Category: Art : Design

Assignment 5:
Writing a Literature Review
The purpose of the literature review is for the author to familiarize themselves with their topic / area of study.
What is a review of literature?
The format of a review of literature may vary from discipline to discipline and from assignment to assignment.
A review may be a self-contained unit – an end in itself – or a preface to, and rationale for, engaging in primary research. A review is a required part of grant and research proposals and often a chapter in theses and dissertations. The purpose of a review is to critically analyze a segment of a published body of knowledge through summary, classification, and comparison of prior research studies, reviews of literature, and theoretical articles.
Put differently, literature refers to a collection of published materials related to a specific research area or topic, including academic books and journal articles. In contrast, a literature review goes beyond summarizing these sources; it involves evaluating individual works and synthesizing them to develop your research project (Monash University). 
Organizing your literature review can pose a significant challenge. You can structure the literature review chronologically, methodologically, or thematically. The structure should include the following: 
Introduction: In the introduction, you should:
Identify the general topic, issue, or area of concern, thus providing an appropriate context for reviewing the literature.
Point out overall trends in what has been published about the topic; or conflicts in theory, evidence, and conclusions; or gaps in research and scholarship; or a single problem or new perspective of immediate interest. 
Clarify your motivation (perspective) behind conducting the literature review; elucidate the standards for evaluating and contrasting literature, along with the review’s structure (sequence); and, where applicable, articulate the reasons behind the inclusion or exclusion of specific literature (scope).
The Body: In the body, you should:
Categorize research studies and various types of literature (including reviews, theoretical articles, case studies, etc.) based on shared characteristics such as qualitative versus quantitative methods, author conclusions, specific goals/objectives, chronological order, and so on. 
Summarize individual studies or articles with as much or as little detail as each merits according to its comparative importance in the literature, remembering that space (length) denotes significance. Identify key findings relevant to your topic. Draw connections between findings and organize them under key themes. 
Provide the reader with strong “umbrella” sentences at beginnings of paragraphs, “signposts” throughout, and brief “so what” summary sentences at intermediate points in the review to aid in understanding comparisons and analyses. 
The conclusion: In the conclusion, you should: 
Summarize the key contributions of important studies and articles to the reviewed body of knowledge, while staying aligned with the introduction’s focus.
Evaluate the current status of this body of knowledge, highlighting significant methodological shortcomings or research gaps, inconsistencies in theory and findings, and areas or issues that need future investigation.
Conclude by offering insights into how the central topic of the literature review relates to broader domains, such as a particular discipline, design field, or a profession.
The information mentioned above is obtained from the University of Wisconsin website. More information about how to write a literature review can be found in University of Toronto and Knox College Library websites.  
In summary, a literature review should fulfill these objectives and provide detailed explanations for each:
Have a structure that revolves around and directly correlates with the thesis or research question under exploration. 
Synthesize findings into a comprehensive overview of both established and unestablished knowledge. 
Detect controversial aspects within the existing literature. 
Articulate inquiries that demand additional investigation concerning your thesis or research question.
Deliverables
For this assignment, you are asked to conduct a literature review (1500 words) focused on material related to your topic. To achieve this, you need to find at least four sources (review articles, theoretical articles, case studies, etc.) and extract relevant information to your topic. Remember that you have already outlined the problem/issue of your topic in the Abstract and highlighted its significance in the Rationale. Hence, the literature review should be primarily focused on key findings and debates on your topic in relevant studies. Seek out sources that help address the identified gaps you mentioned in your rationale. You may also explore further gaps in the literature that have been tackled by other researchers in their studies.
Grading Criteria
Relevance (30%): Did you critically and thoroughly discuss literature relevant to your topic?
Synthesis (30%): Did you draw comparisons between research articles or other sources? Did you highlight research gaps? 
Structure (10%): Did you structure your literature review based on the aforementioned criteria (i.e. introduction, body, and conclusion)? Did you categorize your findings within the body under various headings or themes? 
Reliability (10%): Did you gather data from reputable and trusted sources like academic journals? 
Clarity (10%): Did you present your findings clearly? 
Format & citation (10%): Did you adhere to the Chicago style guidelines? Did you correctly cite your sources?

I NEED THE BACKGROUND OF THIS PICTURE TO BE REMOVED SO IN THIS PHOT IT NEEDS TO BE TJUST THE CAR AND THE PERSON IN IT THE BACKGROUND MY GO SO THAT THE PHOTO CAN BE ATTACHED TO A FLYER CO IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE A CUT OUT

Select one of the projects listed below. You will base your project on the themes, concepts, civilizations, artistic periods, artistic styles, or artists we have been studying this semester. Your project should reflect an understanding of one or more of the steps of the Art History Critique process: Formal Analysis, Interpretation, and Historical and Cultural Context.
Process: You may want to consult sources beyond the textbook as you complete your project. Keep track of these sources, because you must identify them in MLA style format or Chicago Style format (the gold standard for Art History). I will post links to style guides for both styles.
Originality/Turnitin: When/if you use sources as you develop your project, keep in mind that I expect that your project will be written entirely in your own words and that you will identify the sources of any researched information you use, even when paraphrased. Copying and pasting text from sources without proper attribution will be treated as a possible case of plagiarism and may result in a reduced grade or a zero for the assignment. Note that, when you submit your project, it will also be submitted to Turnitin, a plagiarism detection software.
Deliverables: Submit the completed project in Blackboard at a tab provided for that purpose. The tab will be posted under the Creative Project tab and in the content folder for the week in which it is due. The final product can be a Word doc, Pdf file, or PowerPoint presentation, depending on what best suits your project.
Project Choice 2: Plan/design a work of art in any medium that “has a conversation” with a theme, concept, civilization, artistic period, artistic style, or artist you have encountered in this class. By conversation, I mean that you have considered your relationship as an artist with the art of the past, which is your artistic legacy. This relationship can take many forms: rejecting the art of the past, building upon it, challenging it, absorbing it, etc. Your conversation should incorporate your understanding of at least one aspect of the Art History Critique process.
Deliverables:
1) A plan or preliminary design for your work of art or a picture of a work of art completed for this project. I do not expect you to make a completed work of art for this project.
2) An artist’s statement of at least 5 paragraphs explaining how your conversation with the material in this course and the Art History Critique process is reflected in the work of art you have planned or made.
3) Identify any sources you used to plan your work of art, including the textbook.
The link for the textbook will be given to you when hired

