Course Summary

The BA Honours courses within Visual Art Practice give the opportunity to work creatively in many different ways. You will be actively encouraged to develop independent critical thinking as part of establishing your own artistic expression. The cross-disciplinary approach equips you with the skills for creative practice and employment in different media, and for learning beyond the confines of university.

Stage one promotes visual communication skills with studio activities and seminars, giving you a solid grounding in core practical and theoretical skills. You will also develop significant specialist skills and knowledge within your chosen BA course.

Lectures and seminars will introduce you to the key issues and concepts that inform contemporary visual art practice. You will be encouraged to analyse contemporary art and design to enable you to construct a meaningful context for your own work, and take intellectual ownership of your creative practice.

This broad-based course helps you to explore a range of contemporary visual art practices. The course studies the application of art in design contexts and considers work where design problems are introduced into a fine art context.

You will be introduced to traditional practices such as photographic darkroom techniques and screen-printing as well as new technologies and media. You will learn about design and visual communication to help you explore and present creative ideas in a visually effective and personal way. As you develop your skills, you will be able to focus on the media that best suit your creativity.

Why choose this course?

Key features:

• Emphasis on professional practice
• Develop knowledge and experience of using up-to-date technologies and software
• Emphasis on developing personal creativity and artistic expression
• Teaching staff are practising artists who regularly exhibit

Areas of study include:

• Introduction to digital media relevant to art and design (including video, photography and digital imaging)
• Visual problem-solving and analysis
• Visual communication skills (including drawing, screen-printing, the use of specialist imaging software and lens-based media)
• Contextual studies and reflective practice
• Traditional media, such as painting,silkscreen printing, `wet photography, model-making, textiles and fibre-based materials
• New media, including video, photography and digital imaging
• Visual communication, including drawing, screen-printing, the use of imaging software and lens-based media
• Contextual studies that link theory and practice in developing creative ideas

We strive to deliver the most exciting art and design courses in HE with a number of new and innovative ideas. We also run an Art & Design blog with the latest news and events, you can find that here: wecreatetogether.net

Colin Davies, Head of Art and Division

BAAND-S

Assessment

Assessment for this course is conceived to emanate naturally from the teaching and learning and you should be able to meet the demands of assessment in your stride, provided you have engaged in the course. The requirements for assessment range through the types listed below.

Practical Projects are at the heart of learning activities and are a key learning and assessment tool within the course. Formative and summative assessments of practical assignments are seen as an important method of ensuring your understanding, the development of relevant cognitive and practical skills and personal progress.

Continuous appraisal by both the students themselves and their tutors is a feature of the course and although there are no end-point examinations, formative assessment is carried out in relation to all the assignments that are an integral part of the course. An accumulation of the work that is done in response to learning activities is assessed summatively at the end of each unit.

The following are examples of the various assessment methods used:

• Coursework to include examples of, painting, printmaking, photographic and video work, installation, possibly 3-D work or drawing, research portfolios, notebooks, research assignments, essays, contextual writing


• Assessments based on individual and group presentations


• Portfolio reviews are a key means of assessing but they are also important for collating work for a professional portfolio. This instils in students the right attitudes towards professional work whereby you can use your portfolio to promote yourself in professional contexts


• Essays and reports feature in developing students writing skills, helping you to express ideas in a variety of ways and styles and to develop academic writing skills that are of particular benefit in producing the final year contextual rationale for your major project

Key Skills are embedded in the teaching and learning of the course and will be taken into account in all assessments.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, you should be able to:

Demonstrate learning outcomes in relation to knowledge and understanding.

1. Understand principles and concepts of art and design and apply relevant processes and techniques of creative production that exploit aesthetic values and visual conventions to articulate and realise ideas in appropriate forms.

2. Understand and use critical concepts, ideas / perspectives and paradigms of contemporary art and / or design practices taking into account artistic / cultural / creative contexts in general and art and design in particular. This should include insights into the ways in which these values are changing in response to the development of digital media and to a changing world that includes social, political, and environmental issues.

3. Understand the nature of and requirements for professional practice in art and design, to be achieved through relevant art, applied art, craft and design practices as well as through experiential learning that will involve group based activities related to the publication and dissemination of art, design and craft artefacts, such as exhibition organisation and curation.

Demonstrate learning outcomes in relation to intellectual and cognitive skills:

4. Use methods of visual and contextual research relevant but not exclusive to art, applied art, craft and design and interpret creative ideas through art and design processes and methods in which there is a coherent relationship between form, content, function and processes / techniques.

