Version 3: Multimodal Profile Draft

In Version 2, you developed a working thesis and critical-connections outline using your eight core sources and two selected artworks or projects. In this stage, develop that outline into a critical analysis, using the feedback you received on Version 2.

Complete the steps below in order.

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Step 1: Review and refine your Version 2 critical-connections outline

Start with the critical-connections outline (bullet points) you completed in Version 2 and the feedback you received.

Do not begin by writing a completely new analysis. Use your Version 2 work as the starting point and strengthen the ideas and evidence you will develop in the critical analysis.

Together, review and revise, when needed:

• your working thesis;
• the main concept, question, or tension in Critical Connection 1;
• the main concept, question, or tension in Critical Connection 2;
• the relationship between the two critical connections;
• the specific evidence you identified from both artworks or projects;
• the passages, concepts, quotations, page numbers, or timestamps you selected from your sources; and
• the eight core sources in your annotated bibliography.

As you review the outline, use the feedback you received on Version 2 to clarify ideas that are too broad, unclear, unsupported, or disconnected from the artworks.

Your thesis should:

• make a clear statement about the artist’s practice;
• establish the main focus of your analysis;
• connect to both selected artworks or projects; and
• present a position that you can develop using your research and artwork evidence.

Each critical connection should develop part of the thesis rather than introduce an unrelated topic. Make sure you have specific artwork and source evidence to support each connection.

Before moving on: You should have a clear thesis, two focused and connected critical connections, and enough specific evidence from the artworks and sources to develop the 500–700-word analysis.

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Step 2: Write the critical analysis

Develop your Version 2 outline into a critical analysis.

Your analysis must connect:

• both selected artworks or projects;
• both course readings;
• at least 2 additional academic sources;
• at least 1 primary artist source; and
• at least 1 critical or contextual source.

Use the sources to help you analyze the artworks, develop your critical connections, and support your thesis.

For groups of three students, you must include the Student C’s resources and selected artwork.

Organize the analysis using the following sections.

Introduction (75–100 words)

Establish:

• the main research question;
• the focus of the analysis;
• your thesis;
• the two concepts that organize the analysis; and
• the two artworks or projects you will examine.

Give the reader enough information to understand what you are investigating and the position you will develop.

Critical Connection 1: Concept + Artwork 1 (175–250 words)

Develop the first critical connection from your Version 2 outline.

Explain:

• the concept, question, or tension you are investigating;
• how the course readings help you understand or question this concept;
• an important agreement, difference, or tension between the readings;
• how another source adds context, evidence, or a different interpretation;
• specific evidence from Artwork or Project 1; and
• how the artist’s methods, materials, technologies, or decisions connect to your interpretation.

Do not stop at describing what the artwork looks like or what a source says. Explain how the evidence supports, develops, or complicates your thesis.

Critical Connection 2: Concept + Artwork 2 (175–250 words)

Develop the second critical connection from your Version 2 outline.

Explain:

• the second concept, question, or tension;
• relevant ideas or evidence from your research;
• specific evidence from Artwork or Project 2;
• relevant methods, materials, technologies, or artistic decisions;
• your interpretation of this evidence; and
• how this connection differs from, extends, or complicates Critical Connection 1.

Connect this section back to the thesis rather than treating Artwork 2 as a separate artwork summary.

For groups of three students, include Critical Connection 3: Concept + Artwork 2 (175–250 words)

Conclusion (75–100 words)

Bring the two critical connections together.

Explain:

• how the analysis responds to the main research question;
• what becomes clearer when the two artworks and concepts are considered together;
• how the analysis supports, develops, or complicates your thesis; and
• an important tension, limitation, or unresolved question that remains.

Do not introduce a completely new argument in the conclusion.

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Checklist: Review and revise the analysis together

Use this checklist if useful to check that your document contains the required information.

Together, read the entire analysis together and revise it so it works as one connected text, not two separate pieces joined together.

Check that:

• The thesis is clear and consistent throughout the analysis.
• Sources are brought into conversation rather than summarized one at a time.
• The evidence supports, develops, or complicates the thesis.
• The two critical connections are clearly connected to each other.
• Claims about the artist, artworks, communities, and contexts are supported by evidence.
• The analysis clearly distinguishes what the artist states, what other authors argue, and what you interpret.
• If used, Quotation marks are used for a source’s exact words.
• If used, APA in-text citations are included for ideas, information, paraphrases, and quotations taken from sources.
• Repeated information and unnecessary summary have been removed.
• Transitions make the relationships between ideas clear.
• Both partners have reviewed and approved the complete analysis.
• The complete analysis is around 500–700 words (175–250 words more for groups of three students).

