that stage in my PhD, I felt uncertain of the hierarchies at work: was I working for my supervisors, or with them?  

Keywords

Supervision, practice-as-research, panopticon

PDF

Author Biography

Paul Jackson

Paul Jackson is a PhD candidate at UAL and Course Leader for MA Graphic Branding and Identity at London College of Communication. He is also an illustrator, working under the pseudonym Wesley Merritt. 

References

  1. Duxbury, L. (2012). OPENING THE DOOR: Portals to Good Supervision of Creative Practice-led Research pp 15-23 in Allpress, B., Barnacle, R., Duxbury, L. & Grierson, E. (2012) Supervising Practices for Postgraduate Research in Art, Architecture and Design. USA: Birkhäuser Boston
  2. COPELAND, P., DEAN, R. G. and WLADKOWSKI, S. P. (2011). The Power Dynamics of Supervision: Ethical Dilemmas. Smith College Studies in Social Work, 81:26–40, 2011 Boston, Massachusetts, USA
  3. Foucault, M. (1977) Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. New York, Pantheon.
  4. Gatfield, T. (2005). An Investigation into PhD Supervisory Management Styles: Development of a dynamic conceptual model and its managerial implications. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management. 27(3)DOI: 10.1080/13600800500283585
  5. Jackson, P. (2020). Interface methodologies. Reflective writing on Once Upon a Spacetime in the West - Year 02. Workflow site. URL: https://paul-jackson.workflow.arts.ac.uk/once-upon-a-spacetime-in-the-west-year-02. [Accessed 11th December 2020]
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  7. Simon, B. (2005). The Return of Panopticism: Supervision, Subjection and the New Surveillance. Web: Surveillance & Society. URL: https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society/article/view/3317/3279. [Accessed 3rd January 2021]
  8. QAA Scotland. (2013) What is Mastersness: a discussion paper from 'Learning from International Practice: The Postgraduate Taught Student Experience'. UK: Scottish Higher Education Enhancement Committee
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