ART 500 / Senior Thesis: Memories, Mindfulness & Making
by Eric Weeks
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This semester is a continuation of a lifelong sequence that requires the student to mine personal projects begun when younger, with the goal of producing work into one’s senior years. Students will contemplate their past, present, and future throughout the semester. The goal of this class is for students to work inconsistently throughout their lifetimes, which results in questions pondered, problems played with, and some work eventually made.
COURSE GOALS & OUTCOMES
Students who successfully complete the course will be able to:
- Demonstrate the ability to delve deep into one’s personal memories.
- Demonstrate the ability to use the dynamic of self-critique to gain new insights into one’s work, in order to further refine and develop their work both visually and conceptually.
- Demonstrate a sophisticated ability to write and speak about their work, as well as the work of others, reflecting a clear understanding of the work’s historical, cultural and political contexts. Included in this outcome is sophistication unimaginable at this time.
BOOKS
Roland Barthes Camera Lucida
John Berger Ways of Seeing
Sayadaw U Tejaniya Relax and Be Aware: Mindfulness Meditations for Clarity, Confidence, and Wisdom
Dante Alighieri The Divine Comedy
Anne Frank The Diary of a Young Girl (Audiobook)
Jean-Dominique Bauby The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
ARTICLES
Sarah Cascone, In a Landmark Ruling Against the Andy Warhol Foundation, the Supreme Court Has Sided With Photographer Lynn Goldsmith
Alina Cohen, Who Actually Shot Richard Prince’s Iconic Cowboys?
Sherrie Levine: American Photographer, Painter, Sculptor and Conceptual Artist
Electra Nanou, The Ethical Pros and Cons of AI Art Generation
Kennedy Center Art Critiques Made Easy – 7 tips for leading class discussions about works of art
FILMS
Dara Birnbaum Technology / Transformation: Wonder Woman
Bruce Connor A Movie
Julian Schnabel The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
MUSIC
John Coltrane A Love Supreme
Bob Marley Don’t Worry Be Happy
Bobby McFerrin Don’t Worry Be Happy
Kansas Carry On My Wayward Son
Elvis Costello & The Attractions (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?
Supertramp The Logical Song
Public Enemy Fight The Power
Velvet Underground with Nico All Tomorrow’s Parties
The Damned Smash It Up / I Just Can’t Be Happy Today
INSTRUCTOR’S NOTES
This course requires the student to mine personal archival source material, in order to figure out who the heck you are, and why the heck you are alive, and all answers to the meaning of life.
CLASS SCHEDULE
Please note: This is a working schedule and may change according to the instructor’s whims.
CLASS 1:
Look back at any home movies that may exist, whether in reality, or just in your head. Start a journal in order to record your thoughts and feelings, while searching out metaphors for your actual experience. Think about your mother.
Reading:
Roland Barthes Camera Lucida. Read the whole darn thing in one sitting, create abstracts for each chapter, and list all vocabulary words you kind of know.
Music:
John Coltrane A Love Supreme. Because.
Work Due:
Bring all the artwork you have ever made to this first class, including that turkey hand from kindergarten. Be prepared to defend all of your choices you have ever made, including registering for this class.
CLASS 2:
Forget everything discussed in Class 1 regarding your wise and poor choices during your lifetime, and realize that they have all made you who you are today. Brainstorm in your journal about who you have admired and/or envied, and create action steps to be more like them in one small way. Be prepared in class to discuss, and release all prior envy.
Work Due:
There is no work due this class. Releasing all of your prior envy is more than enough work.
CLASS 3:
Appropriation, Plagiarism and Cover Songs Week! Please watch, read and listen to the below links before our class discussion this week:
Films:
Dara Birnbaum Technology / Transformation: Wonder Woman
Bruce Connor A Movie
Readings:
Lynn Goldsmith Wins Suit Against Warhol Foundation
Richard Prince Cowboys
Sherrie Levine
The Ethical Pros and Cons of AI Art Generation
Music:
Listen to Bob Marley Don’t Worry Be Happy and Bobby McFerrin Don’t Worry Be Happy one hundred times each. Excellent artists, both Grammy winners, but please, stop the earworm madness! Write a five page paper on the pros and cons of each version, appropriation versus plagiarism, and cover songs in general.
