The Borland Project Space showcases the research happening in the College of Arts and Architecture. We look to expand the definition of research to encompass the full range of diverse creative practices in which we engage to create new knowledge in our disciplines. Our goal is to move beyond traditional notions of exhibition and scholarly programming and reveal the processes of arts research.
We strive to deepen our understanding of artistic processes by emphasizing the process and exploration that artists undergo in their research endeavors. Thus, we prioritize ongoing projects and works in progress over finished artworks and final research products.
By placing ongoing research projects in a gallery-like setting, the Borland Project Space brings visibility to the research process in all its forms and stages.
Exhibitions may include documentation of the creative process, multimedia presentations, cross-disciplinary collaborations, process demonstrations, displaying multiple iterations of a work, presenting a timeline of key milestones in the research process, educational components, discussion panels, Q&A sessions, etc.
In addition, we seek to engage the larger community through events held in conjunction with each featured arts research project. We also welcome classroom research activities, gatherings, community-building events, and wellness programs.
Goals
Show creative work as research: Demonstrate that creative work is research by focusing on projects in progress and documenting how artists work and think through problems.
Make research visible: Help people understand what arts research looks like by showing the steps and changes that happen during creative projects.
Build community: Bring together artists from different disciplines and the broader community through events, collaborations, and opportunities to share ideas.
Offer diverse programming: Present work in different ways through showcases and documentation, hosting talks, panels, and community gatherings.
Support the college: Highlight the important research happening in Arts and Architecture by giving faculty and students a place to share their work.
Questions, inquiries, reservations?
Contact Zsuzsanna Nagy at zzn24@psu.edu.
Fall 2026 Schedule
September 14–25
Humans Are Living Histories (2022-2026)
Venus Bayat
September 28–October 2
Materials and Techniques Showcase for Art History
Surveys
Heather McCune Bruhn
October 5–30
Penn State Art Education turns 80! Graduate Research Wayfaring in the Archives
Doctoral student research in the History of Art Education course (AED588) with instructor Dr. Ann Holt
December 7–18
Finals Week Festivus Study Break and Relax Room
Organized by Robin Bierly
Events & Announcements
Humans Are Living Histories
September 14–25, 2026
Venus Bayat | 2022–2026
In Humans Are Living Histories (2022–2026), Venus Bayat uses photography to bring different moments of time into the same visual space, combining archival photographs with contemporary images to create encounters between people who lived in different times and places.
Bayat explores how traces of the past continue to shape the present, revealing history as something lived rather than distant. She is particularly interested in personal archives and family photographs as sites of memory, and in the role women have traditionally played in preserving, protecting, and passing down these images.
By layering photographs from different periods, Bayat explores history not as a linear sequence of events, but as an ongoing presence that continues to exist within everyday life. Through these visual encounters between past and present, she examines how individuals, particularly women, participate in the preservation, transmission, and reinterpretation of history.