5. Apply analytical thinking to the consideration of ideas, issues and artistic and design problems and, through the selection and synthesising of relevant findings, propose and develop outcomes within appropriate art, craft and/or design practices that will either communicate meaning or fulfil functional requirements in designed or expressive artefacts.

6. Evaluate and reflect on the outcomes of courses of action and on creative outputs and demonstrate the ability to apply knowledge and adapt working methods and practices in order to suit particular art and design purposes whilst acknowledging alternatives.

Demonstrate learning outcomes in relation to practical skills:

7. Communicate ideas effectively using visual language concepts both general and more appositely related to art and design practices and by means of visual skills, (ideas presented verbally and visually including writing, drawing, notating, collating, appropriate use of imaging software).

8. Use equipment, materials, processes and methods effectively. These may be directly associated with art, applied art, craft and design or artistic artefacts or images in general (e.g. workshop equipment, fibre / fabric based materials, lens based media, silkscreen processes, computers and peripherals, processes, software and techniques).

9. Initiate, plan, manage, develop and realise your own creative projects, including those in which you may be involved through work related study or experiential learning.

External Benchmarking

QAA Subject Benchmark: Art and Design

Educational Aims

The course aims for BA (Hons) Art and Design are:

• To offer through creative practice and through engagement with relevant critical contexts a high quality course of study in broad aspects of art and design that will prepare you for the world of work and employment in those areas of the creative industries for which a degree which combines art with design would be appropriate


• To provide a course with the intellectual challenges that would qualify you for further specialist study of art, design and applied art at postgraduate level


• To provide an academic and practical course of study in art and design with opportunities, to apply art methods, techniques, concepts and principles in design contexts. This will include providing relevant critical insights as well as the means to give visual articulation to creative ideas through traditional art, design and some craft media and through digital and lens based media and associated art forms


• To engage you in analytical and reflective thinking that takes account of the artistic, critical and cultural contexts associated with art, applied art and design so that you might understand the value of your work and make independent assessments of its progress and the learning in which you are involved


• To provide you with an understanding of relevant critical, artistic and design contexts so that you acquire an understanding of aesthetic values associated with cultural and creative production. In addition to provide you with insights into the ways in which these values are affected by developments in digital media and by social, political, and environmental issues


• To provide you with the necessary skills and experience so that you can communicate effectively by visual means


• To promote professional practice so that you can develop professional levels of practice that will prepare you for the world of work and employment, primarily in relevant creative industries


• To provide an honours degree course in art and design that, not only equips you with appropriate knowledge, experience and understanding to take a productive and critical place in a world that is increasingly affected by a range of design applications and by developments in visual communication, but also provides you with the means by which to engage in further learning throughout your life

Student support

The course will encourage you to work and learn independently, however this will be based on academic tutorial support throughout the course.

A full course of induction week activities is offered for all new students in the Division of Art and Design during the first week of your course.

Over the first six weeks of the course there will also be a more specialised induction unit, which will introduce you to the teaching and learning strategy for the art and design courses in general. It will also familiarise you with the study support and resources for the BA Art and Design course. The unit will involve an assessment early in the course so that you will, through the feedback, be able to identify your strengths and any weaknesses.

You will be allocated a personal tutor and you will meet with your tutor regularly throughout the year. You should have a minimum of three formal one to one personal tutorial sessions during the academic year in order to monitor your progress.

Your course manager will provide you with guidelines about your course. Individual module co-ordinators will give advice on specific subjects and assessment issues. In your final year during the major project, the personal tutor role will transfer to the allocated project supervisor.

The role of the Course Manager is pro-active, enabling issues of concern to be identified at an early stage, and to assist in the retention of students who may be encountering particular difficulties. If you are deemed at risk of failing, your personal tutor can ensure that you receive appropriate advice and guidance. Other tutorial appointments are available via a booking system for you to meet with your personal tutor or academic staff and discuss aspects of your work and academic and personal development. You can book time with staff during their staff office sessions, which are posted on the course notice boards.

The Course Manager also offers both academic advice and advice about professional practice. You also have access to bookable academic and administrative advisory sessions with the Administrator for the Field of Art and Design.

The Subject Librarian at the University of Bedfordshire is pro-active in assisting art and design students, and contributes study support elements where required.

