New 1st Year BTEC - Getting Ahead Work

Welcome to the BTEC at Alton and welcome to the Blog - your go to reference for all Course related stuff.

We want you to enjoy your Summer, but it would be great if that included some Cultural enrichment, so how about:

Soaking up some Culture and getting enthused by visiting exhibitions and galleries in London. Have a great day out and visit some of these:

Julian Merrow-Smith - Self Portrait

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY:

BP Portrait Award 2017 22 June – 24 September 2017Admission Free

Selected from 2,580 entries by artists from 87 countries around the world, the BP Portrait Award 2017 represents the very best in contemporary portrait painting.

www.npg.org.uk/whatson/bp-portrait-award-2017/exhibition  

TATE MODERN:

Alberto Giacometti 10 May – 10 September 2017

Admission £16.50 (under 18s)

Admission to the permanent collection is free.

Celebrated as a sculptor, painter and draughtsman, Giacometti’s distinctive elongated figures are some of the most instantly recognisable works of modern art.

www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/exhibition/giacometti

SERPENTINE GALLERY:

Grayson Perry 8 June – 10 September 2017

Admission Free

Grayson Perry, one of the most astute commentators on contemporary society, presents a major exhibition of new work. The works touch on many themes including popularity, masculinity and the current cultural landscape.

www.serpentinegalleries.org/exhibitions-events/grayson-perry-most-popular-art-exhibition-ever

SAATCHI GALLERY

From Selfie to Self-Expression 31 March - 23 July 2017

Admission Free

This is the world’s first exhibition exploring the history of the selfie from the old masters to the present day, and celebrates the truly creative potential of a form of expression often derided for its inanity. 

www.saatchigallery.com/selfexpression  

If you really can’t get up to London…

Then do something else to extend your knowledge of contemporary Art:

Read: http://uk.blouinartinfo.com/visual-arts/reviews

Watch: www.channel4.com/programmes/grayson-perry-divided-britain

Contribute: If you produce a fantastic creative piece of your own over the Summer, then photograph it and use the #iamartataltoncollege to add it to our Instagram page www.instagram.com/iamartataltoncollege 

Deadline: Ensure you’ve Read, Watched, Visited or Contributed something before term starts on 11^th September, even better do all four!

Check Your Insight and College Email

Please ensure you all check both your College email account (for important Personal Statement guidance) and your Insight notes (here you will find all your Unit grades have been added and any instructions about additional work required over the Summer).

Thanks, have a great Summer and see you all back here in September!

Ivan 😊

Life Cycles Evaluation

It's a visual pun, OK!

This evaluation is specific to the Units we are assessing for this project, so please read and follow the guidance carefully. You should answer questions in depth. You must use thumbnail sketches, diagrams or scanned imagery to make your points clearer. Evaluation should be a minimum of 800 words long, word-processed and checked for spelling with images to make your points clear.


EVALUATION GRAPHIC IMAGE MAKING P4,M1,D1,

Pick 2 of your graphic images that you feel are important within your leaflet and evaluate them in minimum of 800 words:
1. Describe the two pieces, why you think these are the most successful and how have you included these graphic images within the design of your leaflet? ie you could have translated a photographic image into a tonal drawing and combined this with collage to make a contemporary feel that expresses something about your lifecycle. Describe in depth what you have done to create your graphic images and show images to explain your actions.
2. What symbols have you used within your graphic images on any parts of the leaflet or within the earlier parts of the sketchbook and what do you want your leaflet to express?
3. Discuss the development of your ideas within this project and the place of brainstorming, mood boards, diagrams, cutting up magazines or using found imagery within your graphic images you created. How did your ideas develop in varying ways?
4. What graphic techniques have you used to create a certain ‘tone’ within your work and why is this relevant to your theme? ie scratchy writing to suggest anger or teenage angst or soft vintage filters on photoshop to suggest time and marriage past. How successful do you think these graphic effects are within your work , why?
5. How have you edited your images to fit the format of the leaflet, what did you do to these? Write in detail describing your editing within Photoshop, Adobe Bridge, cropping, saturation, tone, contrast, brightness, clone tools etc.
6. Which designers have helped you to create a graphic style, and how can you describe the style you have adopted? ie you could use words such as surreal, distressed, montage, chaotic, simplified etc
7. What message does this leaflet make about your life cycle? What do you want the viewer to think when they see these images - a feeling for the moment, a sense of nostalgia, atmosphere, poignant reflection.
8. How has text appeared on your leaflet? What font have you chosen and what feel have you tried to communicate?
9. Of the differing approaches to image making that you were asked to explore, which final images do you think are the most successful and why? Discuss each approach in turn. Consider mentioning things such as formal elements, aesthetics, the use of tactile qualities, markmaking, simplicity, linear effects, layout, experimental use of media.
10. How would you resolve, modify or change the final piece of work you have produced if you had a further 5 weeks of study. Do you think you have used your time wisely within this project? How have you used lessons, private study times and have you stuck to the interim homework deadlines?


EVALUATION LOCATION PHOTOGRAPHY P4,M4,D3

1. Explain what you understand by the term location photography, what do kinds of photography do you think this covers?
2. What photographic equipment did you use to capture your photographs? Please detail this and the settings you used on your camera/phone.?
3. Who did you look at for this project and how did their work impact upon your ideas? Please be specific ie discuss elements of atmosphere, composition or concept that helped your work.
4. How do your photographs relate to 3 location photographer’s work? Compare one of your own photographs on location in contrast to a practitioners’ work . What kind of organisation of people and places have you had to do to arrange for your shoots to take place? Discuss intention of location, composition, lighting, shutter speed, filters, and any other production techniques, use of dark room or digital, editing that you used to modify or enhance your image?

5. Which 3 best photographs did you create on location and how did you produce these? If they were digital, can you discuss editing you did . If they were produced in the dark room please discuss the production of these with reference to how you did it. What have you done to edit these including programs you have used to do this. ie Photoshop and Adobe Bridge, use of hard drives and memory sticks, One drive etc