module specification

The projects in this module will vary considerably in aim, structure and duration, with student responsibility for definition, implementation and development increasing as the course proceeds. Projects require substantial participation from students. They are inherently student centred with course demands satisfied by independent inquiry and discovery. Projects are the ideas and the framework that allows for original thinking and the developmental and conceptual aspects of the work and balance the practical skills dimension built up in the Techniques module. They enhance a sense of organisation and effective time management and encourage critical reflection and self-evaluation.

This module aims to provide students with a broad, varied, stimulating and diagnostic experience, which allows them to assess their own aptitudes and interests and thus make an informed choice of progression pathway.  It intends to develop a critical, disciplined and productive approach to visual enquiry and to support independent thinking, making and communicating. It aims to develop and evolve the portfolio of work in a distinctive and ambitious way and to evidence increasing subject specificity.

The syllabus covers basic skills and key concepts in the relevant subject area/s, providing an overview of current practice and a range of methods and approaches.

Indicative topics of study:
Drawing, 2D, 3D, photography, media
Developing a portfolio of work
Generating and developing ideas
Organisation and critical reflection
Time management and working to deadlines
Practical application of research
Establishing points of reference and thematic intentions
Relationship between form and content
Levels of meaning, the rhetoric of the image
Recording, manipulation and editing of sound

In stage 1, short, diverse and intensive practical projects are delivered across a range of different contexts related to their specific course. They introduce a work ethic, experimentation and open-mindedness.

In stage 2, open ended, interpretive and longer projects allow for application, reinforcement and development of effective practice from stage 1 and the establishment of a personal perspective and sense of direction.

In stage 3, single, area specific, major projects reinforce independence and commitment and generate the development of self-motivated, innovative, enquiry based project work within a principal area of specialisation.

The module is delivered through taught exercises and short projects, team teaching, tutorials, demonstrations, group and self-assessment through displays, talks, comparison and analysis. Group discussions, tutorials and informal feedback during studio sessions will give opportunity to reflect upon progress and discuss strategies for developing skills and practice.
Students will engage in ongoing self-directed study to enable them to complete required assessment components.
Module information including all assignments, visits and deadlines will also be on Weblearn where student feedback and module participation can also be enhanced as the module moves to address e-learning developments in the Faculty.

At the end of the module students should be able to –

1  Develop and present a substantial body of innovative enquiry based project work.
2  Evaluate, develop and plan their next level of study and/or work in the creative industries.
3  Demonstrate competency of practical application of research, self-reflection and independent  working sufficient to progress to Level 4.
4  Articulate personal concerns, ideas and opinions (visually, orally and in writing) within a broader critical and cultural framework.
5  Confidently use media, materials, processes and equipment in the development of work and ideas.

Assessment for this module involves the submission of one component; Portfolio (100%, week 30). Assessment will reflect work undertaken across the module in response to teaching, learning and activities detailed within the module booklet.

Learning outcomes are assessed within the Portfolio. Students must receive a pass overall.
This module is concerned with the development of original project work and with organisation and conceptual clarity. As such, the Portfolio will normally include: preparatory worksheets, tests, sketches, diagrams and process documentation and sets and series of resolved outcomes in different contexts related to their specific course.

Formative feedback will take place throughout the module through set activities and during presentations, tutorials and group discussions. These provide opportunities for students to reflect upon progress and discuss strategies for developing skills and discipline knowledge. Their function is advisory, specifying developmental action to be taken to achieve higher competence.

Summative assessment for this module will take place in week 30. It is important that students engage with the module throughout. Assessment consists of a reflective analysis and synthesis of all work completed. During this module ongoing individual studentship will be formatively reviewed and structured support for self-directed study will be given.

Introductory projects aim to cover as broad a range of subject practice as possible. Project handouts include additional research and reference material for students to follow up. Later projects become increasingly subject specific and students will be directed through such reading in taught sessions. Journals and periodicals will be essential reading. Electronic databases will be recommended through library inductions and include Art Full Text, Oxford Art Online, BFI Screenonline, DAAI Design and Applied Art Index, Academic Search Primer, JSTOR, Nexis UK, Bridgeman Education, VADS Visual Arts Data Service.

Art:
Hughes, R. (1991) The Shock of the New, Thames and Hudson.
Berger, J. (1991) About Looking, Vintage.     
Harrison, C. (2003) Art in Theory, 1900-2000, Blackwell.  

Media:
Bennet, Grossberg, Morris. (2005) New Keywords, Blackwell.
Monaco, J. (2009) How to read a film: movies, media and beyond, OUP

Photography:
Clarke, G. 1997, The Photograph; A Visual & Cultural History, Oxford
Wells, L. 2009, Photography, a Critical Introduction, Routledge 4th ed.

Fashion & Textiles:
Breward, C. (2003) Fashion, Oxford University Press
Sinclair, R. (2014) Textiles and Fashion: Materials, Design and Technology, Woodhead

Design:
Branston, D. (2010) Visual conversation,  AVA.
Fischer, V. (1998) Design and Industry now, Pressdale.
Martin, R, Mackrell, A, Rickey, M, & Buttolph, A. (2001) The Fashion Book, Phaidon Press Ltd
de Waal, E. (2010) The Hare With Amber Eyes: A Hidden Inheritance, Chatto and Windus,
(2008), Design and the Elastic Mind”, MOMA.

Architecture/Interior Design:
Coates, N (2003) Guide to Ecstacity, Laurence King.
Crow, T E. (2006) Gordon Matta-Clark; Phaidon Press Ltd.
Dunn, N (2010) Architectural Modelmaking; Laurence King.
Edwards, B. (1988) Drawing on the artist within, London : HarperCollins
Hejduk, J (1988) Education of an Architect; Rizzoli International Publications
Koolhaas, R (1994) S M L XL, Monacelli Press
Sheil, R (2005) Design through Making; Wiley-Academy
Schilling, A (2006) Modelbuilding; Birkhäuser GmbH