Art History in Action: A Sense of Place (10 credit points)

Special Information

Materials you will need to bring to the first class:

• Range of Acrylic paints: Cadmium Red, Crimson, Cadmium Yellow, Lemon, Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean or Cobalt Blue, Viridian, Black, White, Yellow Ochre or Raw Sienna, Burnt or Raw Umber, (other colours as required during the course). Do not bring cheap paints from supermarkets/ The Works or craft paints. Get a reasonable student range, like Daler Rowney System 3.

• Mixing Palette

• A range of brushes, both flat and round, soft and stiff in a range of sizes. Get a reasonable quality.

• Palette knife

• Masking tape

In addition to the course fee, students are expected to provide the following list of indicative tools, materials and equipment:

• Graphite Stick 4B

• Eraser

• Craft knife

• Sketchbook A4

• Chalk or Oil Pastels

• Newsprint & Cartridge paper (as required)

• Other painting surfaces (as required)

• Indian and/or Quink ink

• Sponge and rags

• A digital camera

• Collage materials

Content of Course

Over the class sessions the course will cover:

1. There will be a short lecture, introducing the work of the First and Second World War artists: Paul Nash, John Piper, Graham Sutherland and Eric Ravilious. Students will make small collages with newspaper and brown paper based on still life set up.

2. There will be a trip to St. Mary’s or St. Giles Cathedral to gather information through drawing. A demonstration on how to get enough information with thumbnail sketching will be given.

3. Students will make more ambitious collages, based on their drawings.

4. There will be a short lecture on the St. Ives group: Ben Nicholson, Winifred Nicholson, Barbara Hepworth, Alfred Wallis and Christopher Wood. Students will look at different ways of integrating line with collage.

5. Students will make low, monochrome reliefs.

6. There will be a short lecture on the later generation of St. Ives artists; Peter Lanyon, Wilhemena Barnes- Graham, Margaret Mellis and Patrick Heron. Students will examine some of the techniques they used.

7. Students will complete a project of their own devising, based on the knowledge gained through studying the above artists, but bringing a contemporary relevance to the work. Abstraction is encouraged, although the work can be figuratively based.

Teaching method(s)

The teaching will be based and delivered in specialist art and design studios or workshops and will typically include a range of practical exercises, introductions to techniques, processes and concepts, and set projects which lead to more focused and personal exploration. Over the course, students’ progress will be monitored and supported by the tutor.  Teaching will include practical demonstrations, one to one tuition, group discussions and critiques.

For work required to be undertaken after the class hours are complete, the course tutor will set students a ‘directed study plan’ which can be undertaken without the need for specialist workshops or access to models.

Directed study will include research into a range of suggested artists and their associated movements to engender a contextual awareness. Students are expected to demonstrate how their research has informed their work through annotated sketchbooks, a visual digital journal and practical outcomes. 

The Directed Study Plan will include preparing evidence of research and practical work to form an appropriate presentation for assessment.

Learning outcomes

On completion of this course, the student will be able to:

• Demonstrate an insight into the methods and practices of English twentieth century artists, exploring a historical context to foster visual research and develop personal ideas.

• Demonstrate the use of various techniques, materials and approaches to create a series of experimental and resolved works, developed from the work of English twentieth century artists, to produce a distinctive and personal vision.

• Select and present a coherent body of works, including studies and finished pieces that underpin the research and practice.

Sources

Core Readings

Recommended:

• HARRIS, A. (2010). Romantic Moderns: English Writers, Artists and the Imagination from Virginia Woolf to John Piper. Thames and Hudson

• JENKINS, D.F. and Spalding, F. (2003). John Piper in the 1930s, Abstraction on the Beach. mLondon; Merrel

• CAUSEY, A. (2013). Paul Nash: Landscape and the Life of Objects. Farnham; Burlington

• LAWSON, Jeremy (1993). Ben Nicholson. Tate Gallery

• CARIOU, A. and Toby, M. (1996).Christopher Wood a Painter Between Two Cornwalls. Tate Gallery

• MULLIN, E. (1967). Alfred Wallis- Cornish Primitive Painter. Macdonald & Co. Ltd.

• HERON, P (1979). The Colour of Colour. University of Texas at Austin

Web Sources

www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-st-ives

Assessment

Details of the Art and Design assessment requirements can be found on the short course website. Please click on the following link for more information: Submission and Assessment Information

Studying for Credit

If you choose to study for credit you will need to allocate significant time outwith classes for coursework and assessment preparation. Credit points gained from this course can count towards the Certificate of Higher Education.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.