Investigation Workbooks (IWBs)

In the beginning,

There are…….

MISTAKES»But are they bad ???????

Let me begin this by telling you a story as told to me by Peter H. Reynolds.

Remember the story of Ish--just do it and enjoy the process. Mistakes are a valuable part of learning. Think how much fun it will be to look back and see how much your work has improved!!!Practice may not make your work perfect, but you WILL IMPROVE.

Make your sketchbook your new best friend. Use it every day. Getting together once a week is NOT good enough for your best friend!!You should share everything with your best friend!

Most importantly---it is not good to loose your best friend!!! Value your friendship and keep it safe. If you lose it, you will have to start over!Put contact information on inside cover!!!

Format

• Numbered on either top or bottom outside corners; be consistent

• Date every page• Handwritten & neat• Mistakes are neatly crossed out with one line• Art vocabulary

Format continued

• All photos/papers are glued in with a glue stick or spray glue

• Label all photos with source, artist, media, date, title

• Label all pages

Plagiarism

• Give credit where credit is due• Quote only 1-2 lines only if you cannot

rephrase into your own words• Summarized items still need to be given credit

Reliable Sources

• Educational or museum websites• No wikipedia!• http://www.umich.edu/~motherha/• Books• Art magazines & journals• Primary sources• Secondary sources

Content

• Research vs. investigation– Research: looking up and reporting on what others have

found out about your topic– Investigation: taking your research and

asking/answering questions; include your thoughts and opinions and make connections

• Depth & breadth– Depth: how deep your research/investigation gets– Breadth: how many connections you make

• Historic and cultural

Investigation

• Who was the artist?– Summary of artist’s life– Teachers, peers & their influence– Artist influence on others– Artist opinion of own work

Investigation continued

• What was the technique?– Media– Style– Where was it created?– Other facts

Investigation continued

• Analysis of artistic merit:– Evaluate compositional choices based on elements

and principles

Investigation continued

• What are some cultural connections?– What is going on during this time period? This

culture? Other cultures during this time period? Past cultures?

– How does that relate to the art? To the artist? To the art movement? To the technique? To the media? Etc.

Investigation continued

• Was there a message?

• Where did the art take place?– Include maps and photos

• Who is in the artwork?

Investigation continued

• Is this work significant?– What makes this work important in the history of art?– Is it a turning point in art or in an artist’s body of work?– Is it an outstanding example of a period or style or of a particular

artist?– Has it influenced other artists or society?

Investigation continued

• Personal conclusions– What makes this work important in the history of art?– Is it a turning point in art or in an artist’s body of work?– Is it an outstanding example of a period or style or of a particular

artist?– Has it influenced other artists or society?

Requirements

• 10 pages due every two weeks• Each page should be ½ image, ½ writing• Each page should be a work of art• Thumbnail and final planning sketches• Practice/experimentation pages• Reflection & assessment• Problems & solutions• Address my comments• All content must relate to your studio

Observational Drawings

You should draw every day. Look around—everywhere you look you will find interesting shapes, forms, textures. Do not sit and wait to be given an assignment (you will get them!)– make your own choices. This is YOUR sketchbook.

Exploration of Media

Remember that media includes the material you choose as your ground. Explore different types of paper, different colors. Try out different drawing and painting media. Record the results in your sketchbook. This can then be used as a reference for later work.

Experimentation

with TechniquesUse your sketchbook

to try out new techniques. This is the place to practice. The sketchbook is not expected to be perfect. You learn by trying new things—there is no such thing as a “bad” experiment or exploration. You are looking to find what will work for YOU on YOUR project.

Research Findings

You should research artists that will influence your own work. Techniques and media should also be researched as the need arises. Examine your mentor artist’s work to see how they solved problems. Spell out clearly how their work has influenced or helped you with your projects.

PlansBrainstorm, record your ideas and thoughts, plan out your compositions, try different color lay-outs. Planning ahead saves having to correct major problems later. You may not use all your ideas right away, but by writing them down you WILL remember them.

AnalysisAs you look at works of art, examine how the artist developed the composition. Analyze how he applied the art principles. You can’t go wrong learning from the masters. The more you understand composition, the better your own work will become.

AssessmentIn order for your work to show improvement, you must get in the habit of looking at it critically. Ask yourself what works, what doesn’t work and most importantly WHY do you find this so. Do this for EVERYTHING—sketches, compositions, experiments and your final projects. Record it all in your sketchbook. We will have formal critiques and assessments as well but do it on your own first.

Why does neatness matter?

• If I can’t read it, I won’t grade it• Photocopied numerous times• Assessment by several other people around

the world

Rubric• Analyzes and compares perceptively art from different

cultures and times and considers it thoughtfully for its function and significance

• Demonstrates the development of an appropriate range of effective skills, techniques and processes when making and analyzing images and artifacts

• Demonstrates coherent, focused and individual investigative strategies into visual qualities, ideas and their contexts, an appropriate range of different approaches towards their study and some fresh connections between them

Rubric continued

• Demonstrates considerable depth and breadth through the successful development and synthesis of ideas and thoroughly explained connections between the work and that of others

• Demonstrates effective and accurate use of the specialist vocabulary of visual arts

• Uses an appropriate range of sources and acknowledges them properly

Rubric continued

• Presents the work effectively and creatively and demonstrates effective critical observation, reflection and discrimination

• Presents a close relationship between investigation and studio