[THESIS] a few to-dos before week’s end!!

Hi all,

Hope the rest of your week was nice! I’m writing with a few to-dos to look at before this week’s end!

• ASAP, fill out this Survey: IMA Low Res Thesis: Final Dates + Check in. It will help me plan the rest of the semester, including WHEN you should present (May 8 or May 9), and is also a general check-in.

• By Friday: Don’t forget to sign up for the rest of your “Show-A-Thing” spots! Sign-Up Sheet, General info for Show-A-Thing.

• Remember, you can use the presentation template, but do not present every slide – leave most of the time for showing (not telling), testing an idea, and discussion!

I’ve also been getting some questions about final deliverables (now that you have done/posted the production schedule) for Spring/Summer. The easiest way to refresh your memory on the purpose of this class is to take a look at the class syllabus and project guidelines. But if you’re in a hurry and need a shortcut, just remember that your thesis work is made up of four elements:

• Process (which involves research, expression of intentions, project planning, prototyping, testing, iterating, integrating feedback, documenting, and presenting)

• Project (a “making” element, which can be at any scale of your choosing)

• Archiving/Documentation (along the way, and at the end through the archive)

• Public Presentation

At this stage, possibly the most helpful thing you can do is watch the public presentations from past years and (gently) ask yourself: what do I need to do to be able to do a presentation and formalized archive entry, by the end of my time at IMA? There are several examples on the project guidelines page, and there are hundreds of them in the archives, which can be found on our Resources page. Click the “watch” button to see the presentation!

Keep in mind, that is just for looking ahead. Your final Spring presentations are not as formal as the Summer ones, but your main objective for the Spring one will be to give enough information (research, documentation of your project as it is, your imagined next steps, and open questions) that you can get feedback on how best to proceed in the Summer.

Last – in class I encouraged you to meet in thematic groups – if you do this and let me know,  you can count it as one of your six required peer group meetings. I made this wacky spreadsheet of thematic overlaps I see in your work (pasted below) as a starting point – reach out to a group you want to talk to! – or add your name to a topic you feel like you fit in (these were just my best guesses, not scientific – you can even add a category yourself!)

I hope that all makes sense, and I’m here to answer any questions if you have any!

Warmly,

S