Mid-term

Proposal due: Oct. 14

Mid-term due: Oct. 21

GRADE BREAKDOWN:
Mid-term Proposal = 5 pts
Mid-term Photoshop Montage= 20 pts

PROPOSAL / Photoshop Mid-term:
Use Photoshop to create a historical collage.

COLLAGE:
A form of art in which various materials (ie., photographs, pieces of paper, typographic elements, matchsticks...) are arranged and presented in a single Graphic composition.

Choose a historical event or thing or person that predates 1970. History is full of fascinating stories, events, and people, so choose something that you would like to learn more about.

Some ideas to consider:
invention of moveable type, origin of astronomy, the first maps,
Hammurabi's Law Code, Renaissance artists and architects, the Pantheon, Persopolis, the Parthenon.
OR
Choose a historical figure - this person must not be alive. You could choose an artist, a writer, a politican, an actor, an explorer, a scientist, a saint...anyone in history!

There are numerous historical photography archives on the web. Here are a couple:
Smithsonian Institute (http://www.aaa.si.edu/, http://www.si.edu/) New York Public Library web site. Use google to search for more.

Remember Photoshop is a tool, it's your idea and the materials you read and acquire during this research stage that will guide you. As you research your idea think about a visual theme, color schemes, typographic elements and what kind of story you would like to tell.

Use various resources (internet, library...) to research and gather assets (text, images, scanned graphics, photocopied pics or newspaper clippings...) for the collage.

Remember, if you use internet graphics only you may not have high enough resolution for a nice print of the work.

PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS (500+ words):

one paragraph about your topic.

one paragraph about why it is important.

one paragraph explaining the "message" of your montage. What do you want people to understand when they look at your finished montage? Will your montage inform, invite action, build consensus, provide an alternative view point, be entertaining or poignant...?

ONE paragraph describing assets (photographs, newspaper/magazine clipping, scanned texture or small object, hand art work, hand lettering scanned...) that you are considering using in your collage.

Site at least 3 written sources you use to research your collage topic; urls, books (including title, author), magazines, journals, newspapers...

Site THE graphic sources you used to research your collage topic; urls, books (including title, author), magazines, journals, newspapers...

Include the proposal as text in your email. In the subject field of the email put your last name and first initial with the number of the homework.

Example: McIntosh J-MID-TERM PROPOSAL
Please use this format for each assignment that you email me throughout the semester.

MID-TERM REQUIREMENTS:

1.
Use at least 5 different sources in your collage, one of which must be typography. You will be graded on the concept of your message, the thoughtfulness of your subject, materials/resources, attention to detail, and your compositing skills. Work at 8.5 x 11 inches format(vertical or horizontal) or you can adjust depending on how you choose to do your layout.

2.
Your imagry should reflect your topic. Possibilities include (but not limited to) scanned imagry from books, internet graphics, text, digital photographs...Your choice of imagry and how you integrate the overall collage is important. You may include scanned textures, scanned hand work, lines, simple shapes... as possible sources.

3.
You must include the sources of all images/graphics used. If you do not give citations your work will be considered plagerized and you will receive an 'F'. Upon submission of your final collage include the sources of all images/graphics used.

4.
In creating a collage with multiple images your composition is very important. Read Principles of Composition handout.

5.
Use the knowledge you have acquired from the previous 6 weeks to guide your collage creation. It is important to demonstrate in your mid-term: clean compositing (very important), color correction, cropping, layers/layer blending, proportion, contrast, color scheme, and message and mood.

*If I do not see very good proficiency in compositing - you may be asked to redo the assignment. Compositing is the single most important skill needed to master Photoshop. Your mid-term should demonstrate compositing (various graphics) which is the basic foundation for image development using bit-map graphics.

6.
Send your homework (jpeg format) as an attachment via email.

It may also help researching artists who have worked doing mixed media collages. Often we can borrow ideas from other artists to help us realize our own. Go to your local book store or library and browse through the art section. The below examples may help too.

Romare Beardon		Ellen Land-Weber
Dada - art or not?		Picasso