Before moving on: You should have one complete, connected critical analysis that uses specific artwork evidence and research to develop and support your thesis.

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Step 4: Prepare the critical analysis PDF

Prepare one PDF per pair containing the critical analysis you completed together.

Your PDF must include:

1. Both partners’ full names and student numbers.
2. Artist or collective name.
3. Complete critical analysis.
4. Revised annotated bibliography with all 8 core sources.

Name the file:

P1_V3-Critical-Analysis.pdf

Before moving to Stage 2: You should have one complete collaborative PDF containing your critical analysis.

In Stage 1, you developed your research into a complete critical analysis. In this stage, use an idea, method, question, or tension from your research as the starting point for an original artistic direction and develop a preliminary research-creation proposal.

Complete the steps below in order.

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Step 1: Identify your artistic direction

Return to your critical analysis and identify one idea from your research that could become the starting point for an original artwork.

You might begin with:

• a strategy or method used by the artist or collective;
• a material, technology, or process that is important to their practice;
• a question or tension identified in your critical analysis;
• a relationship between the artist’s work and one of your central concepts; or
• an issue that you want to question, extend, translate, or approach differently.

Your proposal should enter into a critical dialogue with the artist’s practice. This means learning from or responding to the artist’s approach without copying the appearance of an existing artwork.

Consider what you could:

• adapt — use a strategy in a different context;
• question — examine an assumption, tension, or limitation;
• translate — move an idea into another medium, material, technology, or experience;
• combine — bring the strategy into conversation with another idea or method; or
• challenge — develop a different position or approach.

Before moving on: You should be able to identify the specific idea from your research that informs the proposal and explain how your project will take it in a different direction.

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Step 2: Develop your proposed artwork

Discuss and make preliminary decisions about:

• what you want the audience to encounter, experience, or do;
• the medium, materials, technologies, or format you might use;
• the artistic strategy or method you want to test;
• where or how the work might be presented;
• how the proposed work connects to your research;
• how your approach differs from the selected artist or collective; and
• any social, cultural, ethical, accessibility, or representational questions that are important to the idea.

The proposal is preliminary. You do not need to know exactly what the final artwork will look like or how every technical element will work.

Before moving on: You should have a specific proposed direction that you can explain through both words and visual development.

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Step 3: Write the concept statement

Write a 150–200-word concept statement explaining the proposed artwork.

Include:

• the main idea or question you want to explore;
• what you are proposing to create;
• how the proposal grows from your working thesis and critical analysis;
• the strategy, method, concept, or concern you are taking from the artist or collective;
• how your approach differs from the artist’s work; and
• a specific social, cultural, ethical, accessibility, representational, EDI, or anti-oppression issue that is relevant to the proposal, when applicable.

Be specific about the relationship between your research and your proposed artwork.

Avoid broad statements such as raising awareness, promoting diversity, or creating social change unless you explain what the work will actually do, how it will do it, and why that approach is appropriate.

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Step 4: Create the visual development page

Create one visual development page that shows how the proposed idea could take form.

You may use:

• a mind map;
• concept sketches;
• a storyboard;
• a process or interaction diagram;
• a digital or physical collage; or
• a combination of these formats.

Choose the format that best helps you develop and communicate the idea. The page does not need to look like a finished artwork.

Use short labels or annotations to identify important decisions, such as:

• materials or media;
• possible composition or spatial organization;
• audience interaction or experience;
• sequence or movement;
• relationships between images, objects, text, sound, or other elements;
• connections to concepts from your research; and
• questions or decisions that still need to be resolved.

The visual development page should show your thinking and development process, not function only as decoration.

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Step 5: Prepare the research-creation proposal PDF

Prepare one PDF per pair documenting your preliminary research-creation proposal.

Your PDF must include:

1. Both partners’ full names and student numbers.
2. Artist or collective name.
3. Title of your proposed artwork or project.
4. Complete 150–200-word concept statement.
5. One annotated visual development page.
6. A text explanation of the visual development page.
7. Captions, credits, and source information for images or other material taken from external sources.

The text explanation should briefly describe:

• how the visual development page is organized;
• the important images, sketches, diagrams, or other visual elements;
• the main artistic decisions represented on the page; and
• any important information communicated visually that a reader would need to understand the proposal.

Use this checklist if useful to check that your document contains the required information.