Length: 5+ pages (not counting the Works Cited page)
Sources: 5+ QUALITY sources*. Our class textbook is the first source, and it should be used heavily. Other
sources should included academic journal articles, which can only be acquired through the HCC library online
databases. Regarding internet, NO “.com” domains (only .org / .gov. / .edu domains are allowed), and absolutely nothing from Wikipedia.
Format: MLA Only
Voice: Third Person Only

1. Take on a subject upon which reasonable people could agree or disagree. 2. deal with a subject from your own standpoint, stating facts that support your main ideas that can be adequately treated given the nature of the assignment. 3. Strongly express your main idea using pictorial and other RESEARCHED data. 4. assert your conclusions with an analysis and synthesis of the subject. I have pictures from the art Museum that you may need in order to do this essay. I would like a brief biography of Picasso in my paper and give information about each picture that I will provide. I would like you to talk about the style of art in each picture, the materials that were used, and a description of the paintings. I would like for you to also talk about his mental health and how it could’ve contributed to how he painted.

Length: 5+ pages (not counting the Works Cited page)
Sources: 5+ QUALITY sources*. Our class textbook is the first source, and it should be used heavily. Other
sources should included academic journal articles, which can only be acquired through the HCC library online
databases. Regarding internet, NO “.com” domains (only .org / .gov. / .edu domains are allowed), and absolutely nothing from Wikipedia.
Format: MLA Only
Voice: Third Person Only

1. Take on a subject upon which reasonable people could agree or disagree. 2. deal with a subject from your own standpoint, stating facts that support your main ideas that can be adequately treated given the nature of the assignment. 3. Strongly express your main idea using pictorial and other RESEARCHED data. 4. assert your conclusions with an analysis and synthesis of the subject. I have pictures from the art Museum that you may need in order to do this essay. I would like a brief biography of Picasso in my paper and give information about each picture that I will provide. I would like you to talk about the style of art in each picture, the materials that were used, and a description of the paintings. I would like for you to also talk about his mental health and how it could’ve contributed to how he painted.

In 500 words or less, discuss your reasons for pursuing undergraduate study in the visual arts. Feel free to include any information about yourself, your goals and interests that may not be immediately apparent from the review of your transcripts or portfolio.

Please follow the Presentation Project and Project Items Checklist, both attached, for FULL instructions on how to finalize this assignment.

You will be tasked with comparing and contrasting any two pieces of fine art, visually, in context and content.
GUIDELINES
You may pick ANY two images of any mediums (architecture, paintings, drawing, sculpture, installation, etc) but they must be from different artists. The images must be from your textbook, or pre-approved by your instructor beforehand. You risk losing points if you chose an image that is not appropriate for this paper (such as an Illustration, book cover, magazine ad).
Describe each piece FORMALLY in its composition as you did with class quizzes. Use the Elements and Principles of Design to guide you: What does the piece look like? Describe the colors, shape, and general anatomy of what you physically see. Do not skip this portion!
Describe in detail what features are similar and dissimilar in your piece formally, contextually, and in its content. You may interpret the images however you wish, so long as you back up your argument with plausible (realistic) evidence.
Describe why you believe the artist may have been inspired to make the piece, why it’s compelling—or isn’t to you personally.
(OPTIONAL) If you choose to utilize outside sources beyond your textbook, correctly cite the source you have used (Use MLA citations). Using another author’s words as your own counts as plagiarism, which is a serious academic offense.
If you borrow information from the textbook, cite what page you found it on.
Your paper must be at least 2 ½ pages long, double-spaced, with size 12 Times New Roman font, with 1” page margins.
Papers turned in late are subject to losing up to 30 percent of their grade, per syllabus policy.
HINTS
If you are having a hard time deciding on two pieces of art, pick an image that you like and another that you strongly dislike—you will have an easier time talking about each piece and how they differ from each other.
Be specific when describing these pieces and follow through with your arguments. Broad statements like “beautiful” or “ugly” should not be used alone.
FINDING SOURCES: Museum websites are gold mines for information. If the artist is still alive, they usually have a personal website you can use as well. Your textbook is a good source as well.
The most common loss of points comes from not meeting the page length requirement, as well as using redundant and vague language to make your paper appear longer. Write concisely and honestly and it will pay off!
You can always send me a finished draft to read and give feedback on if you are struggling…
I will only read drafts up to 2 days before the due date, so plan ahead!
GRADE BREAKDOWN:
Following the above guidelines, including comparing and contrasting two appropriate images, as well as citing sources properly (75 points)
Proper grammar and spelling (25 points)