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Premise:
Works of art engaging the public are an important conceptual part of the art world. They are
a point of intersection between artists, specialists in the field, and the public, and they often
significantly contribute to the popular and critical attitudes toward a specific artist, an art
historical movement or concept, or a larger aspect of human experience. Public art works
typically attempt to bring awareness to a concept or topic (climate change or environmental
impact in this case) that may or may not be immediately apparent to the viewer.
Engagement with the work, researching scholarly writings about the work, and using your
own skills of analysis and critical thinking, you will determine if your selected artist/work of
art has effectively communicated their concept and ideas around their engagement with the
environment.
Final Project - Research Paper and Presentation Instructions
There are 8 parts to this assignment, due throughout the semester:
1. Name of artist, potential works of art and concept (DUE: 2/18) - 20 points
2. Name of research partner if working collaboratively (DUE: 3/4)
3. Annotated Bibliography with 3-5 scholarly sources (DUE: 3/11) - 50 points (please include a citation for each image you intend to use as well)
4. Outline (DUE: 3/18) - 80 points
5. Rough draft of research paper (DUE: 3/25) - 100 points
6. Rough draft of presentation (DUE: by class-time 4/3) - 50 points
7. Research Paper (DUE: 4/8 by midnight) - 100 points
8. Final Presentation (DUE: by midnight before your presentation date) - 300 points
Research Paper Requirements:
Your paper must be fully created in Google Docs. You will need to grant me editing access to the file from the beginning as you work your way through the various stages of the project.
Final Research Paper Formatting:
The paper must include the following:
● a title page (with your name, the title of the paper, the course name, and date
● 6-8 pages for the body of the paper (double-spaced; 12-point Arial or Times New Roman; 1-inch margins)
● 1-2 pages with labeled images (include artist name, title of work, date, medium, and location
● 1 works cited page in Chicago Style formatting (citations for all research materials including images; minimum of three scholarly resources)
The research paper will be written individually, but you may give your presentation with another person if you so choose. You are not required to use only images of art pieces you see in class, but you are required to keep to the same themes we covered within the class and in your homework readings. This is an opportunity to delve deeper into topics explored this semester that you nd particularly interesting and/or important, while building skills in effective art historical research and critical analysis.
For this assignment, you will each select an artist you have learned about in class, through the provided list, or through the homework readings. If you have an artist that falls outside of these parameters, you must get approval from the professor. You will choose at least two works of art by the artist that relate to the environment in some way. You will formally analyze the artwork and then dive into the concepts behind the work.
Your paper and presentation must provide biographical information about your artist(s) and use critical analysis skills to interpret the works of art selected. How does each work of art engage with the environment? What do you think is the concept of each piece? Is the artist effective in communicating the concept? If so, what makes it effective? If not, how do you think it can be more effective? This paper will give you a chance to share your own opinion of the research that you complete.
Final Research Presentation:
Working individually (or in small groups of 2 people), you will create a presentation in Google Slides that shows us the artist and artworks you are featuring in your research paper. The presentations will be delivered at the end of the semester to give you an opportunity to share your hard work and ndings from your research with your peers as part of your nal assessment.
Final Presentation Instructions:
Please share your presentations with me through Google Slides. Be sure to include your name in the le name of your presentation as well as on the title slide. All presentations should last a maximum of 10 minutes. Please practice in advance and time yourself to t within this time frame. This will allow us to have approximately 2 minutes between each presentation for questions or technology issues.