Level 3 and 4 Diploma in Art & Design – Foundation Studies Example briefs – Units 1, 2, 3 & 4 Overview This document contains two example briefs from Leeds College of Art, which UAL Awarding Body has identified as an example of good practice. These two examples are taken from a series of Stage 1 briefs, which are not specific to any particular discipline. Each incorporates Units 1–4 and helps to challenge preconceptions about art and design disciplines. These projects encourage play, experimentation and develop thinking skills. Students ‘diagnose’ and select their specialist pathway by reflecting on how they have approached and responded to each of the diagnostic projects i.e. identifying how they think and what common threads of interest there are across their responses to projects. www.arts.ac.uk/awarding

Course Title / Pathway UAL Foundation Diploma in Art & Design

Project Title Perception

Briefing date

Staff

Unit titles (refer to stage 1 overview for assessment criteria)

Unit 1 - Art & Design Research Methods Unit 2 - Art & Design Ideas Development Unit 3 - Art & Design Materials and Methods Unit 4 - Art & Design Evaluation and Reflection

Submission Deadline

Internal Verification Signature

Project Context

“An idea is nothing more nor less than a new combination of old elements [and] the capacity to bring old

elements into new combinations depends largely on the ability to see relationships.” James Webb Young

The ability to analyse something from a different perspective, ignoring what you know so you can learn

something new, gives you the opportunity to reinterpret or reinvent familiar items or ideas, to consider

how else you might use an object or a theory or idea in a new context. Creativity does not appear from

nowhere; it emerges when you employ strategies to see the world differently, to challenge what you know

and the structure in which you know it.

"Every act of perception, is to some degree an act of creation..." Oliver Sacks

Project Outline

You are challenged to turn the world upside down, question the reality you exist in, exploring the visual,

practical and theoretical possibilities that can arise when you challenge rules or boundaries. To do this you

are asked to make a ‘Perception Altering Instrument’ (PAI) that changes your perspective!

What if…

…your eyes were in your knees?

…you could only see in one tone or hue of a colour?

…the speed in which you processed images was slowed down, like the shutter speed on a camera?

…you were upside down?

…you could only engage with the world through sounds and echoes, like the sensitive hearing range

of a bat?

…your vision was completely blurred or you had peripheral vision?

…you could only ‘see’ the world through written words describing your surroundings?

…you could only interact with the world from the point of view of lying down, flat on the floor,

looking at the ceiling?

…you experienced the world through taste or colour, similar to synesthesia?

Your PAI might be a pair of glasses that magnifies, distorts, skews or mirrors everything you look at, or a

periscope that means you can only ever look behind you. This instrument might not be necessarily

something you look through, but an apparatus that restricts your movement or contorts your body into a

particular position. It might alter what you can hear or feel. This piece of apparatus will force you to

engage with the world in a different way. It might make you feel uncomfortable or restricted, as you begin

to question the things you take for granted every day.

Through this two day project you will be asked to create a number of PAIs, to document how they change

your view of the world, and to then redesign your surroundings according to this new world view! You will

be given handouts each day with new instructions.

Work to be submitted

A wide-ranging body of work that will include 3D models, tests and maquettes, photographed beautifully

and documented in your studio notebook. You will have drawings and diagrams both in your studio

notebook and on larger sheets of paper, and possibly film and audio pieces.

You might choose to work in pairs, but if so, you must both produce a separate body of work equal to that

which you would have created on your own.

You can find the complete assessment criteria and units in the Stage 1 section of eStudio and on the

Stage 1 Overview.

Supporting materials /resources/useful links

Consider existing examples of things that alter our perception or enable people/animals to view the world

differently to us:

Physical Perception: fly eyes, focus / blur / glitch, distort / enlarge / reduce / twist / skew / reflect /

mirror / repeat / refract, compound eyes, peripheral vision, hyperspectral vision / imaging, visual field

defects - blind spots, periscopes, kaleidoscopes, macrospia / microspia / teliopsia / peliopsia,

stereoblindness, partial deafness, tinnitus.

Conceptual Perception: glass delusion, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (also visual), telepathic, telekinetic,

dissociative amnesia (losing time- non-linear time), synesthesia, reality and representation, dream,

illusion, alternate reality, visual agnosia.

Theory:

Simulacrum (theory of) by Baudrillard; Schrodinger’s cat (physics, quantum physics) / Phenomenalism

(philosophy- Kant); Solipsism (philosophy); Logos (philosophy- Plato); Presentism (philosophy)

Eternalism (philosophy); Multiverse Theory / Parallel Universes; Ontology.