The University and Student Union provide centralised advisory sessions for students.

If you have problems that prevent you from engaging with the course you should seek advice from the Student Services. Details will be in the course handbook.

Team working

Most units include group work of some kind. Team working skills are developed through some group project work incorporated within both the practice and theory units.

Moreover there will be a level five unit involving work related learning, which will involve working with others either through consultation or collaboration.

Towards the end of level 5 you will be involved in an experiential learning project, which will be based on teamwork. You will be expected to contribute your own particular skills to a collective effort in the realisation of a project. You will produce creative and realistic solutions to complex problems including time management, monitoring progress to work to deadlines, evaluating your group and individual strategies to achieve the desired outcome. Much of the teaching and learning involves group discussion and the group crit is a significant feature of the learning experience and you will be expected to participate and contribute to this effectively.

Career Management Skills

Careers development is integrated into the course and the course seeks to provide you with an awareness of the real world context of the creative industries in general and Art and Design in particular. You will be helped to develop a strategy for obtaining appropriate employment at the end of your course.

Professional practice will be emphasised as part of all learning units but a work-related learning unit especially will help you to become more focused on managing your career.

You will be helped with the preparation of a professional portfolio as well as a CV (curriculum vitae) and material so that you can market yourself.

Career/Further study opportunities

Career opportunities

Graduates of our Visual Art Practice courses have progressed to rewarding careers in creative industries, galleries and museums, public or community arts education, fashion design, documentary photography and post-production.

Whilst this award is principally conceived as the means by which you might embark on a career as a practising artist or designer it also provides you with knowledge, skills and expertise that is highly transferable within the creative industries. As you will be used to thinking and working creatively and critically with a keen sensitivity for visual communication, employment in the galleries and museums sector, public or community arts participation or arts education is also an option.

Further study:

Specialist Postgraduate courses in Art and Design, photography, film making or critical theory or education.

Entry

Additional:

Students will be expected to attend a portfolio interview or, if living in the EU, to submit a portfolio of work via email.

UK students Undergraduate entry requirements

Standard entry requirements for Foundation degrees (FD/FdSc)

A foundation degree will be of particular interest if you have completed a Modern Apprenticeship, vocational A levels, BTEC National or equivalent.

Foundation degrees are also particularly suitable if you want to qualify while working.

• As a guideline, a typical offer would require you to obtain a UCAS tariff score of between 80-120 points, based on your level 3 studies.
• Students who require a Tier 4 Student Visa cannot apply for our foundation courses. For these courses the University of Bedfordshire is not able to sponsor Tier 4 Student Visa applications.

Many students studying for foundation degrees come to us through work-based routes so you can apply for a foundation degree even if you don’t have traditional academic qualifications.

We welcome applicants with relevant work experience.

Standard entry requirements for Undergraduate degrees (BA/BSc)

We will consider you as an individual and take into account all elements of your application, not just your qualifications. We are looking for both breadth and depth in your current studies as well as enthusiasm for the subject you wish to study.

The general requirement is one of the following:

• UCAS Tariff Score greater than 200, which should include either two A level passes or an AVCE Double Award
• An Access qualification
• Equivalent qualifications such as Irish Leaving Certificate, Scottish Highers, International Baccalaureate or BTEC National Diploma

Postgraduate taught courses

Postgraduate applications (MA/MSc) should be made direct to the University using the  standard University application form. There are some exceptions, please see individual course descriptions for details.

• UK/EU students application form
• International (non-EU) students application form
  

Students from the European Union

Entry requirements

As a general guide, to apply for a place on an undergraduate course (BA/BSc) at the University you need to have completed your high school education and have the required English qualification.

We have students from all the European Union member countries so we are quick to make decisions on most qualifications.

How to apply

International students

• Undergraduate applications (BA/BSc) can be made direct to the University or via our representatives in your home country. If you intend to apply to more than one university in the UK you should apply via UCAS. If you want to apply to the University of Bedfordshire only you should apply directly using our international application form (link below) or via our representatives in your home country
• Postgraduate applications should be made directly to the University using our international application form (link below) or via our representatives in your home country
• Healthcare, nursing and midwifery students Many of these courses are not available to overseas students due to UK immigration law in regard to bursary funding. Please contact international admissions to find out if you are eligible to apply
• BA Nursing Studies Level 3 (with or without Overseas Nursing Programme) is available to overseas students - please contact International Admissions by email at international-admissions@beds.ac.uk for further information

(Please note that applicants on a full student visa are not eligible for part-time study)

Course application form for international students

We recommend that you apply directly to the University where possible, as this allows us to offer the quickest turnaround time for your application.

