Courses in Studio Art

Color is one of life's great joys. Visual artists and designers learn to orchestrate color and use it in a particularly sensitive and purposeful manner, just as composers learn to orchestrate sound to create music. This course is about the orchestration of color by design. Students begin by doing a series of formal exercises designed to expand their understanding of color interaction and design principles. They then use what they have learned to complete a series of mixed-media collages of their own design. Conceptual and formal growth is stressed, as is creativity. Students work with pigmented paper and "found objects." This counts toward the introductory requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Offered once every third year.

This course introduces students to the medium of drawing as an essential means of visual communication. Various methods and materials are used for both in-class studies as well as larger and more-comprehensive projects. Challenging and complex drawings are produced with a sharp focus on both formal and conceptual issues. Technical aspects of drawing are balanced with imaginative and experimental approaches throughout the semester. Presentations and class discussions supplement assignments to aid in expansion of the understanding of project goals. This counts toward the introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Offered every semester.

This course presents an introduction to three-dimensional art through exploration of its basic elements (line, plane, mass and color) and its basic ordering principles (unity, balance, rhythm and dominance). Students explore sculpture techniques through figurative modeling, digital fabrication, and familiarizing the equipment in the woodshop. As students learn how to use the tools and equipment in the Sculpture Studios, proper care for the tools and space in addition to professional finish and presentation are expected. The course format includes slide lectures, group critiques and individual instruction. Material purchases are the responsibility of each student. This counts toward the introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Offered each semester.

This course explores design principles and sources of design inspiration fundamental to all visual arts through readings, discussion, exercises and laboratory application, and critiques of creative projects. The core concepts of visual design include visual elements, principles of design and creative process, composition issues, figure/ground relationships, scale and proportion, pattern and texture, value, color theory, typography, and visual complexity. We focus on the contemporary visual landscape including typography, graphics, printed matter and technological media, implementing strategies that range from the elemental to the experimental. Students work to understand and analyze design problems, and write distinctive project statements. The class uses digital technologies including Adobe Illustrator and InDesign, and analog materials such as paper, glue and pencils to solve visual problems. Projects will evolve through critical thinking, refining, revising, gradually improving solutions, and incorporating conceptual development. Image lectures include designers and artists of the past and present for examples of successful visual design solutions. Inspiration begins a concept, and persistent improvement of the project concepts ground great design. This counts toward the introductory requirement for the major. No prerequisite.

This course is an introduction to the principles, strategies and processes of photographic practice. It is designed to broaden the student's aesthetic explorations and to help the student develop a visual language in the media. This course includes instruction in digital camera operation such as image editing, creative camera work, color digital printing, and both natural and studio lighting concepts and composition. Through readings and discussions, students are introduced to different ways of conceptualizing photography, and students will examine a range of historical and contemporary photo work as an essential part of understanding the possibilities of image making. This is a project-structured course, with lectures, demonstrations, project assignments, regular critiques with active participation, discussions and one exam. Having a personal digital camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. This counts toward the introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite.

This course enables students to explore digital media while engaging in aesthetic and conceptual practices in contemporary art. They come to understand the fundamentals of visual form and to develop technical skills with a variety of camera and computer tools, including still-image and video-editing programs. Personal studio projects cover a variety of subjects, such as the relationship between the arts, popular culture and the liberal arts; the historic role of technology in the arts; and the role of one's cultural and historical context in the creation and interpretation of artwork. Through theory and practice, students enhance their art-criticism skills, allowing for productive group interactions and the defining of personal aesthetic vision. Presentations and demonstrations by the professor are supplemented by student research and response to contemporary artists and issues. At least 10 hours of work per week outside of class is required. This counts toward the introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Offered every semester.

In this course, students use various drawing techniques to explore design and innovation. Students examine how the way we live in the present world is dependent on how our world has been drawn in the past. Drawing and its potential as a tool for understanding, invention and change are as vital to new ways of thinking about art as they are to communication, transportation, work and dwelling space. Students perform exercises in realistic depiction, graphic design, industrial design and architectural conceptualizing and rendering, while exploring methods and processes for enhancing and engaging their imagination. We approach creativity and imagination as innate faculties that are fostered and strengthened through visual and intellectual training. This course is composed of four segments: observational drawing, design innovation of objects, architectural and interior design, and organizational and conceptual design. This counts toward the introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Offered once a year.

