Learning Connection
These materials are made up of 4 items. The items are:
Each of the exegeses used as examples received a Distinction or higher in the year it was presented. These materials were developed by Olga Sankey from the SA School of Art and Marie Stevenson from Learning Connection.
An exegesis is often required in university programs such as visual arts and creative writing programs, to accompany the ‘creative’ products of the program. The word ‘exegesis’ means a “critical explanation or interpretation ” 1
The requirements for exegeses at different universities vary, but most either expect that the exegesis “elaborates upon” and “contextualises” the art work/group of artworks and/or plays a “reflective role” in relation to the artwork/s.
Usually the exegesis is read by the examiners prior to their seeing the work and for this reason it may be useful to include images of the artworks being discussed.
The purpose of the exegesis is to elaborate, elucidate and place in context the artworks which are being presented as the Honours Research Project. It is a written paper between 2,500 and 3,000 words in length that reports on and critically analyses the studio work.
One of the aims of this program is that students should be able to justify the procedures followed and demonstrate the scholarly/artistic methods utilized.
Since works of art cannot always present this information without ambiguity, it is appropriate that a written component, the exegesis, is included with the exhibition of the works. It is not examined as a separate work but is considered together with the studio work, which itself represents the argument or investigation of the research topic. Usually the exegesis is read by the examiners prior to their seeing the work and for this reason it may be useful to include images of the artworks being discussed.
While the exegesis is not a separate exercise in art theoretical discourse, it nevertheless needs to be clearly written, coherently structured, correct in grammar and spelling, and referenced.
The following model should be used when writing the exegesis
The following sections are likely to overlap:
There are five main parts to your exegesis:
Except for the introduction, the order of these parts will be determined by the nature of your project. To give one example: if your project explores a concept or the work of a theorist you would most likely begin with an explanation of that concept/theory and what attracted you to it (this is the introduction and contextualisation) before going on to look at how you chose to explore that concept in artwork/s (this covers the processes and relationship between content, form and materials).
You might also choose to blend or integrate these sections instead of writing about them separately. And finally in your exegesis you can choose to either discuss your artwork together in one section or you can spread the discussion of them throughout your exegesis. This will depend on which of these two patterns presents your work most effectively.
Look at the 3 examples of exegeses which are included with these materials to get an idea of how each of the students has presented these five sections. You will see how they have often integrated and blended them rather than treating them separately.
Introduction: - this section presents your research topic. What the subject is and what it is about the subject you want to communicate or express. It includes a discussion of why these ideas appealed to or attracted you; what is the motivation for the work?
Relationship: - this section deals with the forms and materials you have chosen to encapsulate your ideas and addresses the relevance of these particular forms and materials to your project
Process: - this section outlines the investigations you have undertaken to develop your ideas, whether these are document based research and/or technical experimentations. It may also involve an explanation of the effect that these investigations had on the direction of your project.
If the work(s) you are presenting has developed from work you have done earlier in the year you may wish to include illustrations of the earlier work to show the development of your ideas.
Context: - this section identifies the aspects of contemporary culture and contemporary visual art that your project relates to and that have influenced the development of your work. When discussing particular artists who have been influential you need to identify the impact they have and on your work and comment on how your concerns and artwork differs from theirs.
Discussion of individual works – this section links the individual works in your project to the ideas that you have expressed in the previous sections. It demonstrates how the works ‘illustrate’ those ideas. As your examiners will not be familiar with your work, this discussion of your work(s) and relating it/them to the other parts of the exegesis is a valuable opportunity for you to ‘guide’ their seeing of your work. Illustrations are useful here.
From 2003 the SA School of Art has adopted a footnoting system for referencing. A guide to using this system with lots of examples is here. (PDF 349kb - download Adobe Acrobat)
However, if you are most used to the Harvard Author–Date system of referencing you can use that one instead. A guide to using this system with lots of examples is available here. (PDF 145kb - download Adobe Acrobat)
P.S. When you have finished your exegesis and been praised for its excellence you can refer to yourself as an “exegete” or “one skilled in exegesis”.
Marie Stevenson & Olga Sankey 2004
