module specification

FA6P01 Major Project marks the summation of the programme of studies in four undergraduate courses. The project comprises a major piece of independent study, produced under supervision and guidance. The purpose of the major project is to demonstrate the application and integration of the skills and knowledge gained throughout the course. 

The module requires the student to frame appropriate questions for their project, followed by a period of research and development, culminating in the submission of a final body of work using ideas, techniques and processes at the forefront of art or photography, determined by the scope and character of the initial aims and objectives of the project.  The module will be supported by a series of project planning workshops. On this basis, the module will require the student to frame the project in contemporary terms and be able to justify in a presentation the methods employed in its execution, including the conceptual and practical aims of the project and its intended audience or reception.

The FA6P01 Major Project module is shared by, serves and sustains the Honours awards in the BA Fine Art, BA Fashion Photography, BA Painting and BA Photography courses and is delivered in a seamless and integral relationship with the work of other core modules in the level. Students are expected to reflect upon and present the complexity of critical and creative relationships between and across the body of work undertaken in Level 6, including in the Critical and Contextual Studies dissertation.

The module aims to allow students to show they have acquired coherent and detailed knowledge at the forefront of fine art or photography, able to deploy critical thinking with accuracy by developing and sharing the context for their project, compiling  a journal of experimentation, research and development that supports the production of a substantial body of work.

By planning and communicating to peers the framing of appropriate questions, method of enquiry and context for their project in advance, one of this module’s objectives is to enable students to have the solid background and clear information to make decisions about and solve for themselves complex and unpredictable problems encountered in a project they have initiated and executed themselves.

The module aims to allow students to show how they can manage project time professionally, and so give themselves plenty of time to evaluate, edit and finesse their project as a result.

Completion and pass (120 credits) of previous level.

At the beginning of the module, its aims, key concepts and milestones will be outlined to all students. There will then be sessions on framing appropriate questions for their art or photographic project work by developing a project proposal setting out in a plan of their own making the timing, stages and targets of project development (Learning Outcome 1).

Sessions will be dedicated by tutorial and guided independent study to develop experimentation and research to explore and  inform art or photographic projects (Learning Outcomes 2, 3)

Sessions will be dedicated by tutorial and guided independent study to encourage dialogue, analysis and evaluation over the application of appropriate ideas, techniques and processes relevant to the contemporary panorama of fine art of photography (Learning Outcome 4)

Further sessions and guided independent study will be used to support students toward the completion of a Final Major Project developed to a professional standard (Learning Outcome 5).

Scheduled teaching ensures that independent study is effective and addresses the learning outcomes and assessment tasks. Students are expected to (and to have the opportunity to) continue with their studies outside of scheduled classes. There will be a range of learning strategies deployed and individual learning styles will be accommodated. The module’s learning outcomes, its contents and delivery, have been scrutinised and will be regularly reviewed to ensure an inclusive approach to pedagogic practice.

The module and course use the University’s blended learning platform to support and reinforce learning, to foster peer-to-peer communication and to facilitate tutorial support for students. Reflective learning is promoted through assessment items and interim formative feedback points that ask students to reflect on their progress, seek help where they identify the opportunity for improvement in learning strategies and outcomes, and make recommendations to themselves for future development. Throughout the module, students build a body of work, including reflections on progress and achievement.

The School’s programme of employability events and embedded work-related learning within the curriculum supports students’ personal development planning. Through these initiatives, students are increasingly able, as they progress from year to year, to understand the professional environment of their disciplines, the various opportunities available to them, and how to shape their learning according to their ambitions.

On completing the module, the student should be able to:
1. develop a proposal for initiating a substantial Final Major Project.
2. demonstrate critical evaluation and effective application of focused experimentation to explore art or photographic projects;
3. demonstrate critical evaluation and effective application of in-depth research to inform art or photographic projects;
4. demonstrate the refined application of appropriate ideas, techniques and processes applicable to contemporary fine art or photography;
5. complete a Final Major Project to a professional standard.

FA6P01 (100%)
Formative Submission:
First Semester: Project Proposal
(LO1)

Summative Submission:
Project Proposal
(LO1)

Journal containing experimentation, research and development towards a substantial body of work.
(LO2, LO3 & LO4)

A completed Final Major Project
(LO5)

Precise requirements for submissions will be established in set or self-set project briefs each year

Summative assessment takes place at the end of the module. Written feedback addresses the strengths and areas for development in relation to the grading criteria.

Work will be assessed against the learning outcomes in relation to the following criteria:

• Appropriate use of research methods and enquiry
• Quality of analysis and interpretation
• Knowledge of and relevance to Photography or Fine Art
• Quality of communication and presentation
• Appropriate use of problem solving, testing and experimentation
• Management of own learning and personal professional development

Core Textbooks:
Buchmann, S., Laferm, I. and Ruhm, C. (eds) (2016) Putting Rehearsals to the Test, Practices of Rehearsal in Fine Arts, Film, Theater, Theory, and Politics, Frankfurt: Sternberg Press
Groys, B. (2016) Particular Cases, Frankfurt: Sternberg Press
Huppauf, B. and Wulfm, C. (eds) (2009), Dynamics and Performativity of Imagination: The Image between the Visible and the Invisible, Abingdon: Routledge

Additional Textbooks:
Behnke, C., Kastelan, C., Knoll, V. and Wuggenig, U. (eds.) (2016), Art in the Periphery of the Center, Frankfurt: Sternberg Press
Dworkin, C. (2010) No Medium, New York: MIT Press
Flusser, V. (2017) Art Forum Essays, Metaflux: Berlin

Journals:
Afterall, London: UAL

Websites:
http://www.e-flux.com/journal/