This course is an introduction to the fundamental, technical and aesthetic issues of writing code to explore color, design and other formal qualities of generative art. This includes instruction in p5.js; translating visual ideas into code that generates them; the relationship between math and art; utilizing input from the physical world to create interactive designs; and how early algorithmic art, avant-garde practice and geometric abstraction have led to modern digital arts practices. The course is project-based, with demonstrations, lectures, in-class mini-projects to solidify concepts, readings, discussions, and critiques. Each assignment explores different elements of code and properties of art and design, asking students to demonstrate mastery of technical skills and express individual creativity. Through image lectures and discussions, students gain familiarity with the critical and theoretical debates surrounding code as art. This counts toward an introductory course requirement for the major. No prerequisite.

This course is an intermediate-level study of digital photography as a creative medium. Students should have a solid foundation in image editing and asset management software, as well as knowledgeable digital camera skills including aperture and shutter-speed selection for exposure control and visual impact. Assignments focus on the development of a unique and individual relationship with making pictures to question preconceived ideas and photographic boundaries, foster conceptual growth and intensively discuss and integrate critical thought with practice. Students may work in a variety of approaches and styles, such as documentary, environmental portraiture, visual storytelling, abstraction and others. Having a personal digital camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. Prerequisite: ARTS 106, ARTS 107.

An introduction to black and white silver-based photography, including the principles of film exposure and processing, and printing enlargements using chemical methods and materials in the darkroom. The course begins with an emphasis on understanding and mastering technical procedures and evolves into an investigation of the creative and conceptual possibilities of making images. Refinement of wet darkroom processes include use of contrast filters, dodging and burning, negative storage, and retouching and mounting prints. Assignments, ideas and important examples of historic and contemporary photography will be presented via a series of slide lectures, critiques and discussion. Students will be responsible for purchasing supplies for the course. Having a personal film camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. This counts toward the intermediate level course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 106, ARTS 107.

This course will introduce the student to historical techniques in photography and consider how these approaches can augment contemporary vision. The student will explore the concept of light and time as they work with the properties of camera-less photography, pinhole photography, hand-coated emulsions such as palladium printing, as well as film and digital negative output. Projects will emphasize innovation, experimentation, and continuing growth in both technical and aesthetic accomplishment. Having a personal digital or film camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 222.

This course engages students in a rigorous and thorough exploration of a two-dimensional representation of the human figure in drawing. Aesthetic and anatomical study of the human figure extends throughout the semester. Assignments include investigation of the use of figures in formal compositions, political and social narrative constructs, and psychologically complex environments. The semester culminates with a seven-foot-tall full-figure self-portrait in graphite. Students utilize a variety of drawing methods and materials, including graphite, charcoal, ink, spray paint and collage. Students give presentations on contemporary figurative artists during the semester. "The Naked Nude" is the accompanying text for this class. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102. Offered once a year.

After a century of development, cartoons, comic books, graphic novels and self-published zines are finding their potency and maturity as serious art forms. These cartoon-based mediums form collaboration between image and text, blending the shape and arc of classic literature with the conventions of visual storytelling. This course provides a solid foundation of ideas and methods for drawing and writing cartoons, comics, zines and graphic novels with an emphasis on effective characterization, plot progression and narrative structure. Students learn how to adapt writing to a comic through storyboarding; create a detailed script for dialogue, setting and action; and explore the interactive development of text and image. Required and recommended readings supplement the creative assignments. Class meetings consist of technical drawing demonstrations, writing and drawing exercises, and discussions for weekly assignments and longer projects. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102. Offered every other year.

This course is an introduction to the fundamental principles of painting. The course begins with an investigation into painting materials and how they influence ideas. Students explore color, composition and surface development on board, panel and canvas, while focusing on a wide range of basic approaches to oil painting. We utilize traditional and nontraditional contemporary methods to address the historically established genres of still life, landscape and portraiture. Visual literacy and conceptual growth are essential. Teacher presentations, group critiques, student reports and readings along with individual instruction help the student to develop original concepts. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102 or 106. Offered once a year.

This course is intended to introduce monoprint and monotype techniques. These processes, as they relate to painting and drawing, are immediate, tactile and low-tech. A primary advantage is that it allows working a single idea in multiples. It is unique in that there can never be an exact edition of a single image. We begin with painting oil paint or ink onto Plexiglas and progress to viscosity color printing. Students learn to layer the surface and build up the image from many printings. They also have the opportunity to produce monoprints in drypoint, collograph techniques and continue printing with other methods such as collage, photo image transfer and embossing. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102.

