Journeys

ASSIGNMENT TITLE: Journeys	YEAR         AS PHOTOGRAPHY GROUP
TUTOR/S            K Potter, J Townsend ASSESSOR/S         VERIFIED.	START DATE       19 September 2011 SUBMISSION DATE     21 November 2011

UNIT MAP: Technical Studies introduction assignment   Unit 1 Please ensure you have your own SLR camera by the Half Term break!

ASSESSABLE OUTCOMES AO1   Record observations, experiences, ideas, information and insights in visual and other forms, appropriate to intentions AO2   Experiment with and select appropriate resources, media, materials, techniques and            processes, reviewing and refining their ideas as their work develops. AO3   Develop ideas through sustained investigations and explorations, selecting and using materials, processes and resources.           Identifying and interpreting relationships and analysing methods and outcomes AO4   Present a personal, coherent and informed response, realising intentions and articulating and explaining connections           with the work of others (Assessment Grid attached)

GUIDELINES The first 8 weeks of your AS Photography course will be focussing on technical studies to get you started in how to use an SLR camera, process your own film, build your own camera and confidently use a darkroom, assess your own work and carry out competent and thorough research to establish professional links between your work and the work of others. For this initial project you are required to experiment as much as possible, go with your ideas and develop skills in observation, composition, tone and the formal elements.  Firstly, you need to have a think about what a journey is and what questions you can ask.... Where do you take journeys in the day? How many? When? What was the last journey you took? How are your journeys documented? How do you plot a journey? You might want to consider journeys on a more simplistic level too. The journey of a leaf falling, your bus trip to college, what you hear, see and taste, where your things travel from and to, where do you end up at the end of the day? Where do planes travel? Consider evidence of journeys instead such as vapour trails, clouds, water, railway lines, roads, tyre tracks, foot-prints. Raindrops and snails. Perhaps think about animation? How could an inanimate object undertake a journey? You might also want to explore internal journeys, those of your mind, your thoughts, your dreams or the journey of your body. We will be doing a group and individual brainstorm to get you going, always an important part of the idea generating process. In order to help the thinking process, research is the vital clue to finding ideas and identifying key photographers whose work is relevant to your ideas and the theme of the brief. It is ok to copy their tactics first and then see where your work goes from there. Without the research, your ideas cannot move forward and must all be analysed and documented in your technical log books and forms the majority of all your assessment objectives!

The following list is seen as indicative but not definitive as reference to this assignment brief. You are encouraged to broadly research at first whilst ideas develop, then refine your research and increase the level of depth of your understanding. Stephen Gill’s A Book of Field Studies, Richard Billingham’s Black Country, Francesca Woodman, Ana Mendieta, Daniel Meadows’ The Bus, Robert Capa, W. Eugene Smith, Magnum, Boris Mikhailov, Bill Viola’s Nantes Triptych, David Wojnarowicz, Andy Goldsworthy, Douglas Gordon, Simon Norfolk, Wolfgang Tilmans’ Commuters, Walker Evans’ Subway Passengers, Dryden Goodwin’s Cast, Cindy Sherman

TASKS – the things you must do

All of the following are initial points for you to get started with; therefore you are expected to generate further material in order to produce a personal response to the brief that goes beyond this.

1. Research composition, tone and the formal elements including composition.
2. Take photographs of a Journey using pinhole camera and photogram.
3. Take photographs of a small Journey using SLR.
4. Think of a metaphor that relates and photograph this. 

As 1^st year AS Photography students you are expected to not to simply rely on 1 roll of film. A successful student will sufficiently explore potential themes for some time before developing (AO3 – strand 1) the idea further

Also:

• Gather as much information as you can based around the theme of Journey through drawing, photography, collecting visual information from magazines, exhibitions, newspapers etc
• Gather as much information as you can based around the theme of Journeys through art historical research into the list of artists and photographers given
• Use the Library effectively to improve your research not just the photography section!
• Start making and collecting images that explore your theme
• Develop work from this collected and researched information which shows a sense of direction and strength of idea
• Produce your own photographs and other means of recording observations
• Learn new skills and processes as part of your investigation and research
• Develop your ideas towards a coherent outcome
• Produce a outcome/s which fulfils all criteria
• Provide analysis of your work

1.     Sketchbook

2.     Evidence of research

3.     Evidence of development

4.     Exploration of media and techniques

Outcome(s) Written evaluation of the work which makes reference to time and your creative problem KEY SKILLS MAP This assignment will foster key skills in C3.1a Contribute to a group discussion about a complex subject C3.2 Read and synthesise information from two extended documents about a complex subject. One of these documents should include at least one image.

GRADING CRITERIA

A separate feedback sheet will be returned to you once this assignment has been marked. Should you disagree with the grading decision, details of the College Appeals procedure can be found in your Student Handbook or your Programme Handbook.