Tuesday, December 1, 2009
To last couple posts.
I left the discussion about this class as a whole early and after reading Proffesor Pang's recent post about the discussion I feel like I must've missed quite a bit. I would like to say however that I feel like this course presents a lot of material that can be very useful to any artist, however the course objectives and outline leave the student in the dark. Something that no class should do. As (high paying) students, our education is about learning tools, ideas, theories, concepts, and skills that will benefit us when we hit the 'real world'. I feel that schools today have strayed from these focuses and have begun to focus more on 'what can I give my teacher that will give me an A'. Although I feel this course has the right materials and the right objectives set, the student still feels lost in understanding what they're supposed to do to get a grade that will give them a GPA that will help them graduate so they can get a piece of paper that will hopefully help them secure a job other than Einstein Bagels. Not that theres anything against Einstein, but you get my point. As a whole I feel that this class has the right materials and objectives but may still be misguided.
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HI Joel,
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to respond to your post. I know you are coming from a graphic design focus. This course is within the Fine Arts program. There is a significant difference between the practice of a graphic designer and the practice of a fine artist. You may recall some of what Thomas Hirschhorn said in the readings, how he ' wanted to become an artist because he wanted to be responsible only to himself, not any clients." Practice in the Fine Arts can only be self-directed. Unlike in graphic design, there is no external set of objectives or client demands to meet. Each artist must develop and maintain her own parameters.
Because of this, the pedagogy of Fine Art is radically different from other fields in that I, as educator, cannot tell you what to make because that would be in a sense doing it for you. However, I can help you with the things you already want to make. It is this will/desire to make something without the command of an external power which differentiates fine artists from commercial ones. This can be a difficult and overwhelming concept for students to understand initially, as so much of "conventional wisdom" is organized around the notion of commercial viability.
As for your grades, don't worry too much about it. Unless you are applying to law school, medical school or phd programs in the humanities or sciences, no one will ever ask you about your grades ever again. As a graphic designer, your portfolio will be more important.