Independent Creative & Professional Practice 2 module (DJ32002)

This module focuses on self-directed studio practice. It will support you to develop and maintain a self-directed studio practice, supplemented by options to deepen skills in specific disciplines, including sculpture, moving image, performance, painting, sound, and creative writing.

The module will also help you develop research and reflective writing skills, expanding your knowledge and understanding of the field of Contemporary Art Practice. You will start to build your professional practice through learning core professional development skills.

What you will learn

In this module, you will:

• develop a context for practice by engaging with lectures, seminars, and group critiques
• create a resolved body of work that demonstrates successful exploration and experimentation
• produce supporting material that documents your research process
• select and attend appropriate workshops and masterclasses
• develop your professional practice through learning entrepreneurial skills, building external networks, and seeking out professional opportunities

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

• present a substantial and successfully resolved body of work that clearly demonstrates experimentation, investigation, and creative research
• demonstrate an enhanced level of applied skills, enabling the clear communication of ideas and research through a discipline or disciplines of choice
• demonstrate a strong awareness and understanding of the wider contexts for contemporary practice and research by attending exhibitions, seminars, and events, and by engaging with a broader cultural framework
• demonstrate awareness of the issues and potential involved in discussing and presenting work within a formal context

Assignments / assessment

• self-directed work (100%)
  • presentation of self-directed work (60%)
    • needs to clearly demonstrate experimentation, investigations, and creative research
    • should be a substantial and successfully resolved body of work
  • demonstration of an enhanced level of applied skills, enabling the clear communication of ideas and research through a discipline or disciplines of choice (15%)
  • demonstration of a deeper understanding of the wider contexts for practice and research; evidence of an awareness of contemporary practice; engagement with exhibitions, seminars, and events, as well as a broader cultural framework (15%)
  • evidence of an awareness of the issues and potential of presentation (10%)

This module does not have a final exam.

Teaching methods / timetable

This is a studio module that encourages self-directed learning through visual, critical, and research-driven enquiry. Class meetings, Professional Practice lectures, and after-care sessions will help you develop self-directed research skills and provide further guidance and examples for developing a body of work, reflective journal, and personal statement. 

• studio practice
• lectures
• workshops
• seminars
• study visits
• Contemporary Art Practice Speakers' Programme
  • introduces you to the work of visiting artists, the Contemporary Art Practice staff team, and Dundee's wider artistic community
• master classes
  • elective; help you develop deeper skills in disciplines of interest
• group critique
  • helps you formulate ways to express your views on your own and others' practices, reflecting critically upon your own work and that of your peers
• meetings with advisors of studies and artist tutors
  • help you to develop and refine research interests and a growing body of work
• Statement of Practice
  • you will write a short statement that helps summarise your practice for others, enabling development of concision and clarity in writing