ARCH41360 Crafts, Making & Storytelling

Academic Year 2022/2023

How does making things help us understand the material world we live in? Our homes, workplaces and daily lives are packed full of things, but they are things that are for the most part made by other people. In the past, things were made by other people too, but you probably knew those people, and might have seen it happening. Today, we mostly lack knowledge and understanding of how the things in our lives are made, the materials used, who made them, and what the 'making' of things tells us about everything - society, economy, materials, production and exchange. So, how does making things ourselves change our understandings of the tools and materials used, the time, skills and effort required, and the life of things. Can we use the work of craftspeople, artists, and makers - and the anthropologists who watch them - to help us understand 'making' in past and contemporary societies across the world? You might like to explore ideas about 'making' which originate in art history, design theory, archaeology, cultural geography and anthropology. These ideas will then be applied to your own reflections on the uses of different materials and the making of things.

In this module, you will make something(s), and reflect thoughtfully on the process of 'making' a thing(s), and share your thoughts and ideas with your class mates. The module will be primarily assessed by means of a Portfolio, supported by a Learning Journal (see assessment in Brightspace)

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of this module, students will:

• Understand the ways in which 'making' can alter our understanding of material culture
• Assess the extent to which our relationship with making differs from those in the past
• Understand a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives concerning craft and making in the past and present


Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Seminar (or Webinar)

24
Specified Learning Activities

80
Autonomous Student Learning

80
Total

184
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
This will include webinars, critical readings, active/task-based learning; peer and group work; webinars; lab/studio work; reflective writing; practical presentations and storytelling 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Portfolio: A Portfolio, with Learning Journal, originating from the thing(s) you made; being collection of texts, images, thoughts and reflections telling your own stories about your making of thing(s) you made. Week 12 n/a Graded No

100

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Feedback provided on Brightspace and personally via Zoom

Name Role
Dr Brendan O'Neill Lecturer / Co-Lecturer