Semester Outline
The purpose of this class is to prepare undergraduate students of art for the grad school (MFA) thesis. Not everyone advances to grad school. For those who do advance, the Master's Degree in Fine Art prepares students for a career in college-level teaching. Knowledge of the concept of a thesis is a good foundation for everyone's life work. Your assignment for next week is to visit the college Library. Ask the librarian to direct you to the Master's Degree thesis shelves.
They are first publications in print by grad students for the Master's Degree -and beyond. Pull a few editions from the shelf for examination and comparison. Notice that they all have a similar format. They are printed with triple line spacing, stitched binding, and (of course) all are cataloged. Exceptional statements are sometimes uploaded by thesis authors to the internet. Most are more modest in scope.
Indeed, successful professionals often prefer to forget these published, elementary statements of opinion. To the researcher the grad thesis can be an objective starting point toward understanding the author's mature body of work. As you know, publication is forever. It is proof of the writer's commitment. Do not be daunted for that reason. You will not have to make a thesis commitment until you are admitted to a Master's Degree program, and the deadline for completion is from 2-6 years.
What I ask of you, now (as undergrads), is to learn to express a formal opinion. It will be, for most students, your first Artist's Statement. It is required in order to pass the course. Artist's Statements will be required of you when, and if, you exhibit your art in an exhibit place open to the public. As you are probably aware, critical reviews of your work may be published. With this practice, it will be expected, even demanded.
You will write not only one statement, but one a week, choosing your best as final. At the end of the semester you will read your final statement to the class. Expect to answer questions from myself and the other students. Again, I say be not daunted. All of you will pass. The only opinion that is not valid is the one that is not expressed. You will be graded on comprehension, originality, and, of course, attendance.
An objection; “Why,” you ask, “must I write about my art, when it speaks for itself?” That is what I said as a Sophomore. Let me report to you what was said to me. The class instructor, who was herself a grad student and teaching assistant, explained to me (and for the benefit of the entire class) like this. The T.A. said that the class (which was a requirement for graduation) was a survey of contemporary art. The T.A. argued that as a contemporary artist, if you intend to show your work in public, you must expect to be asked questions about your art.
Understand that the public's questions are not so easily ignored as in an undergraduate seminar. I would add, if that is not to your liking, you may wish to consider another major. I thought my Sophomore “Survey of Contemporary Art” graduate teaching assistant had temerity to admonish me for an innocent question. To this day I never forgot the lesson, and I hope you will get the point of the exercise, as did I.
Moving along, by week three everyone will create an Internet blog page. It can be public, or private, as long as I can read it. There, you will file your class documents, including both word, and picture file uploads. The following week will commence “show-and-tell.” You will “show” your physical artwork, and “tell” about it by reading a one-paragraph statement. By physical, I mean a submission which might be submitted for Copyright. Briefly: No daydreams.
Afterwards, we will return to the studio, working with the medium with which you usually work. Until “finals,” any physical artwork, including written, printed, and copied documentation of your project, will be brought to the classroom studio for work and discussion. Becoming an adept AND knowledgeable artist is the objective of the course. It will be our main preoccupation for the balance of the semester.