• Course application form for direct applications [PDF]

How to complete your course application

Please read the Direct application instructions before completing the course application form.

Application forms for accommodation in the student halls at Bedford campus and Luton campus are available in the Student life section

Accreditation of prior certificated learning (APL)

APL is available for international students applying for undergraduate (Bachelor degree) study. Please do not use this APL form to apply for postgraduate courses.

Use the APL form to tell us about any non-standard qualifications and/or work experience you have that you think should be taken into consideration with your application. `

The APL form should be submitted at the same time as the course application form.

We regret we are unable to process APL forms from students who have not submitted a formal course application form.

• APL application form for International students [100Kb] updated 041007

What next?

Return your completed application to:

University of Bedfordshire
International Admissions
Park Square
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 3JU
United Kingdom

Contact International Admissions

T: +44 (0)1582 489326 (non-EU Students)
F: +44 (0)1582 743469
E: international-admissions@beds.ac.uk

Awarding institution

University Of Bedfordshire

Teaching Strategy

An essential feature of the learning and teaching will be your involvement in practical learning activities that confront visual problems and ideas relevant to art, applied art and design. At the same time learning activities will take professional and work related practices into consideration. From an early stage in the course, you will be encouraged to work independently, taking ownership of your creativity and its outcomes, whilst at the same time developing an understanding of a range of contexts that affect art and its application in design contexts. The course aims to build a close relationship between practice and theory.

At the end of the course you should be able to realise a creative project of your own devising and be able to demonstrate your own particular insights into the critical, cultural and professional contexts in which your own work is placed.

To help you to learn independently and take responsibility for your own learning, the whole curriculum is organised to promote the progressive acquisition and entrenchment of the necessary concepts, skills, attitudes and knowledge associated with Art and Design. The course will offer a degree of choice and is flexible in its approach to student learning with an underlying educational philosophy of self directed learning managed and supervised through close contact with you, the student.

Teaching and learning strategies include practical workshop sessions, personal study involving sustained practice in the studio or workshop, some work related learning opportunities, one to one tutorials / supervision, seminars, demonstrations and importantly the use of a reflective/contextual journal as a means of understanding and documenting your individual learning.

Contextual journals are also important and are seen as a means of continuous development, enabling you to work as a reflective practitioner and review your own performance and learning.

Professional, Statutory and Regulatory Body Accreditation

N/A

Students with disabilities

The Division of Art and Design recognises that a relatively high proportion of art and design students encounter difficulties with dyslexia, and special arrangements are in place to offer flexibility and learning support in the preparation and submission of written work, where a need is identified.

Students with visual impairment may encounter difficulties with aspects of the course, and there would be a need for prior assessment of requirements and capabilities for this type of student.

The philosophy of the Department is to support and facilitate all students regardless of disability in their chosen field of study whenever practicable.

There is wheelchair access to all art and design facilities.

Skills Development

Communication

To help with the development of this you will:

• Be involved with oral communication that will be practised and tested in presentations and individual critiques. Written and verbal communication skills will be developed and assessed as part of the contextual studies units. You will be asked to produce work of different lengths and formats that should be properly referenced. Visual and verbal communication skills will be taught through all the practice units


• In the work-related units you could be engaged in activities that include working with clients and recording their communications in a variety of documents


• You will assess the quality of your own oral and visual communication and identify areas for improvement and deliver written or presentation assignments which succeed in communicating a series of points effectively

Information Literacy

To help with the development of this you will:

• Use of a range of computer software as an integral part of the course and these skills are embedded in the practice-based units but especially in the visual communications units at levels four and five. Information technology skills development for generic purposes such as research and data analysis and presentation will be incorporated into the contextual studies units


• You will be able to complete a complex search using appropriate primary and secondary sources, and draw accurate conclusions independently using the subject methodology.

