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Diary
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A
level requirements
1. Thematic
and expressive units. This project can be used as a starting point for
both expressive and thematic A level units. In Diary, many of the students
worked from the expressive to the thematic. They started by keeping the
diary and considering aritsts' working process - how ideas are germinated
and developed. Then they developed themes culled from the diary.
2. A 'journal' rather than a 'sketchbook' is compulsory for 3 AS projects, as the key to initiating and developing visual ideas. The diary as set out in this project is a journal rather than a sketchbook. Simon Granger encouraged the students to reach deeper into themselves for their subjects, even if this was done through looking outward at political events, or through simple observation of one's surroundings.
3. Fostering independence. The move from GCSE to A level is a jump requiring greater initiative and independence. The open-ended nature of this project encourages the development of students' own themes and interests through the kind of working process which artists use.
4. Combining ICT with Art . This project combines use of the Internet with more traditional ways of building images.
5. Assessment areas for AS and A level art & Design pertain to every part of this project. Encouraging students to write in their diaries meant that reflection, analysis and articulation of what they were doing was always part of the process.
Problem
areas
1. Open-endedness.
The open-ended nature of a project such as this one encourages students
to develop personal interests rather than respond to set tasks. However,
despite the ways in which this project fits into the A level syllabus,
there may be a clash between the broad 'development' aspect of the project
and the units they must complete within a certain time. One student said:
"There were so many ideas in my diary, I found it hard to stick to one
and develop that. The ideas were so far apart, I felt I didn't have the
time to find a way to bring them together."
2. Separation of stages of the process. Assessment procedures divide projects into areas such as 'initial reseach', 'own investigation', 'experimentation with materials', 'development of idea', 'critical studies' and 'final outcome' which are separately assessed. In practice, the process is much more blended than that. For example 'critical studies' will contribute to each stage.
3. Assessment. The need to be assessed continuously might inhibit free exploration, the outcome of which is uncertain.
4. Internet diary. Most students are not used to using the Internet as a 'diary' for art, as suggested here. The image searches are less personal than the paper diary, and the process seemed unfamiliar or irrelevant at first to some students. However, many were surprised by what they found which led them in unforseen directions (see case studies).
Uses
of the Internet for Art
1. As a 'secret
teacher' - one to one tuition to find out basic information about colour,
techniques, materials
2. As a research tool to support critical studies for example investigating artists for historical reference (stamps, flags) linking to other subjects (science, interior design, musical instruments, carnivals)
3. To produce imagery - combining images from digital camera, scanned in drawings or photos, with images or backgrounds imported from the Net
4. To visit virtual galleries - Tate, National Gallery, collections in other countries.
5. To communicate visually with another community - sending images and emails to other schools (see Half Life, another project in the Whitechapel's Download series)www.whitechapel.org/download/halflife
6. To visit live webcams - for example New Orleans Mardi Gras and Covent Garden
7. To research and order art materials.
8. As an 'electronic
diary' - an aid to develop ideas and support a sustained piece of
work. This is
the way this project uses the Internet.
a) finding unforseen forms to put ideas in - photo instead of painting,
caricature style instead of realistic, humourous treatment of a serious
subject.
b) finding background information to feed an idea. For example, one student was interested in the emotion of fear. He did some searches on the net to read up on the causes of childhood fears, which helped him to think of ways to explore the idea visually.
c) finding unforseen images.
Advantages
of using the Net for art
1. immediacy
and accessibility of images and information.
2. ability to connect with other disciplines.
3. serendipity - 'lateral thinking' style of computer searches.
Drawbacks
- use of the Net as a 'soft option' for art
1. false authority. Students may assume what's on the screen is
authoritative.
2. downloading instead of processing. Students may copy many pages of text, or download and print images, and think they have accomplished something.
3. lack of context. Images found on the net are free-floating, taken out of context. Teachers need to give students a sense of context and the different motivations for making and using images.
4. false equivalence. Students may assume an equivalence of images seen on screen - for example 'ClipArt' may be treated the same as a painting.
5. substitute for skill building. Instead of observing the way shadows fall on the table, a student may download a screen full of readymade shadow images. Overuse of the computer may sidestep real investigation and observation.
6. inappropriateness. Flat graphical imagery may be seen by students as 'cool' or emblematic of success. This may not coincide with what's needed for A level exams.
