Growth & Decay: Ecological Sculpture

This course is an introduction to three dimensional design and sculpture. Through a variety of projects students will analyze and apply the classic organizing principles of three dimensional design work. Elements of form, space, line, texture, light, color, scale and time (including sound, sensory perceptions, movement and natural processes) will be explored -- with attention paid to how a work functions, involves a viewer, activates a space, or impacts an environment, physically, psychically or socially. Projects in the class will progress from the creation of objects, to investigations of the sensory and objective aspects of space. Students will experiment with subtractive and constructive processes using traditional as well as contemporary materials such as found, recycled and natural objects. A diverse range of materials and techniques will be introduced and demonstrated. Discussion of historic and contemporary artists' work will augment the course. Students will be evaluated based on completion of projects, participation in class discussions and individual/group critiques.

This is a ceramics course for intermediate or advanced practitioners and requires foundational skills in hand building and/or wheel-throwing. It is designed to support students’ continued development of unique spatial and material languages grounded in the possibilities and limitations of clay. A series of technical demonstrations and open-ended conceptual prompts will initiate creative problem-solving in advanced modes of clay construction including but not limited to alternative kiln firing, glaze chemistry, and mold-making. Each student will inform and express their studio work through sustained independent research, and the collective skillsets, interests, and ambitions of the class as a whole will shape the arc of the course. Through presentations and readings, we’ll explore a selection of global, historical, and contemporary ideas and practices with direct bearing on our work as it develops. We will make at least one visit to an exhibition or site relevant to our pursuits and welcome at least one visiting artist into our studio; as always, we’ll share the joy and responsibility of running a communal studio.

Evaluation will be based on participation in class activities (hands-on exercises, presentations, readings, discussions, and occasional writing and/or drawing prompts), significant studio time outside of class, timely completion of all projects with corresponding group critique sessions, and consistent involvement with studio maintenance. A sketchbook is encouraged.

This course is designed to provide students opportunities to build on their technical and conceptual skills of photography created in accordance with the creative vision of the photographer. There will be a focus on photographic image-making within a fine art context in conjunction with development of heightened awareness and concepts in relation to personal perspective. Each class will include discussion of reading assignments, in-class shooting assignments, looking at contemporary artists and their photographic practices. Art concepts, ideas, and critiques of ongoing student work will occur weekly. In addition, there will be an individual meeting with the instructor at midterm aimed to solidify each student’s work. Students will be evaluated based on the completion of a series of assignments, the development of a self-chosen body of work, participation in class discussions/critiques and class attendance.

This art studio course is a continuation of the introductory course Studio Printmaking. A print mirrors the surface of its matrix and presents a reflection of the physical and/or immaterial realms of objects and ideas. Representing concepts clearly in any medium requires an artist to engage in thoughtful collaboration with materials in order to realize the potential of form as a means of expression. This advanced studio course will explore ways to address this aesthetic challenge through printmaking by experimenting with conventional and non-traditional ways of creating a range of matrices. Students will acquire skills as printmakers with an emphasis on multiple-plate, collagraph, and other advanced techniques. Students will develop a deeper understanding of the history of prints; how they have functioned to communicate, document, and transmit information through images on paper – engaging with more complex discourses of representation. Students will be evaluated on their projects, participation in critiques, level of engagement with materials, ability to work in a collaborative studio, and final project.

This course explores animation as a form of creative expression, experimentation and personal vision. Various techniques, such as drawing, cut-out, painting on film, and under-the-camera collage, will be introduced. Students will create flip-books, video pencil tests and animated films. Students will be given exercises and assignments that guide them through processes for making art. Various artists' animated films will be screened and discussed. History and concepts related to animation and film will be introduced through screenings, readings and discussions.

The artworks of Pablo Picasso and Hannah Höch; both the well-known and lesser-known artist made paintings and sculptures that facilitate our understanding of how people experienced the twentieth century. Cubism, Surrealism, Expressionism, Constructivism, Arte Povera, Social Realism, among others — these artist movements were initiated through group declarations of common aesthetic purpose. Variance within artist conventions and procedures accelerated during moments of unrest and social progression thus providing a range of counter-narratives to canonical histories of the period. The last quarter of the twentieth century was one in which new discourses informed creative production and art mono-cultures gave way to intersectional experience. Theories advanced by Edward Said, Frantz Fanon, Linda Nochlin, Griselda Pollock, and Judith Butler offered new networks with which to understand how art operates as both a reflection and critique of culture. This art history survey looks at how different artists engaged with theories of the unconscious, radical political programs, social upheaval, gender politics, and scientific advances; and, how diverse receptions of human experience were expressed through artistic production. Anxiety, joy, curiosity, and activist predilection combine to formulate a rich amalgam of fresh and challenging visions of the world. Students will be evaluated based on class participation, reading notes, a descriptive analysis, and final essay.