Dr. Helen Westgeest's PhD research explored the interest of several American, French, German and Japanese artists in Zen Buddhism in the 1950s, in which early experiments in performance art played an important role. Subsequently, the focus of her research gradually shifted to intercultural research of contemporary art and theory of photography/video art. Her current research zooms in on the role and nature of photography and video in mixed media works of art, while she also engages in comparative research into media in contemporary art. Her next book will look at theories of video art and is due to be published in 2014. In various respects, this book will be a sequel to Photography Theory in Historical Perspective, (2011, co-authored by Hilde Van Gelder).

She is involved in several international research projects and participates in a FP7 European research project application.

http://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/staffmembers/helen-westgeest

Video Art Theory: A Comparative Approach demonstrates how video art functions on the basis of a comparative media approach, providing a crucial understanding of video as a medium in contemporary art and of the visual mediations we encounter in daily life.

A critical investigation of the visual media and selected video artworks which contributes to the understanding of video as a medium in contemporary art

The only study specifically devoted to theorizing the medium of video from the perspective of prominent characteristics which result from how video works deal with time, space, representation, and narrative

The text has emerged out of the author s own lectures and seminars on video art

Offers a comparative approach which students find especially useful, offering new perspectives