U6 - New Project Brief: Portfolio Construction

ART & DESIGN DEPARTMENT – BTEC ASSIGNMENT BRIEF                                                                                                                                                                                       

Qualification	BTEC National Extended Diploma Art and Design
Unit Coverage	5 Developing an Art and Design Portfolio
Assignment title	Portfolio Construction
Teachers/Assessors	Mr. I. Bicknell/Mrs. G. Bicknell/Mrs. J. Matthews/Mr. J. Dodd/Ms. V. Mason
Hand out date	4 November 2019
Hand in deadline	13 January 2020
Vocational Scenario or context	In the pursuit of any creative role, be it a job in advertising, an exhibiting artist, a freelance designer, a curator or a degree student, some evidence of ability and potential is generally required. More often than not this takes the form of a professional portfolio. This can be either physical or digital but it must positively represent the calibre of work that its owner is capable of making. This is what first impressions and confidences are based on, therefore how it has been compiled in terms of its selection and presentation technique is of the utmost importance. In anticipation of your imminent university interviews you must review the work that you have so far completed on the course and use this to create your own portfolio. This will primarily be concerned with the physical entity, but it will also feed the development of a digital version which will use both whole folio pages and select individual images. This will often be used as a pre-selection portfolio and will need to contain enough material to cope with the different demands of your selected art institutions in terms of volume and criteria.
Task 1	Before you embark upon the development of your own, it is important that you understand the different functions of the portfolio in the art and design sector. Researching how existing practitioners use theirs as effective and exciting ways to showcase examples of their creative practice will be instrumental in how yours takes shape. In this you should consider how an artist or designer may use theirs to gain a reward such as a new job,  a commission, an apprenticeship, financial funding, win a competition or secure a university place.  The medium through which they communicate this is also very important, is this through a personal interview or conducted in a more public way? Look for examples of progression in working practice over a number of years as well as the breadth that this may present. As a freelancer in particular this may be used as a means of maintaining a presence in the art world as well as attracting new clients and projects. Compare, discuss and analyse how the various portfolio forms and structures meet different sector criteria but also how these maintain some common similarities. Use specific examples of existing practitioners, providing brief biographical detail, good quality images of their work and some analysis of its place within the art and design sector including media and technique.
Timescale for completion of this task:	Completed by Friday 8 November.
Checklist of evidence required:	A log-book consisting of a minimum of 20 pages which outlines the function of the Art and Design portfolio. Within this there must be clear evidence of a comparison between at least 5 different incarnations of this important resource, as well as those who have used these methods in either isolation or combination and how successful they have been and why.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class critique, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: A.P1, A.P2, A.M1. A.D1
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
A.P1	Explain the different purposes portfolios are used for across the art and design sector, using appropriate examples.
A.P2	Compare how the components of these portfolios differ for different purposes across the art and design sector, using appropriate examples.
A.M1	Analyse how far portfolios for different purposes across the art and design sector use similar structures and contents.
A.D1	Evaluate and justify the extent to which portfolios for different purposes across the art and design sector, use similar structures and contents.
Task 2:	Now that you have a more informed idea of the role of a portfolio you should begin work on your own.  In the build-up to this you should consider the purpose of what you are about to make. Is it intended to support the search for paid employment or your application for a degree course? In this instance you will be making a paper-based portfolio, but as you are aware this will also be used in the development of an online version. In this instance you must write a supporting statement in your log-book which outlines the mechanics of both, identifying their definitions of purpose and how you can achieve the best reaction from both. At this point you may find it useful to look at the portfolio guidance offered by the arts institutes that you have applied for, you can find this information within the application specifications. Create a plan which outlines the following: 1.       Requirements and resources needed for selecting, mounting, photographing and editing work. 2.       Timescale. 3.       Any technical assistance you may need. 4.       How easily accessible your work is – will it need to be retrieved from somewhere? 5.       File/image size compatible with digital transmission. 6.       Ordering – chronological? Preference? Specialism? Consider the above and discuss how any obstacles can be overcome – will the studio always be available, will you need to make an appointment with a particular member of staff, will you need to use a model?
Timescale for completion of this task:	By Wednesday 13 November.
Checklist of evidence required	3 page analysis on nature of own portfolio(s) and detailed plan of production in log book.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class crit, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: B.P3
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
B.P3	Demonstrate basic planning skills when structuring an art and design portfolio.
Task  3:	Using the work that you have produced on the course so far you must now use your own judgement to select a range of images which show your skills and interest in your chosen specialism as effectively as possible. This process should be carefully recorded using images and words to justify and explain your decision making. You may go through a series of selection processes in a bid to narrow down your choices and this must also be carefully recorded. In general terms most arts institutions will expect to see between 15 and 20 A1 portfolio pages at interview. The online versions can vary greatly and will often ask for additional project work set by them, so be prepared for this and do your research.
Timescale for completion of this task:	By Monday 18 November.
Checklist of evidence required	·            Sustained pencil drawing. ·            Sustained fineliner drawing. ·            Set of timed expressive drawings. ·            A1 Charcoal drawing. A complete selection of work to be included in final portfolio pre edit. Work should be carefully marked with post-it notes or similar.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class crit, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: B.P3, B.P4, B.M2
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
B.P3	Demonstrate basic planning skills when structuring an art and design portfolio.