Developing moving sequences from still images is both a historical and contemporary practice. Experimental artists and filmmakers use the process to create actions that could not be presented through real-time film. This course emphasizes manipulating materials from paper to found objects, creating innovative contexts for movement, integrating live video and sound recording and experimenting with the structure of time. The course includes both two- and three-dimensional approaches to stop-motion, with emphasis on innovation and cultural critique. Class structure includes presentations of historical and contemporary work, class demonstrations of equipment and software, studio time and critiques. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: Any 100 level ARTS course. Offered every other year.

In this course, students are expected to create at least three sculpture projects such as figure modeling, mold making, welding, digital fabrication, and/or their own projects. An instructor gives step-by-step assignments and homework following the content of projects. Students are familiarized with sculptural techniques and the equipment through the projects. The course is designed to facilitate the development of ideas that contribute to the artist’s content and decision-making process, as well as the development of the applied skills needed to manifest these ideas. As students work on projects, this development is paired with research on artists and exercises for writing short artist statements. Ideas and the ability to articulate them verbally are crucial in the understanding of self-expression. Throughout the term, we critically analyze and interpret sculptural works of art both verbally in critiques and through written assignments. This counts toward an intermediate-level course required for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 103.

The focus of this class is the digital making of still color photographs with particular emphasis on the potential meaning of images with color content, symbolism, and complexities such as the relationship of the photograph to culture, observational interpretations, narrative fictions, and the conjuring of the hyperreal. Students work in the digital lab on furthering their skills in capture, image editing, color workflow management, creative camera work, and color digital printing. Through readings and discussions, critiques and project-based portfolio development, students will utilize the medium as a means of refining and clarifying one's artistic language. Having a personal digital camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 106, ARTS 107.

This course expands the student's knowledge of black and white film photography, as they are guided towards the evolution of a personalized body of work that is culturally, theoretically and historically informed. Students will work with 35mm cameras, and have opportunities to learn other format film capture, as they further their abilities and experiences with control of the negative and the fine silver print. This course includes demonstrations, lab work, readings, field assignments, and individual and group critiques. Students will be responsible for purchasing supplies for the course. Having a personal film camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 222.

This course is structured to create an open environment for students to develop a series of self-determined photographic projects, either by analog or digital means. With faculty mentorship, students will formulate, propose, research, and pursue personal photographic work with the goal of testing and iterating new concepts, and inventing new possibilities in their artistic practice. Student work is discussed in regular critiques, and accompanied by written artist statements for each project. Students will be exposed to contemporary photographic theory, issues, and practices, in order to explore how contemporary photographers have worked to challenge, expand, and reinvent the medium. Readings, image lectures, discussions, and critiques will assist the student in articulating their own ideas and building a context for their own practice in relation to these contemporary dialogues. Having a personal film and/or digital camera is recommended, although some cameras are available for student check out to complete the course. Prior knowledge of camera functions and post-production techniques is expected. Students with digital experience from one of the digital course prerequisites may work in the digital lab, students with analog experience from one of the analog course prerequisites may work in the chemical lab, and students with both prior experiences may work in both labs. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: two courses from ARTS 106, 107, 220, 221, 222, 322, 325.

This course provides an overview of some of the most direct and fundamental forms of mechanical reproduction. A balance between technical mastery and imaginative visual exploration is the goal throughout. The processes employed during the semester combine aspects of drawing and painting, as well as a sculptural physicality, giving students the opportunity to explore and experiment with various combinations of visual processes. Students are challenged to synthesize and internalize diverse aesthetic approaches, while working to formulate a personal vision. All students give presentations on modern and contemporary artists. Techniques include monotype, woodcut, linoleum print, dry-point and intaglio. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102, 103, 106 or 107. Offered once a year.

This class is an intensive studio course that explores painting as a means of investigating and developing personally meaningful imagery. As an introduction, we examine the parallel ideas of art for art's sake and art for the people, as well as the evolution of American painting from the early 20th century to the present. Throughout the semester, we study the work of contemporary painters. Students are expected to master a wide range of visual vocabularies and approach painting from a variety of aesthetic points of view. Through structured problem-solving assignments, students are encouraged to find ways of addressing common experiences as well as developing independent work. These assignments are designed to assist in expanding perceptions and imagination, and translating them into painted images. Group and one-on-one critiques help develop critical thinking and the ability to articulate ideas about art. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102, 106, 250 or 345. Offered once a year.

