FA6015 - Major Project

Learning and teaching strategies on Fashion Communication encourage you to acquire a flexible and imaginative approach to problem solving through enquiry-based learning. You will become an active participant in your learning, integrating creative practice with academic and intellectual skills.

The extended studio (X-Studio) environment is integral to this process, encouraging individual intellectual freedom and a creative collaborative community. The X-Studio embraces our physical studios and making workshops as well as our virtual spaces to create a flexible and rich environment that is responsive to your learning needs.

This dedicated approach has been developed over many years of continuous teaching innovation, research and industry collaboration. It has created a supportive extended studio culture that encourages you to learn flexibly, dynamically blending your learning and University experience between physical and digital interactions both in real-time and online at your own pace.

This extended studio culture not only helps you to become a more confident autonomous learner but also prepares you for a dynamic design industry in which an extended studio philosophy is current practice.
Lecturers with industry experience and supporting research will guide you through the module, developing your understanding of professional standards and practice. Guest speakers from the creative industries will help you situate your own work in a professional context.

You are encouraged to advance your visual literacy and to be aware of current issues and debates. Working in groups, you learn to be flexible and collaborative, to identify and redefine problems in a creative way and focus on solutions that are both relevant and empathetic.

Traditional, new and emerging technologies are used both in the delivery and realisation of outcomes, and you will learn to present your work and ideas using a range of media and communication tools to a variety of audiences in different situations. You will create digital portfolios and presentations, as well as image-based/multimedia submissions.

• Lecturers and technicians with practical experience and supporting research will guide you through the module, developing your understanding of industry standard practice.
• Tutorials with lecturers provide advice on the direction of your work and help you to progress your ideas
• Project briefs are introduced via a briefing session, where the brief is fully explained and explored by both staff and students
• Opportunities to collaborate with industry and regional, national and international external partners extend the practical study of the subject area within an industrial context. These activities are also designed to support student confidence in their ability to handle professional practice within the creative industries
• Students experience a range of teaching, learning and assessment methods and coursework is largely project based
• Modules are delivered through a combination of lecture supported group tutorials and activities, practical demonstrations, teaching delivery and guided and independent learning.
• Additional study skills materials and workshops are available through Skills Plus at https://library.northumbria.ac.uk/skillsplus and LinkedIn Learning
• Students are expected to maintain a project plan and are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning
• English language support is provided for international students
• University student services offer specialist support e.g. financial, disability, mental health, international student support etc.
• eLP includes all relevant documentation e.g. module guides, lecture material, reading lists together with discussion boards and notices
• Visiting professionals support relevant and current practice where possible

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:
1. Display evidence of your critical, experimental and/or innovative thinking by conceiving solutions which have relevance in cultural, aesthetic, technical and commercial contexts

2. Defend/account for your concepts with reasoned judgement through the presentation of a Concept and Project Brief

3. Demonstrate a contextual understanding of personal practice in relation to broader cultural socio-economic and political contexts through a Creative Strategy and Promotion Document

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
4. Demonstrate an accomplished use of creative writing in the realisation of experimental and innovative texts

5. Intellectually engage with a range of appropriate research materials, techniques and analytical tools to enable the undertaking of a self-directed project, as evidenced through your Digital Process Book (sem 2 research)

6. Demonstrate sophisticated skill in the realisation of solutions to professional standards as evidenced through a creative output

7. Generate and develop creative/experimental thinking based on your own set criteria through the creation of Final Outputs appropriate to your concept

Personal Values Attributes
8. Independently and critically apply decision-making; exercise self-criticism; and evaluate your own progress as evidenced through your Digital Process Book (sem 1 research)

How will I be assessed? (SRS 0006)


Assessment will be conducted through summative assessment:

Semester 1:
Creative Project, comprising:
Creative Writing: Articles totaling 1,500 words contextualizing your creative publication (4)
Creative Publication: conceptual and forward-thinking print or digital output (1)
Digital Process Book: detailing preliminary research, conceptual direction, developmental work (8)

Creative Output: (7)
50%


Semester 2:
Final Project, comprising:
Concept and Project Brief: (2)

Digital Process Book: detailing further research, project planning and strategy, design direction, developmental work (5)
Creative Strategy and Promotion Document:
Creative Strategy and Promotion Document
A printed document outlining logistical aspects, project management issues and delivery, including promotional campaign, budget, timetable and a creative implementation strategy. (3)
Concept and Project Brief: 6 slides outlining your concept, project plan and intended outputs (2)
A2 Concept 'Poster' and Design Communication (6)
FINAL OUTPUTS appropriate to concept:
Final Outputs: E.g. publications / films / websites / app development / campaign document (1)
50%

N/A

N/A

In this year-long module you will realise a series of professionally executed, practice-based outputs which will evidence your acquisition of sophisticated subject knowledge and understanding.

Semester one focuses on an explorative process towards establishing your own unique voice as a fashion communicator, using elements of digital media, graphics, photography, written, social and film media. You will examine the worlds of self and niche published fashion outputs from zines to magazines and books, on and offline visual content creation and curation. You will create a conceptual and forward-thinking publication – either print or digital - supported by creative writing.

Through concept development and in-depth research, you will go on in semester two to propose and realise a self-directed Final Project. Reflecting on your learning throughout the programme and focusing on your own creative and professional ambitions, you will consider how best to disseminate your research and concepts through print, digital and experiential platforms for a commercial context.

You will propose a Concept Plan, which will form the basis of your project. From this you will propose a range of creative solutions in the form of Final Outputs that answer an identified need and show your sophisticated understanding of Fashion Communication practice. Your outputs can be realized through a range of formats - such as publications, digital media, films, campaigns, experiences - that show your skills as an emerging professional and are appropriate to your identified audience.

Your project will be supported by a visually rich strategic and promotional plan, outlining logistics, project management and delivery, promotional campaign, budget and timetable, outlining how this concept would be launched. Your practice-based outputs will be negotiated and agreed with your lecturers and accompanied by thorough research and development that situates your project within a wider context.