Searching and evaluating internet sources is taught and you will analyse the information found using appropriate techniques. You will be introduced to the services of the Learning Resources Centre where specialist staff will be able to disseminate best practice on this

Research and Evaluation

To help with the development of this you will:

• Have to decide on action plans and implement these effectively in order to complete work. You will have to clearly identify criteria for success and evaluate your own performance against those criteria. The importance of action plans, strategies and success criteria will be measured for both your individual work and any group work that you may be involved in


• You will have the opportunity to work in teams and, through your own records or progress and from feedback, you will monitor the groups progress and evaluate its individual effectiveness to achieve its aims. Working individually, you have to set your own tasks to achieve your research goals, drawing on previous learning experience to achieve creative solutions to common problems

Creativity and Critical Thinking

To help with the development of this you will:

• Be involved with a series of practical learning activities at the heart of which will be the development of solutions to visual problems or ideas associated primarily with Art and Design although not exclusively so. An essential feature of the contextual studies strand of the course will be to help you to relate your practice to relevant theory and to help you to construct relevant contexts for your work. This will provide you with a framework and means to reflect on your creative work throughout the course. You will be required to maintain a contextual/reflective journal, the purpose of which is to monitor and reflect on your own learning. It will ultimately inform the rationale for your final major project


• You will be encouraged to become self-reliant and you will have to decide on action plans and implement these effectively in order to complete work. You will produce creative and realistic solutions to complex problems that will include time management, monitoring your progress in working to deadlines. You will have to clearly identify criteria for success and evaluate your own performance against those criteria. The importance of action plans, strategies and success criteria will be measured for both individual work and group work

Improving learning and performance

Throughout the course you will be involved with reflective practice, which will require you to maintain a contextual / reflective learning journal, the purpose of which is to monitor and document your personal learning journey. The learning journal will be key in acting as an aid in improving your performance. Through records that you keep about the development of your work and from feedback you will receive from your tutors, you will be able to maintain a personal profile that monitors your progress and you will be able to evaluate your own individual effectiveness in achieving your aims. Working individually, you will have to set your own tasks to achieve your research goals, drawing on previous learning experience to achieve creative solutions to problems and to develop creative ideas. Sometimes you will work in groups and you need to be able to measure your own performance in relation to the group.

Progress files

For the purpose of documenting personal progress, you will be expected to maintain a reflective learning journal throughout the duration of the course. The documentation will include a record of assessment feedback, personal reflection on and evaluation of the way in which you have engaged in learning activities as well as the efficacy of your learning. You will be expected to reflect on and evaluate each stage of your learning and this will be used as part of some summative assessments as well as the basis for discussion about progress and the mapping of courses of action. During the early stages of the course you will engage in an evaluation of your current position together with an audit of your personal skills. This will be used as the basis for writing and maintaining a frequently updated and relevant curriculum vitae.

Professional standards

The essential aims of the course are to develop the students professionalism and to enhance your potential for employment within specific sectors of the creative industries. To this end the course will aim to promote professional attitudes and behaviour as well as to provide specific insights into professional ways of working. Your engagement in the course should reflect professional standards and failing to do so may affect assessments outcomes.

Professional standards include:

• Expectations of punctuality, regular attendance, contactability and reliability


• Appropriate means of interpersonal behaviour, address, communication and presentation skills


• Personal organisation that will include being able to draw, in an effective way, on experience, learned attitudes and skills


• Maintaining the fitness to practice and having an understanding of the Criminal Records Bureau, particularly in circumstances where you may wish ultimately to work with young people


• The creative industries are competitive and by their nature can have their own specific ways of working, they often demand that its professionals are able to work to tight schedules and rapid turnaround. The course will make students aware of these demands and seek to inculcate an attitude of effective, prompt and reliable working


• The creative industries are frequently involved with such things as communication, branding and the promotion of identities and sometimes there is necessarily a need to deal with contentious issues and material as well as a need to take creative risks. It is therefore essential that students acquire an awareness of good and ethical practices, which avoid negative discrimination and exploitation


• Team working and the evaluation of outcomes


• The ability to engage in further learning

Strategy for developing and embedding the professional standards

Since the purpose of the course is essentially aimed at helping you to gain employment in Art and Design specifically and the creative sector more generally, the strategy for embedding the professional standards of a critical and creative practitioner will be manifest in all the learning activities and assessments. You will be advised about correct procedures, protocols and ethics as well as enabled through a habit of self-reflection and evaluation to apply learned skills and attitudes to professional contexts.

You will be expected to engage with the course respecting professional standards and your attitude in this regard may be taken into account when assessing your work.

At level 5 there will be a unit that will be based on experiential learning. This, together with an emphasis on professional practice at level six, will give you experience of and insights into professional working practices.

Wherever possible, there will be input into the course by relevant practicing professionals.