proposal and bibliography

D. Trim down and edit the formal analysis, so it only contains points relevant to the theory/criticism section. EX: If it turns out that lighting has nothing to do with the focus of your argument, then leave it out.

Peer Review

Have your paper edited by at least two of your peers. If you liked working with some of the people in your group, then you should definitely ask them to be peer editors. You may have as many peer reviewers as you wish, but as least two are mandatory. We will be discussing the details of peer review in a few weeks. The Writing Center may count as one peer review.

For the Artists

Why Write? Why Research?

“If an artist knows exactly what she’s doing, then its not real art.” This statement praises the ineffability of art and the sensitive, genius character of artists. A well-accepted notion, Matisse even famously declared, “a painter ought to have his tongue cut out.” Many artists advocate abolishing artist statements altogether. However, in promoting the artist as a sensitive inarticulate genius, we risk pigeonholing and mythologizing the artist as Duchamp described in 1957, a “mediumistic being” denied “the state of consciousness on the esthetic plane about what he is doing or why he is doing it.”

Here, in art school you have the opportunity to practice crafting artist statements that are authentic, generative complements to your work, words which represent rather than reduce you and your work. Admittedly, your artist statement is a strategic document produced to meet a specific professional need, an accompaniment to your artwork in a job or grant application or on your website. It becomes a vital line of communication between you and the rest of the world. One art school’s website defines the artist statement as follows:

“The artist's statement should aim to explain, justify, extend, and/or contextualize your body of work. It should attempt to place your work in relationship to art history, theory, and the contemporary world. The statement serves to show that you are conscious of your intentions, aware of your practice and its position within art parameters and of the discourse surrounding it. Therefore not only does it describe and place, but it indicates the level of your own comprehension of your field and making.”

Art Project (~750-1000 words)

For this assignment you will be practicing discussing the context of your work explicitly in relationship to the art history and theory we’ve been learning in this class. It goes without saying that since you are a contemporary artist, links to present conditions of the world (political, scientific, historical, cultural, etc.) may be included in this context. Your paper will not be instructions for the viewer on what to experience, what to think, how to feel, how to act, or where to stand. Your paper will not be a book report about an artist’s life. It will be the result of answering the question “How do I create something that relates to actual historical discourse?”

How do I come up with an idea to apply to art practice?

If you can, get together with classmates and brainstorm. Make a list of what has interested you this semester. Go over your notes and readings. Think about your visits to art museums or galleries. Which artists stood out to you in this class? Narrow down your list to a few works of art, people, or ideas. For some of you the ideas or issues will guide you, and for others, works of art will take priority.

1. Choose an idea, technique, theme, etc. presented in class or in your textbook to engage in your practice. How you apply the idea or theme to your art is up to you. You may use any medium you find appropriate for this assignment.

2. Research the idea, technique or theme, then gather at least 10 sources. List them in a Bibliography in MLA format.

3. Skim through them like you’re doing the K and W part of your KWL homework. You may find that a few of the sources you found are not really useful for your purposes. Don’t use these.

4. Researching will uncover new ideas, so you may be going back and forth between a few steps for a bit. It’s not a perfect step-by-step process!

5. Submit your proposal and bibliography

6. Through information acquired in your research, write an explanation of the art historical idea or theme you’ve chosen.

7. Complete an art project or detailed sketch/model/proposal. This must not be a project you are doing for another class.

8. Explain how the historical idea inspires or influences your work. Answer some of these questions in your essay:

a. How is the art historical idea or theme signified or represented in your work?

b. If relevant, how does the medium express the idea or theme you’ve chosen?

c. How have you made this idea or theme from history “your own?”

d. What did you think was successful and not successful? Where might you go next in your process after this exercise?

9. Use photographs, close-ups, diagrams, and other images to help explain specific details you discuss in your paper. Write “See Figure 8” when you want to reader to look at an image you are discussing or using as an example. Label your images as Fig. 1, Fig. 2, Fig. 3, etc.

10. Finalize your list of sources as “Works Cited” page at the end of your paper.

11. Have a draft of your statement reviewed by two other people before the due date. The reviewers should be people you trust and may be classmates, roommates, friends, or family members. The Writing Center may count as one review. You may not turn in your project and statement until a draft has been reviewed by two different people and you have made the necessary edits and changes.