FACULTY EXPECTATIONS IN ___ART___

RE. PORTFOLIO ESSAYS

•  The general philosophy of above-named discipline regarding Assessment of Prior Experiential Learning essays may be summarized as follows:

The APEL essay must demonstrate the student’s experience and engagement with art-making, including conceptual development, technical skill, and understanding of the work’s context in relation to the art world.  Portfolios must include documentation of studio art work with an emphasis in one of the concentration areas in the EOU art program:

• 2-D: printmaking, drawing, design, painting, photo
• 3-D: sculpture, ceramics, installation
• Digital Art: digital photo, printmaking, video

Along with the required essays, portfolios should also include an artist’s statement 

•  Describe the nature of any dialogue expected between faculty in above-name discipline and students preparing portfolio essays in the discipline.

Students should contact the appropriate faculty member BEFORE submitting the portfolio, to come to terms regarding the format and content of the portfolio.

•  Describe the nature of any specific requirements the above-name discipline will have regarding contents of the portfolio materials i.e., documentation, essay, bibliography where applicable, etc.

• Documentation of artwork: Good quality digital images on CD are preferred.   However, slides, color photos, or video may be submitted;
• All images must be accompanied by an image list including title, date, and media;
• Artist’s statement addressing the conceptual and formal concerns of the work (1 page);
• Personal essay outlining the student’s experience with art, understanding of art historical context, understanding of his/work in relation to contemporary art world, and a discussion of how the art-work relates to the student’s life experiences;
• actual art work whenever appropriate;
• documentation of dialogue with appropriate art faculty (ie. Copies of emails, syllabi, etc)
• all work submitted must be original in design and execution.

•  Describe issues regarding the general turnaround time for review of portfolio materials in the above-named discipline .

Early quarter evaluations are slow due to start-up time in art classes.   Mid-quarter reviews are preferable.   Late quarter review may take longer.   A general time span of four weeks is normal.

•  Provide any additional information that will help portfolio students in developing materials for faculty review in the above-named discipline.

A well-written artist statement and personal essay are necessary.  Please contact the appropriate art faculty before submitting the portfolio.   Faculty in each concentration can help students understand what is necessary.

Areas to be evaluated are best if taught within the approved curriculum of EOU. The material to be evaluated should relate closely to catalog descriptions.   However, areas to be evaluated can sometimes be within the scope of expertise of an EOU faculty and not be offered within the

curriculum; thus, some special topics may be eligible for APEL upon pre-approval of the Art faculty.

Work previously done in or at another institution of higher learning is ineligible for EOU credit; credit will not be awarded twice for the same work.   Prior contact with appropriate discipline faculty is encouraged for maximum credit allocation.   Faculty readers may choose to pass portfolios on to faculty in other fine arts disciplines when their expertise may be more appropriate for full credit evaluation.   EOU regrets that it cannot evaluate portfolios that deal with industrial arts, commercial design, or technical vocational training learning.

•  Additional questions to be inserted and answered in an Art APEL Learning Essay:

• What is your background with art?
• What is your work about?   What are the ideas represented in your work?
• Where do you get ideas for your work?
• Which artists or art movements have been influential to your work?   How?
• How does your work relate to the contemporary art world?
• How does your personal experience/history relate to your art work?
• How do the formal qualities of your work reflect your ideas?  How do the form and content relate?
• What research have you done to support your artwork?  (Museum visits, contact with professional artists, reading, etc)

 Reviewed by Jessica Plattner                                   April 10,2007                                          

Faculty Contacts within the Art Department

for Assessment of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL)

September 2007