• The concept statement is 150–200 words.
• The visual development page shows the development of the idea rather than functioning only as decoration.
• Images or material from other sources include the required credits and source information.
• A text explanation provides an alternative way to understand the important visual information.
• Links are clickable.

Name the file:

P1_V3-Research-Creation-Proposal.pdf

Before moving to Stage 3: You should have one complete collaborative PDF documenting your preliminary research-creation proposal and visual development.

In Stages 1 and 2, you developed your critical analysis and preliminary research-creation proposal. In this stage, select and translate the most important ideas from that work into a clear 18 × 24-inch research poster for the poster session.

Complete the steps below in order.

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Step 1: Select and edit the poster content

Your poster should communicate the main direction of your research without reproducing the complete critical analysis or research-creation proposal.

Return to the work you completed. Decide what information a viewer needs to understand:

• who the artist or collective is;
• what you investigated;
• your main argument;
• how the two selected artworks connect to that argument;
• the most important ideas or evidence from your research; and
• how the research informed your preliminary research-creation proposal.

Edit this information into short sections that can be read easily on a poster.

Use approximately 150-250 words total, excluding artwork captions, image credits, and references.

Before moving on: You should have a short, edited set of text for the poster. Do not copy the complete 500–700-word analysis or 150–200-word proposal onto the poster. Use your own words.

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Step 2: Gather your poster text and images

Your poster must include:

• the artist or collective name;
• a brief introduction to the artist or collective;
• the main research question;
• the thesis;
• key ideas or evidence from the course readings and other research;
• both selected artworks or projects, with images and short captions;
• a brief explanation of the research-creation proposal;
• a representative image or visual from the research-creation proposal; and
• selected APA references.

For each artwork image, include:

• title;
• year;
• creator or artist;
• image or documentation credit, when applicable; and
• source information as needed.

Use a high-quality image whenever possible. Check image quality before placing the images in the poster.

Before moving on: Make sure you have the final text, high-quality images, captions, credits, and references you need before beginning the poster layout.

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Step 3: Design the research poster

Create the poster digitally using an 18 × 24-inch vertical format.

The poster should establish a clear visual hierarchy so a viewer can quickly identify the artist or collective, main argument, selected artworks, critical ideas, and research-creation direction.

As you design:

• organize the content using clear headings and short sections;
• establish a logical reading order;
• use readable type sizes;
• use sufficient contrast between text and background;
• do not place important text over visually complex images;
• balance text, images, and negative space;
• use a consistent grid and alignment system;
• use a consistent typographic system;
• use colour consistently and intentionally;
• make the main argument and artwork images visible from a reasonable viewing distance; and
• make sure captions and credits are readable but they can reamin quite small.

Avoid filling the poster with long paragraphs or using images without explanation.

A viewer should be able to identify the artist or collective, research focus, thesis, artworks, critical connections, and research-creation direction without reading the complete written analysis.

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Checklist: Review the poster before printing

Use this checklist if useful to check that your document contains the required information.

• The poster is 18 × 24 inches and vertical.
• The poster contains approximately 300–400 words, excluding captions, credits, and references.
• The main research direction and thesis are easy to identify.
• Both selected artworks or projects are represented.
• Images are clear and high quality.
• Headings establish a clear hierarchy.
• The reading order is easy to follow.
• Text is readable and has sufficient contrast with the background.
• References and credits are included where needed (use a small font)
• Both partners have reviewed the final poster.

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Step 5: Export and print the poster

Export the final poster as a print-ready PDF at 18 × 24 inches.

When possible, export the PDF with selectable text rather than flattening the entire poster into one image.

Name the file:

P1_V3-Research-Poster.pdf

Before printing:

• open the exported PDF and check that nothing moved or disappeared;
• confirm that images are not pixelated or blurry;
• check that text and captions are readable;
• check image cropping;
• check that the poster is still 18 × 24 inches; and
• check that all required credits and references are present.

Print the poster at 18 × 24 inches before the poster session and bring the printed poster to class.

At the end of Stage 3: Your pair should have one final 18 × 24-inch printed research poster and one print-ready poster PDF.

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Step 6: Prepare for the poster session

Both partners must be prepared to explain the project and respond to questions about:

• the artist or collective;
• the main research question and thesis;
• the two selected artworks or projects;
• the critical connections developed through the research; and
• the preliminary research-creation proposal.

You do not need to memorize a formal presentation. Use the poster to guide the conversation and be prepared to explain the decisions and research behind it.

If participating in the poster session creates an access barrier, contact the instructor in advance to arrange an alternative that meets the same learning goals.