Syllabus

College of Architecture, Art and Planning

Department of Art Fall 2018

Art 4001-4002: Thesis I-II

TUESDAY/THURSDAY 1:25-4:25

Tjaden 324—class meeting space

6 credits

Faculty:

Michael Ashkin                Joanna Malinowska                 Anna Huff Mercovich

ma352@cornell.edu         jmm828@cornell.edu               digitalaaart@gmail.com

 Graduate Assistant:

Brice Peterson

bwp26@cornell.edu

Course Description:

Thesis I Prerequisite: All required 3000-level studios. Co-requisite: ART 4000.

Thesis I: This course prepares students for the final semester of thesis when they fully develop and complete a final exhibition/project of a new distinctive body of work. During Thesis I, students begin to research, develop, clarify, and sharpen and deepen their thesis proposal through dialogues, critiques, reading, and other activities with members of a Core Thesis Faculty. Thesis I encourages independent, critical thinking and requires students to reflect on their work to date—and their work in the future—with an understanding of historical, theoretical, and conceptual contexts.

Thesis II Prerequisite:  Art 4001

This course is the final B.F.A. studio semester in which students develop and present an independent body of work that may take the form of an exhibition or some other project. Students will work with members of the Core Thesis Faculty to define and refine the positions formulated within each work and to foster the ability to speak about one’s own work as well as the work of others. Emphasis is placed on developing strategies of productive self-criticality to inform their work both during and beyond the thesis semester.

 

  1. Course Objectives

Through successful completion of Thesis I and Thesis II students will learn what is required to maintain what a successful studio practice will mean for them within the context of the extended global contemporary art world.  Students will acquire deeper insight into their own formal, poetic, social motivations, as a means of creating work that is aware of the critical and historical currents in culture. To this end, this two-semester sequence seeks to prepare students to be able to independently do the following:

  • Interpret and engage with broad understandings of contemporary visual culture and media as a form of creative intelligence
  • Develop a discerning voice and confidence in one’s own artistic authorship, based on material, conceptual, and critical sensibility
  • Create and sustain a body of work through self-directed research, experimentation, risk-taking, and reflective analysis
  • Advance practices that can thrive either as an individual practice or within collaborative environments
  • Effectively communicate the intention of one’s work through its full formal realization
  • Be publicly articulate in the evaluation of the work of peers as well as more established artists
  • Learn to maintain a healthy balance between creative work and life

 

III. Course Expectations

  1. This class will concentrate on the development of a studio practice that is autonomous and based on the artist’s material and intellectual interests.  Students will be encouraged to experiment with different research/production methodologies to develop a practice that will be self-sustaining and flexible.  Individual studio time, critiques, and discussions will comprise a significant portion of class time. Specifications of any assignments will be shared at the beginning of the class. It is essential that students arrive before 1:25 so that announcements and discussion can take place collectively. Use of cell phones or texts/messaging (via computer or phone) is prohibited during class meetings.

 

  1. Please be prepared for all studio visits, group reviews, individual critiques, thesis paper deadlines and the final project exhibition. It is critical that you work outside of studio class meeting times to generate enough work for adequate review and evaluation during the class meetings. This is a six-credit course. Your work both inside and outside of class should reflect the course credit load.

 

  1. Students are REQUIRED to attend the Visiting Artists Lecture Series. (Please see attached list of lectures). ATTENDANCE WILL BE TAKEN.

 

  1. In artistic practice, diversity is a key element in discovery and learning. Differences in perception and interpretation are inherent between people of different backgrounds and may challenge ideas and beliefs. The ability to recognize multiple perspectives and appreciate the value of opposing views is among the signs of a mature process of artistic engagement. In this class we practice inclusiveness by becoming more aware of the attitudes, assumptions, and beliefs that underlie our creative and critical practices, and by thoughtful reflection and response to the attitudes and beliefs expressed by others.

 

  1. At the beginning of the semester you will reflect on the practical and critical work you have done thus far during your undergraduate coursework. After that review you will RESPOND TO A SHORT-TERM CLASS ASSIGNMENT. Our first class critiques will take place where the final results and responses of each student will be discussed collectively.

