Due Oct 16

Arts Project — Draft Proposal

The semester will culminate in a art projects that gives expression to the cosmos and our changing conceptions of humanity’s place in it. Projects can be performance pieces, visual art, costume or set design, or some other medium of expression. By default, all projects are assumed to be individual, though two students can collaborate on different aspects of a larger project. In any case, all students should submit a separate proposal for their part in a given project.

Your proposal should offer a concise yet inspiring description of what you hope to accomplish in your semester art project. This will serve as a draft project proposal; the final draft will be due in a few weeks. You have 900 words to spend; try to hit that mark. Key elements to include:

• Inspiration. What passion or idea motivates your project?
• Objectives. Give an account of the finished artwork: its medium, scale, and overarching vision. What impressions or insights will it give to the audience?
• Significance. How does this project relate to history, science, and/or art? Keep this section deep not broad: rather than 10 connections, focus on one or at most two.
• Plan. Detail the materials, volunteers, and timeline required for completing this project in time for the final class session assuming you start work Nov 1.

Fictional scenario to consider, if it helps with inspiration: working under the slogan, “Make Science Fiction Real,” the National Council on Space Exploration is offering grants to artists for the production of art and culture that stimulates public interest in the cosmos. Funded by Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, the Council seeks to stimulate public funding of private space ventures. The awards committee, consisting of 3 scientists, 3 artists, 3 historians and 4 laypersons, has widened the remit of the program to include art that celebrates the long history of human curiosity about the heavens. In addition to $100K and $10K awards to established artists and arts organizations, the committee is also giving out $1000 awards to undergraduates for smaller-scale projects—and that’s the level where you’re aiming.

Your proposal should be as concrete as possible: not vague plans for what you might do later this semester, but rather specific plans for what your fictional self will do with a $1000 grant. If in reality you change plans or downscale the project that’s fine—I’m not really giving you any money, so I won’t hold you to any promises you make in this proposal. That said, don’t get too grandiose with your proposal: it should be something that a hard-working undergraduate could accomplish in 3 months with $1K.

Do consider including visual sketches or scraps of dialogue, to give a sense of the project’s artistic impact.

Submit to Prof Henebry via email by midnight, Saturday. If you need a few extra days, let me know via email. You can have an extension up to Monday evening simply by writing to me.