Building upon a First Nations circle metaphor this paper explores how employing the interrelated concepts of pedagogy, poiesis, politics, and public positioning can provide a more holistic approach in designing and assessing arts-based projects be they for instructional and/or research purposes. It takes a "postmodern" stance (Giroux, 1991), integrating Western and First Nations epistemologies to provide an organic framework that articulates how these and other concepts interrelate, providing a more inclusive model of assessment. First, it outlines a conceptual framework that follows Paula Underwood's (2000) suggestion to use a "traditional medicine wheel for enabling learning and for gathering wisdom." It then utilizes the constructed model to examine a few arts-based cases, indicating how each project will have its own particular emphasis within the various quadrants with unique characteristics. (Contains 1 footnote.)