 

  1. You will be assigned a studio workspace in Tjaden Hall where you will work on your studio practice throughout the semester. Although your studio work may extend beyond the confines of this studio “home base” both physically and conceptually, it will be a site where you organize and contain the work you accomplish and the influences on your creative process that may include: writing, images, media, objects, reference material, books, magazines, etc. It is here you will be expected to work during all class times. Please be mindful of working in a shared studio space (i.e. noise level, keeping order, and following general health and safety guidelines which are attached).

 

  1. Early in the semester, you will define the technical skills you presently have and those you may need to acquire and refine throughout the semester.

 

  1. Draft and Final ARTIST statement: Students will write and submit a draft and then a revised Final Artist’s statement to be printed out and handed in as a paper copy BEFORE THE FINAL CRITIQUE.  YOUR CRITIQUE WILL NOT BE HELD UNLESS THIS STATEMENT IS SUBMITTED FIRST. Dates for these will be announced on the Course Calendar. We will spend at least two class periods considering different strategies for writing the Artist’s Statement.
  2. Actively contribute regularly as both a presenter of your work and as a critic of your classmates’ progress and methodology. A critique is not an assessment of your likes and dislikes but a means to develop a critical vocabulary for discussing your work and the work of your peers in both a historically informed and cultural relevant artistic language.

 

  1. The core thesis faculty will also conduct regular reviews of your work both individually and as a group. Each student will meet at least five times with the Thesis faculty on a rotational critique schedule to present their work during the course of the semester, exclusive of the first and second review. The schedule for these meetings will be given out at the beginning of the semester and posted in the studios.

 

  1. Work presented in midterm and final critiques should meet criteria relevant for each. Visiting critics will be invited to these critiques to review your work. (time to be determined)

 

 

  1. Critique Schedule: To be distributed.

 

  1. Grading and Attendance Policy

 

You will be graded on your ability to develop a working model for your own studio practice, one that allows for intellectual and material development.  Your grade will largely be a reflection of your individual effort, progress, and work accomplished.  You will also be graded on your class participation in and out of critiques. Grading for the course follows the Cornell University Grading System guidelines, assessing “knowledge and understanding of subject matter” and “perception and/or originality”.

 

Attendance will be taken:  absences and lateness will affect your grade adversely.  Three absences will decrease your grade one letter, with the fourth absence further decreasing your grade another letter; with five absences resulting in an “F” for the course. Three tardiy lateness (more than 10 minutes) will be equivalent to one absence.  Any extenuating circumstances should be alerted to all Thesis faculty and the TA.

 

 

  1. Assessment

The Cornell Rubric will be used in the assessment process. Cornell University Grading System:

S/U Letter Grade Point Value Description
 

 

 

 

 

 

S

 Passing Passing A+ A

A-

 4.3

4.0

3.7

  

Excellent to very good: comprehensive knowledge and understanding of subject matter, marked perception and/or originality.
B+ B

B-

 3.3

3.0

2.7

  

Good: moderately broad knowledge and understanding of subject matter;

noticeable perception and/or originality.
C+ C

C-

 2.3

2.0

1.7

  

Satisfactory: reasonable knowledge and understanding of subject matter;

some perception and/or originality.
 

 

 

U

 Fail D+ D

D-

 1.3

1.0

0.7

  

Marginal: minimum of knowledge and understanding of subject matter;

limited perception and/or originality.
Fail  

F

  

0.0

 Failing: unacceptably below level of knowledge and understanding of subject matter, severely limited perception and/or originality.

 

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

 

In compliance with the Cornell University policy and equal access laws, I am available to discuss appropriate academic accommodations that may be required for student with disabilities. Requests for academic accommodations are to be made during the first three weeks of the semester, except for unusual circumstances, so arrangements can be made. Students are encouraged to register with Student Disability Services to verify their eligibility for appropriate accommodations.

 

Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity

 

Each student in this course is expected to abide by the Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity. Any work submitted by a student in this course for academic credit will be the student’s own work, except in the case of certain collaborative projects as designated by the professor. IN THIS CLASS COLLABORATION IS ALLOWED WHEN LISTED ON THE ASSIGNMENT SHEET.