Can we do this online? An aesthetic inquiry on virtual studio management education

Abstract

Studio methods represent one of the more recent forms of arts-based learning interventions for promoting business students' creativeness, fostering socio-material relationships, and generating new insights through its maker-orientation. Different from more individually focused analytical tools, studio practices involve the collective materialization of artifacts to study management and organization topics. The potential for introducing online studio activities remains underexplored because studio-based approaches typically rely on assumptions of physical co-presence and material matters. Contributing to the current dialogue surrounding virtual student engagement and experiential collaborations, this paper focuses on studio activities designed for engaging online MBA Organizational Behavior students in the artistic materialization of artifacts to explore their experiences with virtual groups. Realized artifacts are shared with peer groups through a virtual platform, inviting aesthetic enjoyment and interpretations. Student reflections on artifact-making and virtual sharing are examined through the lens of aesthetics to guide readers through both theoretical nuances and practical insights on co-creative studio dynamics. Participants’ narratives underscore both opportunities and challenges associated with online socio-material studio work. Implications for future research and online studio practices are considered.