Dictionary of Professional Development


What does “professional development mean” to you?

This question was the starting point of a workshop in November 2021. We noticed that the research team all had different understandings, feelings and experiences of professional development and wanted to capture these differences so we could discuss them together as a group. 


We created this dictionary as a way of recording and discussing the different meanings. It shares our interpretations, sometimes in words and sometimes in pictures. During the project, lots of different people looked at our dictionary and added to it. The “dictionary” shows the diversity of experiences artist’s encounter around their creative development. 


We learnt some artists view professional development as a good thing. They enjoy opportunities to stretch their thinking and try new things, recognising that as human beings we are all constantly learning and growing.

But other’s felt it was a scary thing. It made them feel like they were not good enough and reduced them to be measured in very specific ways they didn’t feel they had control over. We learnt early on in the project that for professional development to be inclusive for lots of different artists, it needs to be flexible; shaped and measured by them in ways that make sense to them as people and to their practice.

Explore more of our research