Undergraduate Course: Ideas and Concepts in Art and Design Practices (FNDN07009)
Course Outline
| School | Centre for Open Learning |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course is aimed at building upon the foundations of Semester 1 to develop the beginnings of a practice. You will learn how to explore lines of enquiry, develop research skills, ideas, and concepts through progressive and directed projects. You will progress to a self-directed and independent project, honing your research skills to develop and present a personal project. |
| Course description |
This course will provide a supportive and creative environment allowing you to build upon the practical, reflective and analytical skills introduced in Foundation in Art & Design Practices. Workshop activities and projects will be delivered in a range of 2D and 3D approaches. You will continue to develop your skills through building on the four key areas of Research, Reflection, Practice and Resolution.
The focus of the course is to enable you to begin to develop your own projects, which includes understanding the importance of writing a project brief to focus and drive your ideas. You will also:
- learn how to organise your time when working independently, to make the most appropriate use of studio time for directed study tasks and exercises
- embed the value of critical thinking and arguments through peer group discussions
- develop an awareness of contextual referencing within your work.
In addition, you will develop your working knowledge of studio practice and culture.
You will be steered through a series of directed thematically driven projects, leading to a personal project. This will involve engaging in practical investigations using relevant media, techniques and processes, and gathering, selecting and organising visual examples from primary and secondary sources.
You will be developing an art and design literacy skills set and continue to build your knowledge and understanding of a visual language, employing art and design terminologies as and when appropriate.
Directed study activities will include research into a range of suggested artists and their associated movements to engender a contextual awareness.
Throughout the course you will engage in group critiques, reflective practice exercises and field trips to support and underpin their project work. Supportive sessions on developing studio workflows, developing a project brief and considerations when presenting work will give you the skills to manage your projects through directed and independent study time.
Your progress will be monitored and supported by the teacher. Teaching will include practical demonstrations, one to one tuition, group discussions and critiques.
For work required to be undertaken in directed study studio time, you will create a ¿study plan¿ as to how you will utilise your independent study time in the studio. The study plan will include preparing evidence of research and practical work to form an appropriate presentation for assessment.
You are expected to demonstrate how your research has informed your work through annotated sketchbooks, a Learning Journal and practical outcomes.
|
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
|
| Academic year 2025/26, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
|
Quota: 90 |
| Course Start |
Flexible |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 96,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
100 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Each student will keep a Learning Journal throughout the course which will be shared with course teaching colleagues.
Formative Assessment will occur around the mid-point of the course. Each student will undertake a short verbal presentation based on their practical work through the form of a group critique. This will be followed by written supportive feedback given to the students via their Learning Journal and based on the Learning Outcomes of the course, indicating areas to be addressed.
Summative Assessment - occurs at least one week after the last taught class.
Assessment will occur via the submission of:
A Learning Journal (Indicative time spent: 25%)
A personal narrative as evidenced in the Portfolio of practical work. This will include reflections of idea development; media exploration; contextual research; and critical analysis of the work supported by illustrations, contextual referencing and photographs of work.
A Portfolio of practical work (Indicative time spent: 75%)
A presentation of practical art/design works. This will include visual research comprised of sketchbooks, preparatory studies and resolved work.
The Learning Journal and Portfolio are to be presented in combination. The submission should include work undertaken within the class as well as directed and independent study out with class time.
The combined Learning Journal and Portfolio submission will be assessed together as one submission and against the four learning outcomes for this course. These are equally weighted at 25%, and each will be given a percentage grade. To pass, students must achieve a minimum combined mark of 40% of the overall submission.
Students who do not meet this requirement will be offered the opportunity to resit in accordance with taught assessment regulations. |
| Feedback |
As is usual in practice-led art and design courses, students will be given regular (verbal) individual support, to help build confidence and commitment, and enable a smooth transition to their chosen degree pathways.
Tutorial support (verbal and written) will continue in relation to developing practical work, and teacher-led group/peer assessment (verbal) will take place weekly following workshop activities.
Following the formative assessment, indicative and supportive feedback will be summarised in written form which will give an indication of areas required to be addressed in order to meet the published learning outcomes and maximise each student¿s learning potential. This will comprise a short written summary and feed-forward against each of the learning outcomes.
Students will receive a final assessed mark/grade on completion following the summative assessment. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Research and Ideas - Demonstrate and employ a range of strategies for recording and developing concepts and ideas, integrated through contextual research
- Context and Reflection - Demonstrate a reflective narrative that analyses and critiques their own practical work, supported by contextual referencing
- Practice Skills and Techniques - Demonstrate knowledge of how to explore and employ a range of materials and techniques, to explore a range of personal concepts and ideas
- Selection and Presentation - Demonstrate appropriate judgement in selecting, editing and presenting a coherent, individual body of work, underpinned by personal research
|
Reading List
Recommended Reading:
Bell, J. (2019) Ways of Drawing: Artists' Perspectives and Practices Thames and Hudson Ltd.
Kleon, A. (2012) Steal Like an Artist. New York: Workman Publishing Company Inc.
Phaidon Editors (2022) Vitamin D3: Today's Best in Contemporary Drawing¿Phaidon Press.
Phaidon Editors (2023) Vitamin C+: Collage in Contemporary Art.¿Phaidon Press.
Smith, T. (2012) Thinking Contemporary Curating. New York: Independent Curators International. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Employability awareness will be enhanced through the development of skills on the IFP. The holistic nature of the skills included in the programme will enhance students¿ readiness to develop both graduate attributes and the social and cultural capital that will enable them to make the most of their undergraduate studies. |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Ms Liz MacDougall
Tel:
Email: emacdou3@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mr James Cooper
Tel: (0131 6)50 4400
Email: jcooper6@ed.ac.uk |
|
|
University Homepage