Presentations to the Thesis Committee of faculty take place this semester on Wednesday Dec. 9 and Monday Dec. 14. Presentations will run from <hours to be announced> on Monday and <hours to be announced> on Wednesday. Each of you is expected to attend both days in their entirety. (If you have a class conflict, speak to me.) Each student will be called on to present. Your presentation times are not scheduled in advance.
Each student will be allotted 10 minutes to present + 5 minutes for questions and discussion. This is not very much time, so it is extremely important for you to prepare carefully, to rehearse your presentation, and to test your presentation. You should test both on your own machine and on the machine in the lecture hall used for presentations. You should also load your files onto the presentation machine before presentations start. If you spend time trying to get your presentation started, that time will be deducted from your 10 minutes, giving you even less time to present.
Below are some suggestions for how to organize your presentation.
Project plan and idea (5-6 minutes): Begin immediately with your project plan and idea. Do not start with research or changes since your last presentation. Start immediately with your project plan. Show imagery, video, sound, diagrams of installation or exhibition, etc. As you show these, explain what we are seeing or hearing. If appropriate, include a short phrase with each slide to help us understand. Make sure you show and explain what your final work will be --not just what your ideas are, but what the final work will be. As you show the plan for your project, you can simultaneously explain your underlying ideas, feelings, and motivations.
Do
not read your presentation. Make notes that will guide you -- key
phrases, key points. You can have these on the lectern in front of
you. You can also include those phrases in your slides. These phrases
will guide you, remind you, and help us understand. Key phrases on
the slides is even more important if your English pronunciation is
not extremely good.
Artistic
research (1-2
minutes): Now show and explain some of the artistic research you did. Make sure your research items address
conceptual, visual, or artistic issues. (Technical issues are
separate. See below.) As you show your research, explain why it is relevant and
important to your project. Be very selective; you only have 1-2
minutes here. The idea is to show that you are
aware of artwork precedents.
Technical
issues (1-2
minutes): Next, address any of the significant technical issues your
project will entail. Again, be very brief -- research, tests, etc.
Past
work (1-2
minutes): Finally, show samples of your past work in order to
demonstrate your ability to do the project you are proposing. Not
everything -- just the most relevant.
In all of this you want to be very, very clear. You do not want the 5 minutes of follow-up discussion to consist of "I didn't understand...." and "Could you please explain again...." That will be a waste of those 5 minutes. If your presentation has been clear, the 5 minutes will be real discussion and suggestions, and can be extremely helpful to you.
Rehearse your presentation several times. Rehearse it aloud, not just silently in your head. Rehearse it aloud, with your slides, and with a timer. This will help you refine your phrasing and refine your timing. Make sure you can comfortably and clearly say and show everything that you want to present within the 10 minutes that you have.