Work Due:
Make a new work using appropriation methodology. You must include your own work as well, appropriating from your past.
CLASS 4:
Start to plan out your semester-long project. How can you change, and stop making the same work you made a decade ago? Stop worrying about branding. Stop worrying about gallerists. Stop worrying about curators. Stop worrying about naysayers. Stop worrying, be Happy!
Reading:
John Berger Ways of Seeing, since you haven’t looked at it since you were a sophomore all those years ago.
Work Due:
Remake your Appropriation piece, this time steer clear of copyright infringement by making sure you are recontextualizing others’ work.
CLASS 5:
Now is the time to kick it into gear! You have grown acclimated to your classmates, even though all but three of them are lazy asses who really shouldn’t be here, and don’t make any work, and their parents pay for their fancy apartment, and they can afford to eat sushi for lunch during every class break, this doesn’t pertain to you or your prospects as an artist.
Reading:
Sayadaw U Tejaniya Relax and Be Aware: Mindfulness Meditations for Clarity, Confidence, and Wisdom
Extra Credit Reading:
Dante Alighieri The Divine Comedy. Know that your current suffering will be requited.
Work Due:
Five page paper on Appropriation, Plagiarism and Cover Songs
CLASS 6:
Your professor will tear up a $20 bill into no longer salvageable bits of detritus at 9 am. Please do not be late for this important performance/economics lesson/discussion. Why not tear up a $100 bill? Get an MFA because teaching is your passion, if you want to know the answer.
Critique:
Show your latest work. The professor will probably blow you away with a thought or two, and a suggestion. The student that you engaged with during their crit will probably bring you even more insights than your professor.
Homework:
Contemplate the last sentence above.
Reading:
Kennedy Center Art Critiques Made Easy – 7 tips for leading class discussions about works of art
CLASS 7:
Mid-Semester Grades go out after your Exam. Don’t worry, you will do fine!
Please fill out this Mid-Semester Course Content Evaluation Form.
Reading:
Listen to Anne Frank The Diary of A Young Girl (Audiobook). Contemplate how to remain positive in the face of the tragedy that is humankind.
Extra Credit:
Watch Julian Schnabel’s film The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Then read Jean-Dominique Bauby’s book The Diving Bell and the Butterfly that Schnabel based his film upon.
CLASS 8:
Field Trip!
CLASS 9:
Wow, what a great field trip! Let’s spend the entire class talking about the highlights of the great field trip.
CLASS 10:
The professor will be away, interviewing for full-time positions, but shhh, you are not supposed to know that…
Work:
Self-ideate
Music:
Kansas Carry On My Wayward Son. Based on this Kansas video write two 2 page papers from the perspective of the lead mustachioed lead singer on this song, and the guy with the big red hair and beard. Write in first person present tense about each artist’s perspective during their collaboration.
CLASS 11:
Oops, I was supposed to check your journals last week. I wrote in journals when I was young and a bit hungrier, so the need to journal may have an equivalency to happiness and self-worth:
J < H + SW
CLASS 12:
One more critique before your Final Critique.
Work:
Contemplate how you can provide your peers with kind constructive criticism, without any envy or fear.
Music:
Elvis Costello & The Attractions (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?
Extra Credit:
Research the quote Remember Bob, no fear, no envy, no meanness.
CLASS 13:
This week you will make your work through the alembic of a classmate’s practice. You will be assigned a classmate to emulate.
Music:
Listen to Supertramp The Logical Song and contemplate how you can possibly get this particular earworm out of your head. Remember, don’t let THE MAN change you!
Extra Credit Music:
Public Enemy Fight The Power
CLASS 14:
Last class to prepare for Final Critique.
Work:
Stay awake for the next 144 hours in order to have something decent to show next week.
Music:
Listen to Velvet Underground with Nico All Tomorrow’s Parties, and contemplate what you will wear to your Final Critique.
CLASS 15:
Final Critique today! Be kind to your peers. Be kind to your professor. And above all, be kind to yourself, knowing that you look fabulous (if you did last week’s Extra Credit…)
Music:
The Damned Smash It Up / I Just Can’t Be Happy Today