Course descriptionThis program is designed in particular for practising artists who have a specific research interest or project they wish to pursue within a formal and supportive institutional context. The School seeks to provide opportunities for suitably qualified candidates to develop their potential for research, to extend their knowledge and competence and, in turn, to contribute to the understanding of current art practice and associated theories and of contemporary society and its culture.
The candidate undertakes the research project by means of studio-based and historical/theoretical methodologies, under the guidance of a supervisor. In addition to regular contact with the supervisor, the candidate will be required to participate in both the Studio Seminar and the Research Seminar programs.
Structure
The Studio Seminar addresses the manifestations of the various studio practices and their technical, aesthetic, personal, social and cultural implications. Each MFA candidate is required to present a work-in-progress exhibition in the Postgraduate Gallery, supported by a seminar presentation related to the work, its sources and processes of production.
The Research Seminar will provide an introduction to research methods and the presentation of outcomes, with particular reference to guidelines for the research paper and its relation to the exhibition component.
The second half of the program will concentrate on the definition and focus of individual projects with sessions based on candidates' reports of interim research outcomes.