Final Portfolio

Writing has been the primary means of presenting your research this semester, and the portfolio is an opportunity for us to see your production assembled, providing us a shared space to look for patterns in your work, and assess your writing at this time. It is a chance for you to consider your writing as an integral part of your discipline, of your practice, of your output, and of your work.Integrated Studies is a writing-based course, developed to support you as an artist who writes.

During the semester you have been investigating sites ranging from physical locations (parks, offices, libraries, schools, a bus tunnel, and City Hall) to more conceptual spaces (Calvino’s text “Invisble Cities” and your own proposed charrette spaces). For the final writing exploration of this semester, you’ll be investigating your own body of writings as sites of inquiry.

By the time the portfolio is submitted, you will have had exposure to a broad range of writing opportunities (journal sketches, revised drafts, self-reflective essays, proposal/charrette briefs, presentations, revisions, synthesis of resources, and blog entries, among others). Is your writing moving in directions that are helpful to you as an artist? In what ways can you improve upon this process?

For your portfolio (and this list in consistent within all the Integrated Studies courses), please include the following elements:

1. A compilation/portfolio of all your writings from the semester-- this should include EVERYTHING* you have written (a chronological list of your submitted works is included at the bottom of this page, but this packet may also include any notes, research, or mix tapes you have found relevant in your process). All works (wherever possible) should be three-hole punched and submitted in a three-ring binder, labeled with your name and the course title.

2. From these works, you will select and foreground three (3) pieces of your writing from this semester which will be the basis of a self-reflective writing introducing the portfolio (see #3 below). These three papers should be clearly separated from the other works in your binder. They may be any three pieces you’ve written--they could be three distinct works, multiple revisions of a single work, or a combination of these things. They may be notes, papers we've already discussed, or something new that you've been developing.

3. An introduction/self-reflective piece introducing your portfolio. For length, consider a significant writing (100o words is a nice start, right?), although you may want to explore this writing; I'll read as much as you write (it takes me awhile, but yes, really), and it's a great opportunity to really unpack your work this semester and take some time with your output. What worked? What sucked? Ideally, this paper will include your responses to both the coursework and your own writings. What role does writing fulfill in your artistic practice? How are you taking steps to develop your work? What direction would you like the writing aspect of the course take in the future? Are you seeing your writing process grow? What are your hopes for writing in the coming semester, or coming years at Cornish?

In this self-reflective, introductory (to the portfolio) writing please also describe your process of selecting three pieces from the semester. Why are they vital to you now? What links the works together? Is your process of research the same from one piece to the next? Are there common elements in the writings? How are these writings exemplary of your progress this semester?

4. Works Cited. In only a few of our writing projects have you been asked to synthesize resources from outside of the course readings, but we're moving towards a more research-based process in the coming semester, this seems like a great opportunity to get the ball rolling, and confirm we all adopt the same protocol. As listed previously, Cornish Library links to numerous citation guides here

All works for this writing portfolio are Due Monday, December 8, 2008.

Everything* should include--if you choose-- a fair selection of your notes or preliminary writings. You don't need to extract or copy all of the pages from your journal, but if there are specific writings or notes or diagrams you've taken that have helped you go to someplace new in your writing, then yes, by all means, include them here.

Here are embedded descriptions of three of the more developed writings that should be not only included in your portfolio, but also function as landmarks. These are pieces that we've spent more time working with, in both peer review as well as framing, through field work, conversation, and associated readings:

Charrette

Invisible Cities

Writing about parks

Columbia Center

Here is a page of fun facts on Columbia Center

For our visit to the building, I asked everyone to consider the pace of business. How quickly are people moving through the building? Where do they congregate? What paths do they form, and how do they navigate?

Writing about Parks

DUE Friday, November 21, 2008

We've visited numerous parks: Freeway Park, Volunteer Park, Westlake Center Park, Seattle Times Park, Cascade Neighborhood Park, and (soon) Denny Park.

Synthesizing your readings on parks (including Calvino, deBotton, and others), William Whyte's research models in The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces, our collaborative work with Erica Howard's class, and our own navigation through those diverse spaces, how can a writing tie together you diverse experiences in these locations? Do the parks all share common attributes? How are the bordered by and linked to their surroundings?

Do parks offer a comfort and diversion from the pressures of the city, or are they something else entirely?

In a significant writing (let's say maybe 1000 words or so), describe and explain what our explorations through the green spaces of Seattle have made you consider about the changing roles of parks in our city. Are they being used in the ways that you expected? Do they remind you of other similar spaces you have explored on your own; a park where you grew up? Which communities are activating (enacting) these sites? What draws us to a park?

In this writing (like much of the work we've done), don't feel compelled to write an essay. Rather, consider this as a platform or question in terms of the form of the writing. Do you write about all parks the same way, or does each park offer it's own voice? We've explored these disparate spaces by different prompts-- overheard conversations, found writing, lists of resources. Is there a hybrid of writings that you can assemble to give a rich portrait of our parks?

In line with this, please include a list of Works Cited, identifying any quotes or citations that you reference in your work. For assistance with formatting, please see the Cornish Library website here

I want to go here at Volunteer Park

Information on the park is here
And the Olmstead plan (thanks to History Link) is here
Please place your suggestions for the park as comments on this posting, and see you all Friday!

Image courtesy Friends of Olmstead Parks