Guidelines for applicants to Fine Art

Uploading Images(electronic folio)

& Supporting Text

(folio statement)

http://application.gsa.ac.uk/

Stage One Application

How is my application assessed ?In order to evaluate and establish how well you represent yourself visually

through the folio and in writing through the UCAS statement and foliostatement, Admissions staff will:

• view the uploaded images – (electronic folio)• read your Supporting Text – (folio statement)• read your UCAS Personal Statement

What we look for in order to evaluate your stage one application and where we would look for this (7 aspects)

• How your e-folio demonstrates your interest in Fine Artand the Specialist area applied for ?

• Course awareness, why this course?• Your development process.• How you represent your sources and influences.• Range and application of practical skills.• Course work.• Independent / Personal work

• How your e-folio demonstrates your interest in Fine Art and the specialist area you applied for :

You will be expected to include work that uses materials and methods that demonstrates appropriateness to the specialist area applied for. (e-folio)

• Course awareness, why this course?

You will be expected to communicate why you consider the course applied for is the appropriate one for you. (folio statement)

• Your development process :

You will be expected to show how you progress your ideas through experiment and visual enquiry. (e-folio)

• How you represent your sources and influences :

You will be expected to show your source material, references and influences through sketchbooks, or through other supporting material. (e- folio and folio statement

• Range and application of practical skills :

We expect the portfolio to represent your experience with materials, methods and experimental work. (e-folio)

This can be demonstrated in a variety of ways including drawing / painting / analytical / abstract / 3Dwork / photography /CAD etc.

These can be represented by uploading selected pages from your sketchbooks, preparatory sketches, development sheets and final pieces.

• Course work:You will be expected to provide examples of work which has been made as part of a prescribed course (e-folio)Independent applicants (who may not have recent course work) will be expected to represent appropriate experience of practice through their folio and statement

• Independent / Personal work:You will be expected to include examples of work made outwith a prescribed course, which builds on your experiences and demonstrates a potential for independent learning.

A Total of 25 images is required by all Fine Art

Departments.

Some notes for guidance in preparing your e-folio:

Preparatory/ Research work: This can be sketchbook pages, studies, development sheets, preparatory drawings that demonstrates/tracks the development of a finished piece of work. We are interested in the concepts and ideas behind your work and how they progress and develop; from the initial starting point / source of inspiration through to a finished piece of work.

We are also interested in finding out more about your interest in Fine Art, artists that you are looking at (for example exhibitions visits, internet, books, magazines and newspapers). We want to know what or who has motivated you or influenced you to apply for the specialist area.

Research/influences should be made clear in your statement. Also whilst the work of other artists can be referenced within sketchbook pages is should not solely occupy one of the uploaded slides within your portfolio.

Finished work: We want to see work that is an outcome of your development work and is more consolidated and resolved.

Time based work: (film / video work / sound pieces / slide shows etc.)

If you are submitting a time based work it needs to be presented as a story board with 5 - 10 images.

Supporting images

The 25 uploaded images should contain examples of different work. If you wish to include different angles of the same piece of work or detailed sections please do so within one image.

Before you finally submit your application, check each image to ensure you are happy with the size and level of detail you can see as this will be what Admissions staff will also see.

The image size should be no greater than 200kb ( ideal image size is 1024 x 768 pixels if possible) with a resolution size no more than 72dpi.

In order to show us the development of your ideas throughout a project you may wish to show several drawings/pieces of work together within one image: you could do this by photographing several drawings/pieces of work together at once, or by photographing several pieces individually and using Photoshop (or a similar programme) to combine them into one image.

This can be particularly useful when trying to show work that cannot be photographed at the same time for example a series of pages in a sketchbook. However it is important not to make the components of an image so small that the details cannot be seen.

The following slides show some of the ways in which work could be presented. These are given as guidelines only; we understand that each applicant’s work is personal and this will influence the way in which they choose to present the work.

Painting and PrintmakingOf the 25 uploaded images, a breakdown might include:

Finished work: between 10 images – 15 images.

Preparatory work/Research materials: 5 - 8 images This could include: sketchbooks, studies, preparatory drawings, development sheets. There should be no more than four images used on any one page showing preparatory work from sketchbooks.

Observational studies: between 5 - 8 images.

Sculpture and Environmental ArtOf the 25 uploaded images, a breakdown might include:

1. Preparatory / Research work: 5 - 15 imagesThis could include sketchbooks, documentation of 3D studies, preparatory drawings, development sheets

• Finished work: 5 - 15 imagesThis need not be all different work. If work is three dimensional you may want to show different views. Also if you have Time-Based work then you might want to use 5 - 10 images that story-board the work.

Fine Art Photography Of the 25 uploaded images, a breakdown might include:

Finished work - 15 to 20 images

• Preparatory/Research work : 5 to 10 images.• This could include pages from sketchbooks, contact

sheets, development of working prints.

• Stage twoApplicants selected for interview will be asked to bring their portfolio of work to the interview.

The portfolio interview is a two-way process: for you to gain a better understanding of the GSA and your chosen course and for us to view your portfolio and ask you questions about it and your interest in your chosen specialism.

The portfolio interview will last about 20 minutes and will normally be with 2 members of staff.

http://application.gsa.ac.uk