Course Title: Painting Studio 1A1 Visual research/Alternative materials

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Painting Studio 1A1 Visual research/Alternative materials

Credit Points: 12

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
VART1886	City Campus	Undergraduate	340H Art	Face-to-Face	Sem 1 2006, Sem 1 2007, Sem 1 2008, Sem 1 2009, Sem 1 2010, Sem 1 2011
VART2034	Hong Kong Arts Centre	Undergraduate	340H Art	Face-to-Face	Offsh 1 09, Offsh 1 10, Offsh 1 11, Offsh1 12

Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Peter Ellis

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 2838

Course Coordinator Email:peter.ellis@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: Bld 2.C.9

Course Coordinator Availability: Via Appointment

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

None

Course Description

This course contributes to the objectives of your Bachelor of Arts program by providing opportunities for you to discover creative solutions to constraints and challenges and by developing your capacity for critical reflection and reflective arts practice, in order to prepare for a future, that is both informed and improved by arts practice. This will assist you is becoming a member of cultural and creative industries. 

This course introduces students to a wide range of technical, perceptual and conceptual strategies to generate and extend visual research.
Through a variety of experimental and structured projects, students will investigate both traditional and alternative art making processes and explore the possibilities of the different readings these materials create within a fine art practice.
Emphasis will be placed on how artists generate and develop ideas from initial studio based research into resolved works.

The course will motivate and develop students skills in 
- analytical thinking, 
- visual perception that develops intuitive sensibilities 
- developing an experimental approach to problem solving within a contemporary fine art context.

This course is designed to instruct students in research strategies that are ongoing throughout the program and that relate to a variety of fine art disciplines

Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

At the completion of the course students will have: 
- an understanding of a variety of visual strategies to instigate works of art 
- an ability to:

• Use observation skills to attend to visual contexts more closely than ordinary "looking" requires and thereby see things that otherwise might not be seen
• Explore playfully without a preconceived plan, and learn from mistakes and accidents
• Employ painting skills that relate to the use of various tools, materials and artistic conventions
• Describe and demonstrate the intellectual and practical application of your conceptual, perceptual, formal and aesthetic concerns as they relate to your artwork
• Visually experiment with ideas and materials to expand your visual language
• Analyse visual material in relation to ideas and produce final works from preliminary visual experimentations
• Critique your own work and working processes as well as the work of others
• Establish a critique of practice and challenge models of meaning 
• Understand aspects of contemporary theory and history of practice as it relates to the course
• To establish a practical and intellectual basis for addressing conceptual, perceptual, formal and aesthetic concerns as they relate to fine art practice

Overview of Learning Activities

This course is studio based. It includes a combination of structured projects and individual work projects in consultation with staff.  Learning activities will include - lectures, demonstrations, regular focus lectures which introduce key research projects, individual and group tutorials, audio visual presentations, individual and independent studio work proposals relating to individual visual research, methods of production, new media, field trips, gallery visits, health safety and security, professional practice. Blackboard will support student learning.
You will receive feedback from your peers, academic staff, practicing artists, technical officers, and others in the arts industry and community through a variety of consultations, tutorials, critiques and reviews.
Feedback is an ongoing, continuous strategy in this course. Feedback is collegial, supportive, reflective, critical and encouraging. Students and staff are respectful of an individual’s ideas and opinions.
Students will receive feedback on their artwork, proposals, projects and progress from a wide variety of sources: from peers in daily studio contact, in group tutorials and collaborative projects. Technical and practical feedback from studio technical officers. All aspects of a students art production, proposals, projects and progress will be given by academic staff who are experienced practicing professional artists.
Visiting artists, casual staff and Art History and Theory academic staff also provide feedback.
All students may engage in formal feedback through regular student / staff consultative committees, through Blackboard and CES (student Experience Survey HE) at the end of each semester.

Overview of Learning Resources

Learning resource references will be distributed during the first week of class

Overview of Assessment

The work resulting from your studio practice will be presented for assessment at the end of semester in the form of a folio. Your folio should clearly demonstrate the learning objectives of this course and may comprise drawings, sketches, maquettes, photographs, digital works, books, paintings, videos and journals which reflect your visual, conceptual and technical research. This folio will be assessed by professional artists and art industry experts to the level of First year standards.
The folio should reflect your involvement in consistent, dedicated, research and production of artworks over the semester and will include works produced in lecturer guided hours and student independent, research time.

Course grades available:
HD High distinction (80 - 100%)
D Distinction (70 - 79%)
C Credit (60 -69%)
P Pass (50 - 59%)
N Fail (0 - 49%)