Documenting Process, the Written Evidence & Academic Integrity

You’ll be able to

Assemble the 15 SI images so they read as a developing investigation
Write the required written evidence to make the inquiry and process explicit
Cite sources correctly and avoid plagiarism and prohibited AI use

The 15 images and the written evidence

The Sustained Investigation is submitted as 15 images — which may include detail shots and process images, not just 15 separate finished works — plus written evidence. The writing has two short parts with tight character limits: one identifies the inquiry that guided the investigation, and one describes how materials, processes, and ideas were used to explore it. This writing is scored as part of the investigation; it is where you tell the reader the question so they are not left guessing from images alone. Vague, generic writing wastes the clearest chance you have to earn the investigation row.

Documenting process well

Good documentation is deliberate photography of the right things: studies, experiments, in-progress states, and revisions, alongside finished pieces. Shoot work evenly lit, straight-on, and cropped to the art. Order the 15 images so a reader can follow the investigation — often roughly chronological, or grouped to show an experiment and its result side by side. The sequence itself is an argument that your inquiry developed; a random order hides the very development you want scored.

Academic integrity: sources, plagiarism, and AI

Your portfolio must be your own original work, and any source material must be properly handled. If you work from a photograph you did not take, from another artist’s image, or from published imagery, you must move well beyond duplicating it and you must cite the source — copying someone else’s work or a published photo without significant transformation and acknowledgment is plagiarism and can void the score. Generative AI may not be used to create the artistic investigation or the artwork; the images must be made by you. Cite influences and reference photos honestly. When in doubt, transform more and credit the source.

Worked example

Rewrite this weak written-evidence sentence so it earns credit: "My work is about nature. I used lots of different materials and tried my best to make it look good."

1.Name the actual inquiry as a question, not a topic: what visual problem was being investigated?
2.Tie materials and processes to why they were chosen — connect them to the inquiry, not just list them.
3.Point to development: mention an experiment or revision the images show, so the writing and images reinforce each other.
4.Cut empty phrases ("tried my best," "make it look good") that describe effort or taste instead of investigation.

Answer: A stronger version: "My inquiry asked how translucent, layered media could make a familiar plant feel like it was dissolving. I built up watercolor and thin acrylic glazes to blur edges, then experimented with scraping back layers to reveal earlier states. When early pieces read as too solid, I revised toward higher-key value and looser edges to push the sense of dissolving." It states the question, links each process to that question, and points at experimentation and revision the reader can find in the images — turning generic effort-talk into real written evidence.

Watch out

A frequent and costly error is basing work closely on another artist’s image or an uncredited found photograph without transforming it substantially. Readers are trained to spot it, and it can reduce or invalidate your score. If reference material is central to a piece, transform it heavily and acknowledge the source in your documentation.

Checkpoint

A student paints a striking image closely copied from a professional photographer’s well-known photo, without changing much and without crediting it. What is the problem?

On the exam

Treat the written evidence as scored real estate, not a formality. State your inquiry as a question, then connect specific materials, processes, and ideas to it, and point at an experiment or revision. Writing that merely names a topic and praises the effort throws away easy points on the investigation row.

Checkpoint

Which selection of the 15 Sustained Investigation images best supports a high investigation score?

Answer the 2 checkpoints as you read.