B.P4	Select limited work for inclusion in an art and design portfolio for a defined purpose with supporting written material.
B.M2	Demonstrate effective, focused planning and selection skills when structuring an art and design portfolio, including detailed written material that supports the purpose of the portfolio.
Task 4:	Following on from your initial selections you must now consider how you are going to use this work. Is it clean and presentable enough to use as it is or will it perhaps need to be scanned and re-printed? Can you see some opportunity to improve upon what you have with some further manual working or editing? This is perfectly acceptable and will build upon your skills in terms of judgement and aesthetic, as well as presentation technique. Don’t forget also that your basic abilities will have grown considerably since the beginning of your first year. This is also the perfect opportunity to add to a project and take better photographs of your work, which might involve finding a new shoot location and/or model. Remember to consider how you scale and digitally record your imagery, dpi will be important, as will format and this should be remembered in both scanning and editing. Print/collate all work by project. This must be in both the physical and digital sense. Use plastic wallets for paper-based work and your own digital filing system for the online version. Keep things simple and carefully labelled. *It is important that if you choose to use original outcomes from your sketchbooks rather than scans/printouts, you MUST fill these empty pages with a scan/copy of the missing image. Record and evaluate all decision making in your log-books.
Timescale for completion of this task:	By Monday 25 November.
Checklist of evidence required	Two sets of edited folders of coursework imagery ready for portfolio construction. Clear written analysis with supporting imagery of this process in logbook.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class crit, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: B.P3, B.P4, B.M2, C.P5
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
B.P3	Demonstrate basic planning skills when structuring an art and design portfolio.
B.P4	Select limited work for inclusion in an art and design portfolio for a defined purpose with supporting written material.
B.M2	Demonstrate effective, focused planning and selection skills when structuring an art and design portfolio, including detailed written material that supports the purpose of the portfolio.
C.P5	Demonstrate basic ability to manage the preparation and recording of images to be used in an art and design portfolio.
Task 5:	Begin to construct your paper-based portfolio. Take the time to try different layouts and compositions and record these photographically as and when they happen. Work through project by project and ensure that when it comes to the actual presentation of work you use the appropriate material for sticking and measuring. This is a lengthy process but can be made much longer through a lack of care and attention to detail in the first place. Use your log-book to record your decision-making process and support this with the relevant written evaluation and an acknowledgement of basic health and safety in terms of the equipment and materials used in folio presentation such as knives and spray adhesive. Order your portfolio and complete a written document (statement of intent) which explains its contents. Consider reason for ordering, description of projects and explanations of working methods and styles. Arts institutes will often ask for these if viewing work remotely. This will also complement the personal statement that you have already written.
Timescale for completion of this task:	By Monday 2 December.
Checklist of evidence required	Initial stages of portfolio construction plus log-book records and analysis. 1 completed statement of intent.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class crit, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: C.P6, C.M3, BC.D2
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
C.P6	Produce an art and design portfolio which basically meets the required purpose, showing some consideration of the technical requirements.
C.M3	Demonstrate effective management of the portfolio preparation resulting in the production of a portfolio which shows consistency in terms of image quality, written material and successfully meets the required purpose.
BC.D2	Plan and produce a sophisticated art and design portfolio which fully meets the intended purpose and shows coherence throughout in choice of images and supporting material.
Task 6:	In conclusion to the development of your portfolio you must undertake a personal mock interview with your tutor and write a 1000-word evaluation of the overall portfolio process. In this you must discuss the success of your portfolio in relation to your own appraisal of it as well as the feedback that you have received from others, particularly in the context of your mock interview. Content, statement of intent, presentation and delivery will all be important factors to consider.
Timescale for completion of this task:	By Monday 13 January 2020.
Checklist of evidence required	Mock interview 1000-word evaluation I completed log-book I portfolio.
Summative assessment:	Weekly class crit, peer and teacher verbal feedback.
Criteria covered by this task:	Evidence towards: D.P7, D.P8, D.M4, D.D3
Unit criteria reference	To achieve the criteria you must show that you are able to:
C.P6	Produce an art and design portfolio which basically meets the required purpose, showing some consideration of the technical requirements.
C.M3	Demonstrate effective management of the portfolio preparation resulting in the production of a portfolio which shows consistency in terms of image quality, written material and successfully meets the required purpose.
BC.D2	Plan and produce a sophisticated art and design portfolio which fully meets the intended purpose and shows coherence throughout in choice of images and supporting material.
D.P7	Demonstrate a basic presentation for an art and design portfolio.
D.P8	Explain the success of an art and design portfolio making reference to its reviews from others, its production and purpose.
D.M4	Analyse how successful the presentation of an art and design portfolio has been, making detailed and effective references to its reviews from others, its production and purpose.
D.D3	Evaluate the success of the presentation of an art and design portfolio in meeting its required purpose, making detailed references to reviews from others, and providing recommendations for future portfolio building.
Sources of information to support you with this Assignment	Refer to https://btecartanddesignblog.blogspot.com/ at regular intervals throughout the project for more detailed guidance on specific tasks and useful links. Individual university folio recommendations.