Books:

His Dark Materials Trilogy, Philip Pullman

Flatland: A romance of many dimensions, Edwin A. Abbott

Alice in Wonderland, Alice through the Looking Glass, Lewis Caroll

1Q84 / Wind Up Bird Chronicles / Kafka on the shore / South of the Border, West of the Sun (and most of

his others), Haruki Murakami

The Mechanism of Mind / Po: Beyond yes and no, Edward de Bono

Number9dream, David Mitchel

The Inverted World, Christopher Priest

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, Roald Dahl

The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat, Oliver Sacks

Radio:

Reith Lecture 2003: Lecture 4 Purple Numbers and Sharp Cheese, Vllayanar Ramachandran (Synesthesia)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/reith2003/lecture4.shtml

This American Life 2015: Episode 544 Batman. Lots of other podcasts in their archive.

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives

Lectures:

David Tammet, Different Ways of Knowing

[Access online: http://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_tammet_different_ways_of_knowing?language=en]

Neil Harbisson, I Listen To Colour

[Access online: http://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_tammet_different_ways_of_knowing?language=en]

Edward De Bono, Re-thinking The Future

[Access online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e20lpMyXFj4]

Films:

Amelie Micmacs The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Pan’s Labyrinth Lost in Translation The Matrix (related theories, see Nick Bostrum,

The BFG Coraline Silaes Beane)

Men in Black Alma (animated short) James and the Giant Peach

Mars Attacks The Sixth Sense The Time Travellers Wife

The Truman Show The Lovely Bones The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Designers / Artists / Inventors:

Bill Viola Anish Kapoor Carsten Höller (Decision at Hayward Gallery)

Haruka Kojin The Uncomfortable Project Elon Musk (inventor and entrepreneur)

Katerina Kamprani Ana Rewakowicz Laikingland (and other automata designers)

Evelyn Glennie Neil Harbisson James Thompson (Expanding Spaces)

1

Course Title UAL Foundation Diploma in Art & Design

Project Title Actions Have Consequences

Unit Titles (refer to stage 1 overview for assessment criteria)

Unit 1 - Art & Design Research Methods Unit 2 - Art & Design Ideas Development Unit 3 - Art & Design Materials and Methods Unit 4 - Art & Design Evaluation and Reflection

Briefing date

Staff

Submission Deadline

Internal Verification Signature

Brief Context/Rationale

Visual literacy or communication is a principle that underpins every discipline within art and design. Every

mark you make, the composition of visual elements, the colour and materials that you select to use in your

work impart information. In the words of Erik Speikermann; “You cannot not communicate”.

The act of communicating as an artist or a designer brings with it many problems, most importantly the

ideas or messages the viewer or audience receives must be appropriate and intentional. At its core is the

study of the different ways we interpret visual information. This must come with a respect for alternative

cultural and personal interpretations.

We have to take into consideration the fact that any object, image, mark or work may have multiple

meanings dependent upon our prior experiences and understanding of the world. We also need to think

about the fact that some work will be read literally whilst other works may intentionally play with

metaphors and connotations.

"Drawing is not what one sees but what one can make others see" Edgar Degas

2

Denotation refers to the literal meaning of a word, the "dictionary definition."

Connotation, on the other hand, refers to the associations that are connected to a certain word or the

emotional suggestions related to that word. The connotative meanings of a word exist together with the

denotative meanings.

Alphabets are a good example of a collection of symbols which have a broadly accepted meaning relating

to sounds. In the context of text, a circular mark on the page is read as an ‘o’ and denotes that letter. It

could when read in any other context have any number of different interpretations applied to it. Being

aware of the fragility and power of symbols, marks and shapes and developing the skill to manipulate them

is the task of the visual communicator.

‘All that is necessary for any language to exist is an agreement amongst a group of people that one thing

will stand for another.’ Crow, David, (2003) Visible Signs, p20, AVA Publishing, London.

‘The Chinese symbol for crisis is composed of two characters: one indicating “danger,”

the other “opportunity.” A design problem is not something to be overcome, but an

opportunity to be embraced. The best design solutions do make a problem go away, but

accept the problem as a necessary state of the world. Frequently they are little more

than an eloquent restatement of the problem.’

Frederick, Mathew, (2007) 101 Things I learned in Architecture School, p98, MIT Press.

