The beginning of the Academic Program of the MA in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination (MACAPD)

MASTER
CONTEMPORARY ARTS PRACTICE & DISSEMINATION - MACAPD

Two year period 2007-2009

Organised by:
L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament
Càtedra UNESCO de Polítiques Culturals i Cooperació

---

Master in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination - MACAPD (Code: 070003)

Type of Course
Both on site and distance

Presentation
The programme of the Master in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination (MACAPD) is the result of the international on line collaboration of 5 institutions: Dartington College of Arts (UK) / L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament, Celrà – Universitat de Girona (Catalonia) / Piet Zwart Institute, Rotterdam (NL) / Vilnius Dailes Akademija, Vilnius (Lithuania) / MASKA – Nova Gorica University (Slovenia).

The MACAPD is a two-year full time programme that concentrates on teaching and investigating the areas of writing, visual arts, performance, theatre, choreography, and organisation. It also presents a close critical look at production and dissemination media based on practical experience.
Using online collaboration, the students will put their own practices to the test and compare them with other perspectives and critical frames of reference.

Objectives
Contemporary art practices are positioned in relation to cultural, political and social contexts. The MACAPD proposes the study of how interdisciplinary artistic strategies inhabit, appropriate and shape those contexts. The master's degree programme proposes a broad knowledge of artistic practice and of its production and dissemination from an active, yet critical, commitment.

This master's programme emphasises the technologies of learning and their capacity to promote new methodologies that facilitate the study and practice of contemporary arts. There is currently no other similar type of European inter-university postgraduate or master's courses with official degrees aimed at the theoretical and practical investigation of contemporary arts, that is, a programme that offers an interdisciplinary education advanced degree focused on the documentation, diffusion, organisation, publishing and practice of contemporary arts in a cultural context.

An added value of the programme is that it gives incentive to students and professionals to exchange what they have learned, as well as the creation of collaboration between the various teaching institutions recognised for excellence in their specialities.

The preparation of this Master's programme has been supported by a grant from the "2004-2006 Funding for the Development of Socrates / Erasmus Curriculum of the European Union".

Admission requisites
The course is open to all those with a professional or budding practice with the ability to carry out and communicate projects in relation to the practice of physical artistic disciplines. The candidate's academic curriculum as well as professional experience in dance, choreography, physical artistic practices that use different media: video, writing, drawing, sound, capturing movement (new technologies), archiving and documentation will be assessed.

To gain access to the programme, it is requested that candidates be degree holders.
Preference will be given to those applicants with a degree in:
- Choreography, Dance Pedagogy (Advanced dance certificate)
- Direction and Dramaturgy, Scenography (Advanced Dramatic Arts Certificate)
- Art History
- Philology
- Philosophy
- Fine Arts
- Visual Communication
- Pedagogy
- Humanities
- Library Science and Documentation

The Master's Degree programmes taken and doctorates with a syllabus similar to that of MACAPD will be taken into account when selecting applicants, as will any outstanding professional practice in the following areas: choreography, theatrical direction and dramaturgy, event organisation and development of visual arts, documentation, new technologies (animation 3D, capture of movement, etc.), editing, script writing.

Other criteria:

The candidate must manifest or have:
- Interest in interdisciplinary practice of contemporary arts
- Interest in the cultural context and strategies of production, presentation and dissemination
- Critical aptitude for the reflection, practice and theoretical search of the corresponding disciplines
- High level of spoken and written English
- Computer and Internet skills (the degree is e-learning in part).
- Availability and ability to reside for three months in other collaborating institutions of the European Union (ERASMUS)

Professional opportunities
Management and running of the arts
Choreography
Organisation and development of exhibitions
Cultural co-operation studies
Promoting and critiquing of contemporary arts Documenting and specialised archiving in contemporary arts.
Publishing of publications in reference to the practices and dissemination of the contemporary arts
Teaching of physical artistic practices: choreography, physical theatre, visual and gestural theatre, etc.

Programme
The MACAPD programme will take place at the L'animal a l'esquena Centre in Celrà, and will concentrate on the practices and techniques of physical representation in relation to the contexts of production and dissemination. In the second year of the programme of studies, the students can choose to study in any other place of the network for the purpose of carrying out their investigation tied to the practice itself in various cultural contexts and artistic disciplines. The programme is conceived for students and professionals who desire to develop their artistic practice in relation to subjects on the dissemination, publication, publishing, documentation and cultural context. The MA degree in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination consists of 120 ECTS.

1st Part (1st year) (60 ECTS - 3 theoretical classes)

Introduction: The course starts with an introduction for the students that includes information on the course and special characteristics and opportunities; the use of the network shared over the Internet (www.ma-cap.net) and of the network itself.

CLASS 101: Methodologies of Self-evaluation [20 ECTS]
Description: the class is designed to give students criteria for evaluation with regard to their dedication to the practice of contemporary arts, to make them open to new ideas, and to analyse artistic ideas and practices related to matters of collaboration and interdisciplinary work, so that they can develop and present a proposal in the month of June for the 2nd year study abroad and the final essay and practical projects. An introduction will be given on the tools for learning and, in particular, the use of resources such as libraries, Internet and the MACAPD network.

