• Offered for Year: 2024/25

• Module Leader(s): Professor Richard Talbot
• Lecturer: Professor Louise Wilson, Ms Helen Smith, Dr Christian Mieves, Professor Uta Kogelsberger, Professor Jane Wilson, Ms Jo Coupe

• Owning School: Arts & Cultures
• Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus

Semesters

Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.

Aims

The emphasis of this module is on the development of a self-determined and self-directed art practice along with creative, innovative and critical thinking under the supervision of your tutor, other staff and visiting lecturers. The module promotes the development of a body of creative work of an individual nature in artistic practice. It provides grounding in practical and critical methods and generates insight into their impact on practice of different kinds. The module develops an awareness of artists' contribution to contemporary culture, and knowledge and understanding of professional practice.

Outline Of Syllabus

Individual tutorials with your supervisor will take place approximately every 4 weeks. You will also have the opportunity to see other Fine Art staff for surgery tutorials and attend the Visiting Speakers Programme lectures and seminars in Semesters 1 and 2. A regular programme of group crits, workshops and seminars takes place in Semesters 1, 2 and 3. Semester 3 is focused on the completion and presentation (via digital portfolio or public exhibition) of a body of fully realised work.

Teaching Methods

Teaching Activities

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The module proceeds by means of a schedule of tutorials with the student’s practice-based tutor, group critiques, lectures from the Visiting Speakers’ programme and a programme of practice-related and professional development seminars and workshops. Also included is the regular upkeep of a ‘Digital notebook/ sketchbook’ that records and reflects upon research, progress and outputs.

The module places emphasis on the production of a considered body of new-work. A programme of seminars, workshops and group crits support the development and critical evaluation of individual practice as well as encouraging students to identify the context in which they are working. The weekly programme of lectures, given by visiting artist, critics and curators provide examples of advanced professional /fine art practice. Tutorials with the students supervisor, other Fine art staff and visiting speakers will focus on the development of individual personal practice.

Tutorials facilitate the development of the student’s understanding and skills in all aspects of their practice: organisational, developmental, formal, conceptual, technical, contextual and professional. They also nurture the student’s ability to evaluate and reflect, to articulate their ideas and debate issues relevant to their practice. Group critiques foster the student’s ability to reflect critically on their own work and that of others and to formulate reasoned responses to the views of others.

Elective skills-based workshops allow students to broaden their range of technical skills, exploring new means of making or developing an existing methodology. Students are also encouraged to choose from a range of discipline-specific Forums, which provide the space for conversations within a particular area of art practice, such as Painting, Performance or Film. These groups enable discussion around both technical skills and ideas/artists pertinent to the discipline, helping students situate their work within the context of contemporary practice..

The Visiting Speakers’ Programme extends the student’s awareness of the spectrum of Fine Art practice and the different ways in which theory might relate to and sustain practice. It also provides a wide range of examples of approaches to developing a practice and presenting and documenting artwork.

Also included is the regular upkeep of a ‘digital notebook/ sketchbook’ that records and reflects upon research, progress and outputs.

Scheduled leaching and learning activities such as workshops, demonstrations, individual tutorials and small group teaching will also be conducted present in person in the Fine Art studios and workshops. Where scheduled teaching and learning activities are delivered via non-synchronous online sessions they will be followed by a synchronous on-line drop-in Q&A session.

Assessment Methods

The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners

Other Assessment

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

In order to allow for development of a sustained body of work, students are assessed at the end of semester 3. Assessment will be via exhibition and/or digital portfolio that will focus on the physical and/or documentary evidence of the student’s creative practice supported by other written, contextual, research and reflective material. This enables assessment of the full range of a student’s engagement with the module in relation to: sound research and developmental methods: technical processes and materials; identification of subject matter; formal and conceptual considerations; contextual understanding; independent planning, management and direction of their practice; critical self-reflection and professional practice. It will show the basis and development of a viable and effective creative practice and its capacity to develop a body of art work towards resolution.

Students present their work for assessment at the end of semester 3 in a publicly presented MFA Show (typically in the Hatton Gallery and Fine Art studios, online if made necessary by Covid-19 restrictions or similar) plus a submission of a digital notebook and other related material.

Reading Lists

• FIN8009's Reading List

Timetable

• Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
• FIN8009's Timetable