The purpose of this module is to allow you to take personal responsibility for a major brief, building on the experience of the whole learning programme. You will be able to show that you understand how arts practitioners work to achieve success, and how this relates to the national and international creative context.

A key theme that you will work with is one of working independently, because you will be expected to identify potential projects and generate appropriate responses to fulfil a clearly articulated need and/or aspiration. This may be industry directed or academic, and in any of a range of roles, such as part of an organisation, as an individual, working as a team leader or coordinator of other practitioners, or as a significant research project relating to your academic aspirations.

Examples of projects you might work on would be: researching an area of development to persuade a party or parties that a particular direction should be taken; re-launching an arts or cultural venue to a new audience; a major event or activity for a targeted market; researching an artefact, person, location or subject associated with local culture, and disseminating your findings.

You will be expected to identify and engage with a client or clients (who may be academic), work creatively and innovatively and successfully promote your work. Targets and timescales should be action-planned as part of a well-managed project that fully embraces professional considerations: these should include financial and time management, health and safety, legal and ethical requirements and a wide range of communication methods.

As you will be working on an individual project, individual tutorials will be an important aspect of the module. If you are intending to take an academic progression route, counselling regarding the nature and suitability of the assignment should be sought: a written academic study of an appropriate depth and breadth could be the most appropriate way to prepare yourself for further study, and this might be the major project you undertake for this module.

Assessment 1: Major Project with developmental activities including:

Planning and implementation of a major project, negotiated with tutors and, where appropriate, mentor, supported by a portfolio of developmental activities to further professional engagement skills (pitching, negotiation, employer engagement CV and Promotional assets) (80%) [LO 1, 2]



Assessment 2: A 1,500 word report evaluating the project in a national and international context, reflecting on own practice (20%) [LO 2, 3]





Further clarity will be provided in detailed project brief.

Introduction to module
Project management workshops
Communication methods workshops and seminars, to include promotion, information retrieval and negotiation
Practical studio workshops
Event and activity visits and critiques
Individual tutorials

VLE (Virtual Learning Environment)

Apply your diverse experience and learning to plan and implement a major project in the creative arts.

Applications


Prepare development plans for a specified art project that are thoroughly supported by research findings that include reference to the current national and international creative environment, using appropriate methodologies.

Enquiry


Recognise own strengths and limitations in relation to progression opportunities and personal ambitions, including CV and Promotional assets, in order to plan for future development.

Learning

Reflection

Books

Bossom, A. and Dunning, B., 2020. Video Games: An Introduction to the Industry (Creative Careers). London: Bloomsbury Visual Arts.

Dekker, A., 2016. Curating Digital Art: From Presenting and Collecting Digital Art to Networked Co-Curation (Making Public). Amsterdam: Valiz.

Stone, G. and Kerry, M., 2018. Your Career in the Media and Creative Industries: Building Employability Skills. London: Kogan Page.

Woods, P., 2019. How to Do Great Work Without Being an Asshole: (Guides for Creative Industries). London: Laurence King Publishing.



Classen, C. (2017) The Museum of the Senses: Experiencing Art and Collections. HPOD. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. Available at: https://doi.org/10.5040/9781474252454.



Buckley, B., Conomos, J. and Arnold, D. (2020) A Companion to Curation. 1st edition. Newark: Wiley. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119206880.

Students will have access to studio space and college library and computer resources.
University learning resources are available on campus at Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent, and online via the partner Need to Know pages of the university website.
http://www.staffs.ac.uk/courses_and_study/partnerships/current_students/email/index.jsp

In this module, you’ll undertake a major brief that showcases your understanding of how arts practitioners achieve success within national and international contexts. You’ll work independently to identify projects that fulfil a specific need or aspiration, which could range from industry-directed tasks to significant academic research. Potential projects include revitalising a cultural venue, organising a major event, or conducting in-depth research on a cultural subject. You’ll be responsible for managing all aspects of your project, including client engagement, creative execution, and professional considerations like financial management, legal requirements, and ethical standards. This module prepares you for a successful career by developing your project management skills and your ability to work independently in the creative industries.