Leonardo Graduate Abstracts (LGA) is an evolving international and interdisciplinary peer-review database of dissertation and thesis abstracts (PhD, MFA, and Master’s) that deal with topics at the intersections of art, science, and technology. Artists and scholars who have received advanced degrees in the arts (visual, sound, performing, and text), sciences, computer sciences, and/or technology and who investigate theoretical, historical, critical, and/or practice-based engagements of science and/or technology with the arts are invited to submit an abstract of their dissertation or thesis for publication consideration in this peer-review database.

In addition to being published in the Leonardo Graduate Abstracts database, a selection of top abstracts chosen by a peer-review panel is published annually in the Leonardo journal and in the Leonardo newsletter. The authors of these abstracts names, as well as the titles of their dissertations and theses, are listed on the LGA website. Authors of abstracts most highly ranked by the panel are also invited to submit an article for publication consideration in the journal. 

Leonardo Graduate Abstracts is a resource for artists and scholars working at the intersections of art, science, and technology. It is intended to support international dialogue as well as to enhance communities and networks in these fields. The purpose of LGA is not to duplicate existing abstract databases but rather to give visibility to interdisciplinary practices and research, which is often difficult to do from existing sources.

The international peer review panel is made up of academics and artists and is chaired by Leonardo Graduate Abstracts editor-in-chief, Mary Anne Staniszewski. The list of this year’s reviewers is available at: https://leonardo.info/this-years-peer-reviewers

The LGA peer review takes place each summer and results are announced in the fall.

This English-language database was initiated by Leonardo more than twenty years ago and was hosted online by Pomona College (Claremont, CA) and overseen by founding editor-in-chief Sheila Pinkel (who retired in 2023). In the summer of 2021, the database was moved to the Leonardo website and is now part of the Leonardo Educators and Students program.

Requirements for Submitting a Thesis or Dissertation Abstract

• The deadline for receipt of abstracts for the LGA peer review is 30 June each year.
• You must have graduated from your degree program before June 30 of the year you submit your abstract.
• Your abstract must be from 200 to 500 words.
• The title and the abstract must be in English.
• Provide an accessible link to your thesis or dissertation. If there are delays with your school process or if the peer reviewer is required to be a member of your university system to access, another online source (such as Google Docs or Dropbox) can be used.
• Provide an email that will be functioning after your graduation.

Suggestions for Writing Your Abstract

• In the first paragraph clearly describe your project, your topic, and/or research question(s).
• State what is innovative or original about your work: What is the contribution to your field(s)?
• Clarify your thesis or dissertation’s relationship to art and technology and/or science.
• Reference related aesthetic or research contexts or frameworks for your thesis or dissertation.
• Summarize your final work(s) or outcome(s) of your research.