Research in Contemporary Art Education 2011
From David Darts Wiki
Spring 2011
Welcome to Research in Contemporary Art Education (E92.2299). This course is designed to support students as they complete their Final Project (E92.2301) — a guided individual inquiry into a topic or question that has particular significance to their own art making and/or pedagogical practice.
Contents |
Research in Art Education (E92.2299)
Both Research in Art Education and Final Project are based on the following five principles:
- Art making and artworks are capable of generating new knowledge and new understanding and thus can be understood as forms, sites, and artifacts of research.
- The intellectual and creative work undertaken by artists has the capacity to inform and transform human understanding and awareness and thus can be understood as pedagogical.
- Contemporary artists are socially engaged. Their artworks can be a powerful means for making available ideas, feelings, and social growth. They can reveal social deficiencies, help envision new possibilities and stimulate solutions to social problems.
- Contemporary art is conceptual — it extends beyond the creation of objects and images to include the formation of complex ideas, theories, and concepts.
- Contemporary art making can be and often is informed by research and research practices from the humanities, social sciences, and beyond.
Throughout the semester, we will examine theoretical, social, political, ethical, and practical aspects of research within the contexts of contemporary art making and teaching. Students will conduct literature reviews and develop a comprehensive topic and proposal in preparation of their Final Project. We will examine scholarly debates surrounding definitions of “legitimate” knowledge and research and will critically examine issues of representation, subjectivity, and colonialism within the milieu of research practices in the arts, humanities and social sciences.
Our exploration of different forms of artistic research methods will be conducted through: lectures, shared readings, artist’s work, in class discussions, hands-on activities that deal with observation, interviews, and visual analysis of data.
Final Project (E92.2301)
Along with taking the Research in Art Education class, students are also required to concurrently conduct a sustained research and studio project. Called Final Project, this culminating experience is designed to provide students with an opportunity to reflect upon and extend their learning in the program by challenging and broadening their understanding of what it means to be a contemporary artist and critical art educator.
The Final Project experience is intended to model ways that contemporary artistic practices can be informed and enhanced through research. This approach places art at the center of students’ investigations and thus demonstrates how art can become a form of research that shapes knowledge about our world. The Final Project experience presents students with the opportunity to identify an issue or question that has particular significance to their art making and/or pedagogical practice and to carefully investigate it using art as the primary vehicle through which they present their findings.
Over the course of a semester, students conduct research and produce an artistic project or a body of art work. Students also write a critical research paper and create an artifact (book, website, DVD, etc) which serves as a historical record of the research project. The Final Project culminates in a group exhibition in a gallery on campus. During the opening reception for the exhibtion, students each give a brief research talk and present their project through the lens of their artistic work.
Course Instructors
- David Darts
- Office: 3rd Floor Barney building
- Office Hours: Thursdays 2:45–4:45 pm
- Note: Appointments can be made by emailing the instructor
- Dipti Desai
- Office: 6th Floor Barney building
- Office Hours: Tuesdays 2-4pm, Thursday 2:30-4:30pm
Class Google Group
Students should request an invitation to join the class Google Group by visiting this page. This group will be used for all group electronic communications. Please send group emails to: researchinarted11@googlegroups.com
Required Texts
- Electronic readings (available for download below)
Class Schedule
Classes will be held on Thursdays from 4:55-6:35pm in Room 204 of NYU Steinhardt's Barney building.
Please note the class schedule and syllabus are subject to change. Students should check this site regularly for updates and modifications.
January 27
- Introductions to course, instructor and students
- Overview of course expectations and assignments
- Creative Process exercise.
- Homework: Read Darts & Desai Critical Art Education (pdf)
- Homework: Mapping the Terrain of Your Research Topic: Develop a topic or question that you would like to explore this semester. On a large sheet of paper, make a map or diagram of all of your questions, association, courses, and leads. Make your most compelling thoughts in a strong color. Mark the main links to those ideas in that color too. Bring your map to class and be prepared to present it.
