This writing is more like a discussion but include researches.

Topic: The influence of heritage and the vernacular on interior architecture practices.

The class is addressing political, social, and design. The writing can include study cases.

Assignment 3: WHAT IS TO BE DONE?

In her work, geographer Ruth Wilson Gilmore asks us to consider the question, “What is to be done?” Your final assignment will engage with this question. You will take the readings and themes of this course and apply them in thinking about design or making in relationship to an issue, idea, or “problem” you know well, through three short pieces of work, a paper, a proposal, and a reflection.

First, you will research the people and / or more-than-human things impacted by and through your topic, as well as your topic’s broader context. With that research, you will write a short paper exploring the issue, who or what is involved in it, and its context. Second, building on that research, you will propose or prototype (in some form) a response, intervention, piece of art or music, project, system, a made thing in relationship to it. Finally, the third piece of the assignment will be a short reflection on the questions you have when you have finished your paper and proposal.

Please keep in mind that the aim of this assignment is to practice engaging – in low-stakes ways – with the ideas at the core of the class: How do we understand something as an “issue” or “problem”?; Who gets to designate that and how does that happen?; Who defines people’s or non-human entities’ needs or perspectives?; What “communities” are impacted by an issue, policy, or design?; How do we know what to make or do?; Who decides what will work, or what to value?

Some helpful guidelines for choosing a topic:

• Choose something that is both manageable in the time you have to tackle it, and compelling enough to keep your interest and sustain good critical inquiry.
• Be interested enough in the topic that you will want to engage the difficult questions, make note of them, and include them in your final paper and proposal or made thing.
• You are not setting out to make the perfect thing – that is well beyond the scope of this assignment – but you are setting out to ask good questions and take risks in your proposal.
• Finally, play to your interests and strengths – this assignment can result in almost anything, so have fun with it.

The final project to be handed in will incorporate three distinct, but related parts:

1. A CONTEXTUAL ANALYSIS AND EXPLANATION OF YOUR ISSUE / TOPIC

Write a 750-1000 word (3-4 pages, 12 point type, double-spaced) discussion of the topic and your research, seeking to describe the issue, who or what is involved in it, and its context (this could include relevant histories as well as the current state(s) of your topic). We will also talk about the research, framing, and writing of this component in the lecture class.

1. A PROPOSAL OR PROTOTYPE

Make a drawing or image, object, recording, piece of writing (or propose another form!) that makes your proposal clear or shows your idea through a prototype or mock-up. This should be an idea for response, intervention, action, etc. – something that seeks to address or contend with the issue you have identified.

1. A REFLECTION ON WHAT YOU MADE / PROPOSED

After you’ve completed parts 1 and 2, write a one-paragraph to one-page discussion in your own words of the questions raised for you by your proposal or prototype or the process of research and making / writing. Reflecting back on your process of finding a topic, researching it, and attempting to design a response to it, what questions do you have? What did you notice? What was difficult or complex and why? Write about this for this final component of the assignment.

In total, this should be equivalent, roughly, to 4-5 pages of writing, plus a proposal in the form of your choice (choose a form that BEST renders your idea). You must have at least three references; at least one must be a reading or resource from from class (this can be from lecture, or something introduced in your discussion section), the other two can either be from class or from your research into your topic. Please make sure to cite all of your resources properly, and let your TA know if you have questions about how to do this!

About the one must-include resource, I will send it to you later. You can refer any other resources if you want to.

Assessment criteria

Your grade for this assignment will be based on the following areas:

1. Did you hand in a one paragraph exploration on time? (10 points)
2. Is your final assignment complete and on time? (15 points: 6 points for being on time, plus 3 points for each component of the final; for example, if you hand all three parts in late, you’ll receive 9 points, or if you hand in 2 parts on time, you’ll receive 12 points)
3. Did you include / reference at least one reading from class and or two from your research or from class? (10 points)
4. Did you use research, investigation, making, and / or writing to explore the topic you chose? This includes demonstrating your engagement with this research in your final project to inform your paper and your proposal / design. (20 points)
5. Did your final project engage an analysis of the social, cultural, and / or political aspects of your topic, including the people and / or more-than-human entities impacted by it, and the broader context in which it sits? This includes writing and making / proposing that takes these multiple factors into consideration, as well as demonstrating how they shaped your thinking and proposal / design. (20 points)
6. Did you critically engage your own thinking, making / writing, reading / listening practices? This will most likely happen in your reflection on your paper and proposal / design, but could also be part of your paper or proposal / design as you engage with your research. (15 points)
7. How well-crafted were the writing and, if included, made (drawn, imaged, performed, notated, etc.) components of this assignment? Do they make the ideas clear and easily understood? (10 points)