Paper, Order, or Assignment Requirements

Spend time with the object you have selected: look at it from far away and close up, consider it as a whole and study its details, and walk around to study its every angle, if possible. You should take detailed on-site notes to capture your observations, and you should also sketch and photograph the entire piece and its key details. All of these activities can help you understand and engage with the work. Your goal during your museum visit is to gather enough material to create a multi-faceted object report with several relevant visuals (such as those photos, sketches, etc.), as well as a 350-450-word formal description of the piece. * If you live outside the New York area and cannot visit the Metropolitan, please contact Freya to discuss alternative arrangements. Thought-starters: Below are a few questions you might want to consider as you study the piece: What materials are used in this object? What colors and textures do you see? Were these materials readily available, or difficult to procure? Examine the piece as a 3-dimensional object: walk around it if possible, examine its top, back, and underside, and consider how it looks and functions from different angles. Is its back finished? Is its underside finished? What does this tell you about its design, construction, and use? What is the general character of the form? Is it sculptural, or more flat? Is it composed of mostly straight lines, or curved? What is the nature of the ornament? Is it “classical”, “organic”, or something else? How was this piece constructed? How was this piece finished? What level of craftsmanship did it require? What technology or tools were used in its construction? How would this object have been used, and by whom? Was this piece created for a specific setting, and if so, what was its function within that setting? What historical/social context surrounds this piece? What can it tell us about the time and place in which it was made, beyond its physical appearance? Why is it on display at the Met today? This object report is due no later than 11:59pm EST on February 28, and must be submitted as a single document (Word or PDF) through the Canvas site within the Module 6 tab. Essay Format & Style Notes: Your essay must be typed and double-spaced, with a total length of 350-450 words. I expect clear, accurate writing, with good grammar and spelling. As a formal report, it should be written in the third person (without reference to “I”, “you”, or “me”), should avoid the use of contractions (e.g., use “did not” rather than “didn’t”) and should maintain consistent, accurate verb tense usage (e.g., “Wegner used teak” rather than “Wegner uses teak”). If writing is a challenge for you, please contact Freya or Alana for tips, and/or visit/contact the Writing Center (times and contact information are available on the NYSID Portal) Essay Content: The purpose of this assignment is to help you learn to describe design and form and to analyze that form for meaning. You should consider many aspects of the work you select and consider it as a three-dimensional object. Begin your analysis by identifying the museum and the object you have chosen in your first sentence, and include the name of the piece, approximate construction date, and style. The body of the paper should describe the piece formally, creating a picture of the piece in the mind’s eye. Imagine that you are writing for a reader who has never seen the object and you are describing it as carefully and accurately as possible with words. It is often a good idea to begin your description at the bottom of the piece, and work through the description by moving from bottom to top. Keep in mind that this is a straightforward description, not a critique. Avoid words that indicate your personal taste or opinions on the piece’s attractiveness, as this is not the goal of the assignment. You may find the piece “stunning” or “beautiful” or even “unattractive” but these reactions are not pertinent to this assignment. Conclude your essay with two or three sentences that situate the piece within broader issues we have addressed concerning the style of your object. How does the object fit into the bigger picture of the time in which it was designed? You may think this piece would be a wonderful addition to a contemporary interior- but this opinion does not belong in the assignment. Plagiarism: Plagiarism will not be tolerated, and papers that contain plagiarized text or concepts will fail. You are expected to write your own description of the object independently, without using other sources. Do not rely on descriptions of the object from the museum’s gallery text or website, or from anywhere else on the internet. This paper does not require any research or information beyond lecture notes and your required reading. If you want to include another writer’s wording or concepts in the historical context area of the report, you must cite this source properly.