---
tags: projects, prototypes
slug: project-prototypes
---
# project-prototypes

Testing and prototyping are at the core of everything the LL does, but we have faced some challenges over the past year getting groups of students together for the designLabs and testing sessions of years past. And it's looking like this coming term might pose similar challenges.

So we are aiming to put a little extra energy into asynchronous prototyping this term--and to create a little additional structure around it so that it can happen at a slight larger scale in the coming three months.

The goal will be to provide courses with "proofs of concept" ASAP, but also for these proofs of concept to be valuable for future LL work.

## how will it work?

The typical workflow will be as follows:

1. LL Staff or MDFs will meet with course heads to get a sense of learning objectives and target media
2. either in that initial meeting or shortly thereafter LL Staff will craft prompts for initial prototypes in the media/forms requested by the course
3. LL Staff, MDFs and LLUFs will build prototypes in response to the prompts, sharing and documenting their work as they go (and moments for sharing should be identified in the prompts whenever possible)
4. Synchronous meetings are clearly still desirable, so there should be a "show your work" session (in Zoom if need be) during which the prototypes of the week are shared.
5. Prototypes then get packaged with prompts, readings, references, rationales and reflections so that they can be sent back to the course (and the entire package gets saved for future re-use)

## where do we start?

We have three (or more?) initial ideas to get us started in January. We will try to do the first 2-3 before the fellows even get back, and it will be nice to have a workflow figured out by the time the LLUFs get back.

### comic book spreads

The internal "illustrating ideas" group launched this project in December of 2021, with the goal of determining an array of different ways to generate comic book-style narratives and visual essays. It is a great learning project, as it requires a cluster of interrelated by different skills and tools. And while the number of courses that will *literally* require students to produce comic books may be small (or zero), we foresee these key benefits:
* as an internal skill-building activity for LL fellows it offers a quick way to get up to speed on key applications
* while it may not be used in courses, it will provide us with a great form that we can use *for* courses (sending back thank-yous, or reports, etc. in the form of comic books)
* the workflow of making a comic entails careful planning, drafting, and revising (analogous to academic writing best practices), and its structure is similar to an outline (i.e., the storyboard form)

### virtual galleries in blender

In the spring, a number of courses will be performing virtual gallery assignments, and galleries are valuable for the entire array of courses we support (not to mention for our fellows groups and for the staff themselves).

We will continue working on this project all term, but the project for January is to create a number of virtual galleries in Blender, and in doing so to achieve these three goals
1. greater LL-wide proficiency with Blender as a tool
2. proofs of concept for courses looking to use Blender in their assignments
3. an inventory of relevant assets we can share with these courses (i.e. artifacts from major museums, architectural elements typically found in museums and galleries, etc.)

### single image close readings

Many courses use visual imagery (whether still photography, film, illustrations, etc.) as either central or supplementary content, and we know that some of our clients (e.g., EALC, AFVS) are doing visual close-reading exercises and assignments in the spring.

Visual communication is one of our core capacities at the LL. Instructing students, fellows, and each other in the fundamentals of visual analysis is a critical component of our work, and we're always looking for ways to deepen our understanding of how the visual mode conveys meaning.

in many media and tools (*expand*)

### map + image + text + interpretation

One of the LL MDFs, Kangni, is TF'ing in the spring term for course in EALC called "A Tale of Two Cities: Shanghai and Beijing." The course introduces students to literary works that are set in these cities. Kangni is interested in developing a project for the course builds on the textual analysis that students will do. Because of its emphasis on geography and region, we decided to prototype an assignment (or exercise, depending on the workflow, etc.) that encourages students to explore the settings found in the literary works in the textual *and* visual modes.

This exercise could be adapted to suit the needs/interests of a range of disciplines and fields, insofar as location/place/space are central components of all academic inquiry. What's more, an increasing number of disciplines are using mapping, specifically, as a tool to further students' understanding of course content, institutions, structures of power, human and non-human history, etc.