This course allows students to explore art that is based on a merger of space and time and on a relationship between the artist and the visitor. Perhaps the most inclusive and pervasive art form in the last 40 years, installation art has roots in cinema, performance art, set design, architecture, graphic design, land art, public art, curating, art criticism and history in addition to the more traditional visual arts. In this class, students create immersive environments that are either site-specific or nomadic. They also have the opportunity to integrate performance, video and audio components in their projects. Components range from everyday objects to surveillance video, from large wall drawings to interactive switches for participants to manipulate. The class consists of demonstrations of art skills particularly useful in installation (sculptural, video, audio, graphic presentation and so on), presentations, readings, weekly critiques and cumulative projects. Previous experience with any creative media such as writing, dance, music or performance is helpful. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 102, 103, 106, 107. Offered once a year.

In this course, students experiment with the creation, manipulation and exhibition of digital film and sound projects. In doing so, they continue a tradition from early filmmaking, in which abstract montage, surreal fantasy and playful narratives reflected innovations in the art, science and politics of the time. Like many current artists and filmmakers, students follow the example of these historical trajectories by using contemporary technologies and concepts for acquisition, post-production and distribution of their work. Demonstrations of a wide range of equipment and software are provided, from low-tech to high-tech. Research of historical/cultural forms offers a context for the assignments. Frequent critiques offer important feedback. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 106, 107. Offered every other year.

This course is an introduction to the elements of website design and using the language of the web as a platform for virtual interactivity and art. Students learn and utilize HTML, CSS and jQuery, in conjunction with Dreamweaver and Photoshop. Design concepts, functionality and best practices are taught while looking at the history of net art and using the web as a creative medium. Image capture and creation of new artwork for projects are primarily photo- and video-based. Class is a mix of projects, lecture, demonstrations and critique. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. Prerequisite: ARTS 107 or 321. Offered once a year.

This course is structured to familiarize art students with the complex terrain of the contemporary art world. Students first research and then use as a point of departure various aspects and trends that have been prevalent in the art world over the past 20 years. Projects include researching concept proposals, artist statements and other written materials; oral presentation; model-building; and a finished body of work. Students are responsible for choosing the media and methods for the fabrication of these projects. Students perform readings and research as well as oral/written presentations on various aspects of the aesthetic dialogue that has contributed to the shaping of contemporary art. All bodies of work grow out of the course research and are generated in consultation with the professor and the class as a whole. Creativity and development strategies help guide students in their conceptual process. This counts toward the intermediate course requirement for the major. No prerequisite. Junior standing, Arts major only.

This first semester of a two-semester sequence is designed to enable students to develop their personal artistic vision based on the foundation of introductory and intermediate studio art courses. Students are expected to develop a self-generated body of creative work based on a concentrated investigation of materials, methods and ideas. They develop oral and written presentation and research skills as they work toward a professional exhibition in the second semester. Critiques, discussions, presentations and readings provide context and feedback for this process. Students learn to develop the elements necessary for professional exhibition of a cohesive body of work, including developing ideas, writing an artist's statement and resume, and perfecting presentation skills. Studio art majors are expected to take this class and ARTS 481 with two different faculty members. This course is required for studio art majors. Senior art majors only. Offered every fall.

This course is designed to enable students to further develop their personal artistic vision based on the foundation of their earlier studio courses and ARTS 480. Well into their senior projects at the start of the semester, students continue to refine their concepts and skills into a cohesive body of work for exhibition at the end of the semester. Critiques, discussions and presentations continue to amplify the studio experience. Professional presentation, writing artistic statements and resumes, and visual documentation skills are part of the course. The Senior Capstone, an exhibition required of studio art majors, includes artwork made during this course. This course is required for studio art majors. Prerequisite: ARTS 480. Senior art majors only. Offered every spring.

The studio art faculty does not recommend individual study because we feel it is important for students to work in the context of other student artists. We understand, however, that on rare occasions an individual study may be appropriate. Individual study must be approved by the department according to the following guidelines: it should be undertaken only when a student has exhausted all the options for that medium in the regular curriculum. The subject for an individual study must be in a discipline in which the faculty member has expertise. When possible, the individual study student should participate in some aspects of a course working in a similar medium in the faculty member's field in order to gain feedback from other students. The student is responsible for writing a contract and maintaining a schedule. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study by the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval before the registrar’s deadline. An individual study does not count toward the requirements for the major; it is considered an extra course.