Tuesday, 14 April 2015

Result of assessment

In March 2015, I received the assessment result. 

I achieved 72% overall with scores as follows in the individual criteria:

Demonstration of Subject Based Knowledge and Understanding:      18

Excellent knowledge and understanding of subject and context              

Demonstration of Research Skills                                                                     19                   
Excellent range of research from a wide range of                                         
sources, excellent design and implementation of
research project where appropriate


Demonstration of Critical & Evaluation Skills                                            18

Excellent critical skills, demonstrating a well
developed intellectual understanding and analytical
ability.


Communication                                                                                                       17
Very good communication of ideas and knowledge 

Overall Comments

You have produced a very interesting body of essays and research that demonstrates your excellent understanding of key ideas developed alongside your choice of topics. Your communication of an argument around the deconstruction of an image was very good, moving forward consider expanding the core of your subject so as to maintain your focus on the key aspect of your essay, this was evident in your very interesting consideration of your 'manipulated' digital photography in assignment 5. Your learning log contained an excellent range of research, continue to explore wide aspects of visual culture as you have done throughout the course.



A good result - I share on the blog so hopefully others may get a feel for the assessment standards. It is not intended as a self-congratulatory exercise, though am very pleased with the result, the best of the three modules studied in Part 1.

This has given me confidence to continue with the course, especially as the new Level 2 Landscape course is much more about reading and understanding the history of landscape photography. This is an approach that I prefer, rather than simply taking 'great pictures'. It provides more intellectual stimulation. UVC will be an excellent base, both because of the reduced emphasis on the practicalities of photography and the corresponding increase in the intellectual understanding, and because some of the course is very relevant to the new Landscape course. A good example of this is the second exercise in Chapter 1 of Landscape: read an essay by Rosalind Krauss on Pohotogrpahy's Discursive Spaces that happens to be included in Visual Culture: the reader, one of the standard texts for UVC.




Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Postscript: Ex Machina

On 31 January, saw Ex Machina. The write up has shades of Blade Runner and The Matrix.

Ex Machina is an excellent sci-fi movie. Celeb wins a competition to spend a week with the leader of the IT company for which he works. Thrilled, he is flown by helicopter to spend a week courtesy of the CEO's house in the middle of nowhere. Nathan, the CEO, is a strange individual, programming artificial intelligence women. His latest model is Ava, on who he wants Caleb to perform the Turing test. In moments when Nathan is not listening (or so Caleb believes, incorrectly as it turns out) Ava implores him to help her escape. They hatch a plan that goes wrong as first Nathan is killed by Ava and another robot, his last words being "this is fucking unreal", then Caleb is deserted by Ava and left in the locked building as she catches the helicopter to meet reality.

It is a well crafted script, using the Turing test, and the concepts of Boudrillard and others. It plays too on sexism, as the robots are female, constructed by a male who has, it is ultimately realised, a depraved mind. Ex Machina is explored as Caleb is introduced as the metaphorical machine that is released into the comfortable set established by Nathan, bringing about the destruction of Nathan and his world.