Unit 4 AOS 1: Documentation and critique of the Creative Practice

AOS 1: Documentation and critique of the Creative Practice

On completion of this unit the student should be able to document their use of Creative Practice and present a critique to inform the refinement and resolution of a Body of Work. AOS 1 and 2 are concurrent.

Key knowledge

• methods used to evaluate and document the refinement and resolution of personal visual responses throughout the Creative Practice
• methods used to evaluate and document the refinement of materials, techniques and processes in selected art forms throughout the Creative Practice
• methods used to evaluate and document the refinement and resolution of visual language in personal responses
• the selection of the appropriate Interpretive Lenses throughout the Creative Practice
• methods used to present and critique the use of the Creative Practice
• feedback and reflection used to refine and resolve a Body of Work
• art terminology used in critical reflection

Key skills

• evaluate and document the refinement and resolution of personal responses throughout the Creative Practice
• document the refinement and effective resolution of visual language to communicate ideas in personal responses
• select and apply the appropriate Interpretive Lenses to document the use of the Creative Practice
• present a critique of the use of the Creative Practice
• use feedback and reflection to resolve a Body of Work
• document, annotate and evaluate the refinement and resolution of the Body of Work, using appropriate written and visual material
• apply art terminology in critically reflective annotations throughout the Creative Practice

CRITIQUE PREPARATION

For the critique, make an installation using the visual responses from U3 AOS 2, organised in a way that shows the development and evolution of ideas. Present the critique to an audience, explaining the progression of your work and discussing the influence of your chosen artist/s. Gather feedback from your audience.

Questions to consider and prepare PRIOR to the critique:

Prepare your presentation of U3 AOS 2 – your body of work to date.

Sample structure of critique:

Option – Prepare a slide show that outlines the ideas you have been exploring – how it started and how your practice evolved. Provide examples from your body of work, accompanied by your folio and physical artworks. Prepare questions for the audience that will help you resolve your body of work.

Some questions:

• How can I expand on or consolidate the ideas I have been exploring?
• How can I refine my use of materials, techniques and processes to enhance my visual language?
• Was one of the art forms that I explored more successful in conveying my idea? Why?

Use the following to prepare. This must be documented in your visual diary.

Structural Lens

• Which artists, and artworks, were your sources of inspiration? 
• Does your subject matter respond to or resemble that of the artist(s)? If so, how?
• Are there similarities or differences between the aesthetics of your work and the artists’ works?
• Have you employed symbolism? Does this relate to the inspiration you took from the artist(s)?
• What materials did you use? Did the artist(s) used the materials differently?
• Have the techniques you used changed or developed throughout the CP?
• Has your use of elements or principles taken inspiration from the artist(s)? If so, how? 
• Compare the processes used by the artist(s) to your own. Did your process change? How? Why?

Personal Lens

• Did the artist(s) work in isolation, or collaboratively? How has this influenced your use of them as inspiration?
• Does the artist(s) have specific beliefs that are relevant to their work? Were they relevant to you?
• Have your life experiences or those of the artist(s) influenced the work? If so, how?
• Do you think that the specific beliefs of the audience will effect their response to the works? If so, how?

Cultural Lens

• How have the time periods in which the artist worked influenced them? How is this evident in their work? Was it an influence on the way you used them as inspiration?
• Would an audience from today interpret the work differently to a historical audience? How? Why?
• Are your visual responses linked to social, ethical or political issues / views? If so, how?
• Do the artists you viewed subscribe to a spiritual or philosophical ethos? Did you explore this in your work? If so, how?
• Have economics or environmental concerns influenced your work? Did you have access to materials, or have you used found or repurposed materials?
• Does your ethnic background or that of the artist/s, influence you practice or that way that you made visual response? If so, how?
• Is gender reflected in your work? If so, how?
• Does the artwork provoke an emotional response? If so, how?
• How do these factors contribute to engagement and communication of meaning?

MAKE SURE THAT YOU ASK YOUR AUDIENCE QUESTIONS!

Record and reflect

How will you demonstrate your response to the feedback from the critique? Make this explicit. It is not enough to list the audiences’ responses. The purpose of the critique is for you to question what you have done and to be open to changing your approach based on feedback.

Other questions to consider:

• How effectively am I communicating ideas, and how can I strengthen this in the future?
• Can I revisit ideas expressed by the artist I investigated in Unit 3 AOS 1?

PLANNING forward – Resolution of the body of work

PLAN for the future. Document this in your visual diary.

Suggestions:

• Create a table that sets out a time plan to apply the Creative Practice and resolve and refine key ideas, art forms and aesthetics for your NEW Body of Work/FINAL Artworks.

Some other questions to consider when documenting the refinement and resolution of your body of work:

• What do I need to do to refine my body of work? Justify the reasons for the steps you propose.
• What do you want to communicate to your audience? Regularly seek and record feedback from others in the form of quotes, notes, and diagrams. What responses are coming from your audience? Are they aligned with your vision or are they unexpected?
• Why is your idea and body of work in the making significant to the community?
• How do you want to present your works? Does context matter? Consider many different approaches to presenting your work.

Artist studies (ongoing)

You will continue to research and explore the work of historical and contemporary artists. Doing so will provide you with inspiration and will link your creative practice and ideas to a wider discourse.

Focus on artists who use similar processes or ideas to your own. The artists you investigate should be linked to your own work. Themes, ideas, topics, art forms, materials, techniques and processes are all valid areas for you to consider. Further to this, an in depth comparison of two artists will be covered in the SAC (Unit 4 Outcome 3).

Documentation of your body of work (ongoing)

You must continue to document the refinement and resolution of your body of work. Annotate:

• The refinement of materials techniques and processes and artforms.
• The refinement of visual language in personal response to communicate ideas.
• Select and apply the appropriate Interpretive Lenses throughout the CP.
• Evaluate personal responses as the body of work develops.
• Using art terminology.