CLASS 102: Theoretical Texts and Performative Artistic Practice [20 ECTS]
Description: This class starts during Gathering 1 (read on for more information) that will help to create a series of questions to explore throughout the first year through conferences and seminars led by the professors, conference speakers and artists. This class will help students broaden their conceptual framework of practice, and talk about current issues of examples on the practice of contemporary arts and questions in relation to production, dissemination and cultural context.

CLASS 103: Research Methodologies [20 ECTS]
Description: In this class, students will work on the contextualisation and dissemination of the representation of artistic practices based on the body and their relationship to other artistic forms and discourses. Students will develop their own artistic practice framed within investigational methodologies by case studies, conferences and seminars. This class is tied to Gathering 2 (read on for more information).

Gatherings: The gatherings are the shared areas of the MACAPD programme where students and professors meet in one of the network's institutions. The gatherings are for debating general subjects and defining an agenda with which students will return to their own institution and/or three-month study abroad and which will allow them to define their knowledge. The gatherings also allow students to visit other cultural institutions. Each gathering lasts between 7 and 10 days and is organised in a rotating manner between the network's various institutions.

First intensive gathering (October/November) will introduce the class Texts & Models of Practices and explore questions and theories related to presentation and dissemination; it presents the MACAPD network and the cultural context of the host institution. It also makes it possible for students and professors to meet and establish the conditions for future exchanges and collaborations. Teaching is done through activities such as public seminars and conferences, or workshops for students on different topics that are fundamental in this type of gathering.

Second intensive gathering (May) is tied to the presentations of the Development of Research Practice and Methods. The objective of this second gathering is to research methodologies in relation to each student's development of practice. All of the students will prepare a presentation and attempt to place an emphasis on the process of investigation and critical questioning. All of the presentations will be available on line on the MACAPD website. The 2nd Gathering will include public conferences and invited artists.

2nd Part (2nd year) (60 ECTS - 2 independent study classes)

CLASS 201: Study abroad (Socrates/ Erasmus) (20 ECTS)
The study abroad consists of an uninterrupted period of work (of at least three months) generally between October and December of the 2nd year. The objective of this study abroad is the processes of dissemination and artistic/organisational investigation in a new work environment. The study abroad simultaneously combines independent type investigation by means of the media and resources of a specific work environment and its technical facilities and tutorial sessions, with a selection of courses, workshops and/or conferences that the host institution offers. Access to this study abroad will depend on the proposal of the first year, which must include a detailed analysis on the choice of the study abroad.

CLASS 202: Final Project (Practical and Written Investigation) (40 ECTS):
The objective of the end of study project is to take on a self-initiated independent research project that is relevant to the student's practice and that is related to the notions of production and dissemination. The project must be presented in the reference institution. The students will conceptualise, propose, plan, develop and carry out an original work within their own chosen practice. The project is expected to be based on theoretical matters and include a component of written investigation. The project does not necessarily have to include a finished artistic work, however, it must involve practical investigation, analysis and research. The presentation must be prepared in a way and medium appropriate to the student's investigation and practice (broadened), and explicitly take into account questions related to dissemination, context, and public.
The ratio of the final project in relation to the practicum and dissertation can be proposed by the student (10/20/30 ECTS).

Third intensive gathering lets the students give information about the progress of their final project. The second-year students will work together for three days and will have, if they so desire, the opportunity to participate in the first-year gathering. According to the model of the 2nd Gathering, the reactions and comments on the final projects involve the combination of group presentations and discussions, moderated by a team of two tutors from different disciplines, and also individual tutorial sessions.

Language
English
A high level of written and spoken English is required.
The dissertation of the final project may be given in either Catalan or Spanish.

Methodology
The MACAPD of the Universitat de Girona / L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament is a full time programme, which means 30 weeks of teaching each year for a period of two years (from October to June). The degree Master in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination requires 120 ECTS (60 ECTS per year). The credits are divided in 5 modules that include intensive meetings (Years 1+2) and a residency period.

The objectives of the final project are:

- Initiate one's own project of investigation in relation to practice, production and cultural dissemination.
- Develop auto-criteria for assessing and deepening one's own career. This point will be a determining factor when grading the final project of the Master's Degree.
- Relate theoretical and critical reflection with artistic practice.

Evaluation system
1st year:
Class 101 (theory) 20 ECTS: shared evaluation of the entire MACAPD network of the 1st proposal of the 2nd year study abroad (group discussions, seminars, workshops, presentations).
Class 102 (theory) 20 ECTS: partial evaluation by means of a theoretical text of about 5,000 words (tutorial sessions, presentations, conferences, assigned work).
Class 103 (theory and practice) 20 ECTS: shared evaluation of the entire MACAPD network of the dossier and documentation of the final project (tutorial sessions, website, and independent work).

