Research Project.

Your research project for this course will give you an opportunity to take some of the ideas that we will be talking about in class and explore them in greater depth. My only requirement is that the project consider connections between gender and painting in tenth- to fourteenth-century China. You might choose to investigate a single artist’s body of work, the activity of a particular patron or collector, or a group of paintings with related themes. I encourage you to talk to me about possible project topics. (Please turn in a proposal for your topic on Friday, Feb. 25, and an annotated bibliography of your sources on Friday, Apr. 1.)

For the research stage of the project, I suggest that you consult JSTOR, the Bibliography of Asian Studies, and the Art Index (all online databases on the Library’s web page, under “Find Articles”). Note: for these online resources, you must be connected to the HWS campus network. You should also look at the books on reserve for our course at the Library (not only their contents but also their bibliographies), as well as resources that I suggest in footnotes on your daily handouts (typically beginning “Want to know more…?”). Although the amount of published scholarship on gender and Chinese painting is increasing, you may still need to locate evidence in sources that discuss art, history, literature, philosophy, religion, etc., much as I do in class.

You will present your research in two parts.

Part I will be an oral presentation in the last two weeks of the course (see below for schedule). This presentation should be approximately 15 minutes in length and should include images. This will give you a chance to share your arguments about your topic with the class and to get feedback on your work from me and your classmates. It will also give you an opportunity to polish your oral presentation skills. See pp. 2-3 for tips on oral presentations.

Part II will be a paper, due during the exam period, in which you present your argument and your conclusions. The text of the paper, not including illustrations and bibliography, should be 4500-6000 words in length. Remember to refer to the notes in your syllabus about appropriate formats for written work and about plagiarism. If you need more information about how to write an art history paper, I recommend looking at Sylvan Barnet’s A Short Guide to Writing about Art. (The 2008 edition is in the reference section of the Library.) If you have further questions about writing research papers, you might visit the HWS Writes website.

Breakdown of grades for research project (altogether 50% of final grade for course):
Proposal: 2%
Annotated bibliography: 4%
Presentation: 20%
Research paper: 24%

Schedule of Final Presentations:

Friday, Apr. 22: Anna Rusch, Betsy Harris, Katie Koelle, Susan Kridler, Heather Lorence, Lea Romanowsky, Alex Block
Friday, Apr. 29: Cassie Findlay, Callie Frelinghuysen, Aerica Maslyn, Janet Tham, Lindsay White, Morgan Williamson

Tips for Oral Presentation

Preparation:

1. Think about how to make your research accessible to everyone else. By the time of your presentation, you may know more about this material than anyone else in the room.
2. Check Artifact (our Visual Resources Collection) to see if there are digital images of the paintings you are discussing, at least two weeks before your talk. If there aren’t, you can have digital images made from books, but this must occur in consultation with both the Visual Resources Curator, Kathryn Vaughn, and me, and the process requires two weeks.
3. Write a draft of your talk, with notations about where the images go. This draft should state clearly what issue you are addressing or what argument you are making. Make your draft as engaging as possible — remember that what is appropriate for formal written work often does not work for more informal oral presentations.
4. Decide whether you will use the presentation function in Artifact (you need a student account for this) or whether you will make up a Powerpoint presentation.

The presentation itself:

1. Decide whether you will read your paper aloud or work from a bulleted list or index cards. Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. If you are reading your paper, you are better able to control the length of your presentation (7 double-spaced pages equal 15 minutes if you are reading at an appropriately leisurely pace), but your presentation may be less lively, and you will need to take steps to prevent that in the draft itself. With a bulleted list or index cards, you may not be able to judge the length of your presentation so precisely and you may need to practice more, but your presentation will probably seem more spontaneous and engaging. (Note that art historians presenting their work orally usually read their papers.)
2. Practice your talk, with the images, more than once. Use a recording device so you can hear how your talk sounds, or get a friend to serve as your audience and ask for his or her feedback.
3. Identify each image you show. Make sure you have something to say about each image; do not use images as wallpaper. You should be very familiar with your material, especially the visuals.
4. Do not plan to pass around photocopied images or images in books instead of projecting your images on the screen; this would make it impossible for your audience to follow your presentation.
5. Do make a handout that serves as an outline of your talk (even just a list of images) if you think that would be helpful.
6. Speak slowly and don’t hesitate to repeat important points.
7. Speak loudly. The projecting equipment is noisy.
8. Breathe and try to relax. Remember everyone else has been or will be in your shoes. (If you are shy, like me, you might think of yourself as developing a “performance persona.” The earlier you can do this the better.)

Audience: your job is to listen carefully and ask intelligent questions at the end, or at least make encouraging nods. Don’t talk to each other when someone is giving a presentation—it is very unnerving for the speaker.

Oral Presentation Self-Evaluation

These questions are designed to help you improve the quality of your oral presentation and to assist you in all your future presentations.

1) What issue did you address in your presentation?

2) Why was the artist or issue you chose to work on of particular interest to you?

3) Did you consult with your instructor about your topic before you began?

4) How did this consultation take place? Did you make an appointment with your instructor for a consultation during regular office hours or was it a few rushed questions before or after class?

5) How much research did you do on your topic? How wide-ranging was your research?

6) Did you check whether the images you wanted were available in the Visual Resources Collection? If they weren’t, did you arrange to have digital images made?

7) Did you practice your talk orally, with the images, before presenting it to the class?

8) Did you speak up and make your points clearly?

9) What would you do differently when you do your next presentation?