February 3
- Discussion: Darts & Desai reading
- Workshop: Final Project topics
- Homework: Read Thomas Hirschhorn's Doing Art Politically
- Homework: Read In Two Directions: Geography as Art, Art as Geography (2009) by Nato Thompson (pdf)
February 8
- Special Class meeting: Students Present Final Project topics
February 10
- Lecture: Research and Contemporary Art
- Lecture: Theoretical Frameworks
- Watch: Alfredo Jaar and Layla Ali interviews
- Discussion: Hirschhorn, Lin, and Thompson readings
- Homework: Read The Ethnographic Move in Contemporary Art by Dipti Desai (pdf)
- Homework: Read Interpreting Jeremy Deller’s The Battle of Orgreave (pdf)
- Homework: Read Alfredo Jaar interview (pdf)
February 17
- Homework: Read selection from Maya Lin's Boundaries (pdf)
February 24
- Discussion:' Desai, Dellar, Jaar readings
- Lecture: Ethnography, History, Oral History
- Homework: Watch Guillermo Gomez-Peña and Coco Fusco's Couple in a Cage (video) Available for viewing at NYU's Bobst Library
- Homework: Read A Savage Performance: Guillermo Gomez-Peña and Coco Fusco's Couple in the Cage by Diana Taylor (pdf)
- Homework: Read The Other History of Cultural Performance by Coco Fusco (pdf)
March 3
- Discussion: Couple in a Cage
- Homework: Toward a Situationist International (Debord) (pdf)
March 10
- NO CLASS (work on research papers)
March 17
- NO CLASS (NYU Break)
March 24
- Due: Draft of Final Paper Introduction and Theoretical Discussion
- Presentations: Present your research topic and art project plans
March 31
- Presentations: Present your research topic and art project plans
- Homework: TBA
April 7
- Art Critiques:
April 14
- Work period - NO CLASS
April 21
- Art Critiques:
April 28
- Art Critiques:
May 5
- Final Class
May 8
- Install final exhibition in Commons Gallery
May 10
- Exhibition Reception and Research Presentations beginning at 6pm
Assignments
1. Final Paper
30% (Draft of Introduction and Theoretical Discussion Due: March 24) Your Final Paper should adhere to the following structure:
(A) Introduction:
- Introduce your research topic and describe why you are interested in it?
(B) Theoretical Discussion:
- Analyze your topic: What are the three pivotal ideas and themes that shape the way scholars and artists are talking about your topic?
- NOTE: In order to successfully complete this section of your paper, you will be need to read in depth about your topic. You will also need to find contemporary artists who have addressed your topic along with literature critically discussing their work.
(C) Final Analysis:
- Based on your theoretical discussion, analyze your own artwork.
SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS
- Your paper should be between 4000-5000 words.
- It should adhere to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) 5th Edition.
- Be clear and concise. Kurt Vonnegut offers sage advice to writers of short fiction that is applicable to writing papers: Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted. As such, your writing should be understandable and clear. Avoid idiomatic language (slang), empty jargon, and unnecessary “academic” rhetoric. An educated reader unfamiliar with your area of research should be able to understand your topic through your writing.
- Avoid overusing direct quotations, especially long ones. Instead, try to paraphrase the main ideas of an author whenever possible.
- Use great care to avoid plagiarism. If you are unsure about what constitutes appropriate student conduct at NYU, please refer to the NYU University Policy on Student Conduct (see Policies section below).
2. Final Project Artwork
25% (Due: TBA) Your Final Project artwork is the physical manifestation of, and the conclusion to, your research.
Scholarly and Artistic Considerations Regardless of the specific nature of or form your artwork takes, it should represent graduate quality scholarship and art making. As such, professional quality artistry and craftsmanship should be one of your paramount concerns.
3. Final Project Artifact
15% (Due: TBA) The artifact will serve as a historical record of your final project research. It should include your essay and documentation of your artwork. Like with your Final Project Artwork, you artifact should be professionally designed and presented.
Please note: If you are using a publishing service like Blurb.com or Lulu.com, you must complete your project early enough to allow for printing and delivery times. The turnaround times published on these sites are misleading and often inaccurate. To ensure prompt delivery you should budget for their expedited services—though even this will not guarantee a fast turnaround.
4. Final Project Presentation
10% (Due: TBA) Students are expected to deliver a concise public presentation about their research. More info to be provided in class.
5. Weekly Readings and Personal Engagement
20% (Due: TBA) Throughout the semester, students will be asked to complete homework assignments related to the course content. Students will also be asked to critique and respond in writing to the readings and class activities. These reflections and critiques should be both critical and constructive—they will form part of the basis of our weekly discussions in class. Students will be intermittently required to submit them to the instructor for formal evaluation.
Students are expected to regularly attend class and actively engage in ALL discussions, exercises, and activities. The course carries a heavy reading load and students are expected to complete all of the weekly readings before the beginning of each class.
Policies
Evaluation
You will be evaluated based on successful completion of all course assignments and activities. The work you complete for this class should represent graduate quality scholarship and art making. It will be evaluated based on its intellectual rigor, originality, artistry, and craftsmanship. Final grades will be awarded according to the NYU Department of Art and Art Professions guidelines.
- A 95 to 100
- A- 90 to 94
- B+ 85 to 89
- B 80 to 84
- B- 79 to 75
- C+ 70 to 74
- C 69 to 65
- C- 60 to 64
- D 59 and below
Disabilities Statement
Any student attending NYU who needs an accommodation due to a chronic, psychological, visual, mobility and/or learning disability, or is Deaf or Hard of Hearing should register with the Moses Center for Students with Disabilities at 212 998-4980, 240 Greene Street.
University Policy on Student Conduct
The relationship between students and faculty is the keystone of the educational experience at New York University. This relationship takes an honor code for granted. Mutual trust, respect and responsibility are foundational requirements. Thus, how you learn is as important as what you learn. A University graduate school education aims not only to produce high quality scholars, but to also cultivate honorable citizens. For specific details about the NYU University Policy on Student Conduct please download and refer to the NYU guide on student conduct.