2nd year:
Class 201 (practice) 20 ECTS: partial evaluation of the study abroad by 2 tutors, one who is outside the institution hosting the study abroad and the student's own tutor. Presentation of the proposal of the final project, report and presentation.
Class 202 (theory and practice) 40 ECTS (proportion according to criteria between the practicum and the dissertation: 10/20/30 ECTS): shared evaluation of the entire MACAPD network.

Practicum:
The practical part of the work does not need to include a finished artistic or scenographic product, but it does need to include practical research, experimentation and contact with the public.
The presentation of this practice must be in a format and medium appropriate for its characteristics of research and experimentation and directly linked to questions or matters related to the context, local culture, the public, etc.
Written essay or dissertation:
The written composition must include a part on critical self-evaluation, conceptual investigation and commitment to innovative methodologies. Students will have to find, test and analyse new strategies related to their own practicum that will need to be related to the hypothesis of the dissertation. The written composition must be at least 8,000 words long. The dissertation will be evaluated and marked by a panel of judges made up of members of the various institutions linked to the master's programme.

Degree
University Master's Degree in Contemporary Arts Practice & Dissemination (MACAPD) from the Universitat de Girona

Entities belonging to the MACAPD network
Dartington College of Arts (United Kingdom) (Co-ordinating Institution of the MACAPD network)
L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament (Catalonia, Spain)
Piet Zwart Institute, Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam (Holland)
Academy of Fine Arts, Faculty of Humanities, Vilnius (Lithuania)
Maska Lubljana in association with Nova Gorica University (Slovenia)

Direction
Toni Cots – L'animal a l'esquena
Telephone: 972 49 26 34 / E-mail: master@lanimal.org

Co-ordination
Taína López – L'animal a l'esquena
Telephone: 972 49 26 34 / E-mail: gestio@lanimal.org

Teaching staff
The application of the programme at the L'animal a l'esquena will be led by Toni Cots (artistic co-director of the L'animal a l'esquena), with academic supervision by Dr. Ric Allsopp (co-editor and founder of the magazine, Performance Research, Routledge, UK, and head of research at the Faculty of Arts of the Metropolitan Manchester University, UK) and by Dr. Mercè Saumell (professor at the Department of Theory and History of the Stage Arts of the Institut del Teatre de Barcelona.)
Dr. Jörg Zimmer will also be collaborating (Director of the Department of Philology and Philosophy of the Universitat de Girona), and the participation of professors, investigators and specialists from the academic areas of the master's programme (including professor Dr. José A. Sánchez, from the Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha in Cuenca, and the professor of Philosophy and Dramaturgy of the University of Ljubljana, in Slovenia, Bojana Kunst, the choreographer, María Muñoz, and the investigator of new technologies, Scott de Lahunta).

Length and timetable
120 ECTS (2 academic courses)

From: 1 October 2007 to 19 June 2009
Schedule: full time without a stipulated schedule.

Will take place at:
L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament
LG Mas Espolla
17460 Celrà
Girona

Places
7

Price
€6,000* [€3,000* each course (or from €280.28/month** each course)]

* Includes accident insurance €13.50. Does not include UdG fees for issuing degree.
** According to an 11-month financing. Conditions subject to market fluctuations.

Financing
The Foundation has established special payment conditions with various banking entities, which allow payments to be made in instalments. For further information, please consult the Web page: www.fundacioudg.org .

Pre-registration and registration fee
The registration form must be completed and brought back personally or sent by post, fax or completed on the Web page www.fundacioudg.org.
Pre-registration gives the option of the right to reserve a place.
Pre-registration: from 1 June to one month before the course starts.
– A fee of €150 must be paid, which will be subtracted from the total price of the course.
Registration fee: Up to 15 days before the start of the course.
Documents that must be presented when registering for the course:
– Photocopy of identity card and certified photocopy of university degree (or of receipt).

* The foundation reserves the right to cancel the course. The organisation is committed to notifying the students sufficiently in advance and return the entire amount of any payments made, as well as any possible bank fees stemming from the financing paperwork (as long as they have been carried out through one of the banking entities stipulated by the FUdGIF).

Services
The Foundation offers its students various services: student ID card, email, access to computer classrooms and UdG libraries, access to training activities of the Modern Language Services, access to various activities organised by the UdG Sports Service, job bank for students and ex-students and work practice in companies and/or institutions.

---

Also in collaboration with:
City Council of Celrà
Mal Pelo Dance Company

For further information:
L'animal a l'esquena - cos creació pensament
LG Mas Espolla
17460 Celrà, Girona
Co-ordinator: Taína López.
gestio@lanimal.org
info@lanimal.org
Tel: 972 49 26 34
www.lanimal.org

Edifici Mercadal
Plaça Jordi de Sant Jordi, 1
17001 Girona
Tel. 972 210 299
Fax 972 223 454
A/e: info.fundacioif@udg.edu
www.fundacioudg.org
Opening hours: from Monday to Thursday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.