Brief

Overview This brief aims to build a deeper understanding of contemporary art and design born from the development

of a collection of drawn marks. Your challenge is to translate a physical action into a library of marks,

symbols, signs, ideograms or characters. At all times your focus should be on communicating something

about the action, be it physical, emotional or sensory.

All work must demonstrate careful, deliberate and high levels of crafting. You will be expected at all times

to have a high regard for your own health and that of your peers and to conduct your work in a professional

manner.

3

Monday – Generate

You have been given a physical action. Work in pairs to explore and study this action in detail. Deconstruct

it. Generate a body of primary research from this action.

Using no less than 5 completely different media in 1 colour, begin to explore distinct gestural mark making

and visual symbols which respond to your action. This is an initial practical research stage. Be as exhaustive

and imaginative as possible. Consider every detail of your action. This time is for thinking visually and

getting ideas down on paper. Use your studio note-book and A1 cartridge paper.

By 4.30pm you must have produced a minimum of 75 marks.

Tuesday – Refine and Grid

Select from your 75 marks and reproduce 30, using one media only.

You may choose from: Tape, Thread or Cut Paper.

Produce an exquisite drawing, laying out your new symbols with care and a high level of crafting. Reflect

on why you have selected these marks. Think about scale, layout, positioning but above all – think about

communication. Justify your decision making in your studio note-book. You have until Tuesday at 3pm to

complete this task.

Please refer to the assessment criteria in Stage 2 of e-Studio or Stage 2 Overview.

Work to be submitted

You will be required to present for assessment at Stage 1 (Week beginning 24th October) :

Photographs and other documentation of your action being performed.

A minimum of 75 initial marks and symbols in a broad range of media in sketchbooks and loose sheets.

A drawing of 30 symbols using a grid to present a refined selection of marks and symbols using either:

Tape, Thread or Cut Paper.

A drawing of 3 highly crafted and refined symbols.

Reflection in your reflective planner and annotation in your studio note-book.

A Critical Journal entry that relates to the project.

Supporting materials /resources/useful links

4

As part of this brief you must use the library to inform yourself about contemporary art & design

practice. Look at the journals regularly. Look at the relevant library shelves regularly. Inspire yourself.

The library also has an extensive moving image catalogue.

Books:

Impey, Sara, (2013) Text in Textile Art, Batsford, London

Beech, Dave; Harrison, Charles & Hill, Will, (2009) Art & Text, Black Dog Publishing, London

Shaolan, (2014) Chineasy: The New Way to Read Chinese, Illustrated by Noma Bar

Bantjes, Marion (2013) Marion Bantjes Pretty Pictures, Thames & Hudson, London

Abbink, Jeanette & Anderson, Emily, (2010) 3D Typography, Mark Batty Publisher, New Jersey.

Reyes, Fabiola (2007) Typo: the beautiful world of fonts, Instituto, Monsa de

Ediciones,Barcelona

Morely, Simon (2003) Writing on the wall: word and image in modern art, Thames and Hudson,

London

Hunt, John Dixon; Lomas, David & Corris, Michael (2010) Art, Word and Image: 2000 years of

visual/textual interaction. Reaktion Books, London

Brownie, Barbara, (2014) Type Object, Art Power International Publishing Co. Ltd., Honk Kong

Practitioners:

Dominic McGill, Marco Maggi, Kunihiko Morinaga, Katherina Grosse, Reza Abadini, Kristen Burke,

Jaume Plensa, Richard Long, Achyut Ramchandra Palav, Sol Le Wit, Matt W. Moore, Marion

Bantjes, Dan Tobin Smith, Hamish Fulton, Keisuke Nagatomo, Christian Northeast, Viktor & Rolf,

Dino Dos Santos, Roeland Otten, Paul Sych, Mika Poka, Eric Speikerman, Barbara Kruger, Phil

Baines, Eric Gill, Edward Johnston, Stefan Bruggeman, Jason Santa Maria, Masahi Kawamura,

Ebon Heath, Mathew Carter, David Carson, Kris Holmes, Yuka Nishino, Jonathan Barnbrook.

Web:

Standard Time by Mark Formanek https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HOS05BQvz0

Heterosis by Brian Banton http://vimeo.com/19580048

Faktura http://www.fakturadesign.com

Benoit Challand http://www.benoitchalland.com

Tabisso Typographia http://www.tabisso.com/Typographia-chairs.html

Mass Studies http://www.massstudies.com/

http://islamic-arts.org

http://www.mariondeuchars.com/