Mentoring

During the week I also started my mentoring project with three ex access students. This is a National Arts Learning Network initiative that was open to first year undergraduates who progressed to HE through widening participation initiatives run by NALN member institutions, and Leeds College of Art is of course a member. The Inaugural theme is Mapping Territory and students have been asked to respond to the set brief.

Students were asked to choose one of the following headings below and there has to be some degree of co-operation, but this can simply be co-operative critiques.

1. Foundation; Departure, Beginning.

2. The Liminal: Gateway, Threshold,

3. Journey: Passage, Path, Route.

4. Arrival, Landing, Mooring, Homecoming.

These headings are based on Marsha Meskimmon’s book, “Contemporary Art and the Cosmopolitan imagination’.

Foundation:

The lowest and supporting part of a building; the natural or prepared ground on which

some structure rests;

The basis on which anything stands, and by which it is supported; the fundamental

assumptions from which something is begun or developed or calculated or explained.

The act of founding, establishing, settling; the act of starting something for the first time, of

introducing something new.

Threshold

Doorway; the portal through which you enter or leave a building.

The limit of sense perception.

The point of demarcation in passing from one state to another; a change of state, a

transformation.

Passage

That by which one travels, a journey, a corridor.

A movement in thought from one idea to another; an act, an incident, an event

Possibility, opportunity or right to pass; transit, movement, liberty, leave.

Landing

Staircase: platform at top or between two flights

Crossing: practices of the interfaces, intervals and interstices

Arrival at a stage or place of rest, reflection.

I first met these students last year alongside students from other institutions when I gave a talk on my own interests in relation to mapping and these students have now just entered their second year. Two students are surface pattern and one is an interdisciplinary art and design student.

Mentoring is slightly different to my normal role, so part of the first session was to agree terms of reference. The first thing to agree was that we would meet regularly as a group, this fulfills the brief in terms of collaboration and sets out an agreed framework and timescale.

The next issue was what did they want to get out of mentoring, what roles did they want me to fulfill? They are all bright students and there is no issue in terms of them being educationally disadvantaged, in fact they are more mature than the average student and therefore more organised and focused.

One issue seemed very clear, there had to be compatibility between what they were being set as projects/briefs on their main programs and the NALN project. Work needs to fulfill both outcomes and my main job will be to steer them through this. A member of staff from one of the programs sat in on this first session as a precaution and I’m pretty sure I’m clear as to how we can do this.

The main part of he session however was an extended critique, my role being to open out ideas and to suggest resources. Fine art students tend to think of design students as not been as interested in content as themselves, I actually think designers are just as fascinated by deep content, they just have to work harder to fit it in.

It was a good first session and we opened out lots of possibilities, however the crunch will come as these have to be turned into outcomes. Wednesday next week is also a session whereby the national coordinator will turn up and will expect students to give presentations as to how they are doing, so next week’s session on Monday evening will be focused much more on coaching them as to how they will present.