Class Schedules

This course is an introduction to fundamental drawing materials and techniques. Students explore a variety of themes and subjects, including still life, architecture, figure drawing, portraiture, and imagination. Formal elements covered include: line, value, volume, space, proportion, perspective, mark-making, and composition. Context for assignments is given through frequent discussion of both historical and contemporary artworks. In group critiques and discussions, we consider composition, representational accuracy, creative expression, content, and intention.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to fundamental drawing materials and techniques. Students explore a variety of themes and subjects, including still life, architecture, figure drawing, portraiture, and imagination. Formal elements covered include: line, value, volume, space, proportion, perspective, mark-making, and composition. Context for assignments is given through frequent discussion of both historical and contemporary artworks. In group critiques and discussions, we consider composition, representational accuracy, creative expression, content, and intention.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course examines material and symbolic practices through myriad visual culture forms, from standards of fine art such as painting and sculpture to mass media including TV, film, advertising, and the Internet. Students will learn different theoretical paradigms and techniques for visual analysis in order to understand how visual culture mediates numerous social, economic, cultural and political relationships. We will investigate these diverse practices through lectures, guest speakers, film, historical art and media and, of course, those proliferating images that define our daily experiences.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course examines material and symbolic practices through myriad visual culture forms, from standards of fine art such as painting and sculpture to mass media including TV, film, advertising, and the Internet. Students will learn different theoretical paradigms and techniques for visual analysis in order to understand how visual culture mediates numerous social, economic, cultural and political relationships. We will investigate these diverse practices through lectures, guest speakers, film, historical art and media and, of course, those proliferating images that define our daily experiences.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

​This course surveys the visual and material culture of Europe, the Middle East and the broader Mediterranean world from prehistory through the late Medieval period, including early Christian, Jewish and Islamic cultures. We consider the artistic and archaeological remains from the Near East, Egypt, the Aegean, Greece, Etruria, Rome, and western Europe from a contextual perspective in order to understand each culture's ideologies, and the diverse social and artistic purposes for which art and architecture was created and used.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This introductory course will provide a supportive studio environment for the exploration of diverse approaches to the ceramic field. With specific emphasis on the vessel, both functional pottery and sculpture will be introduced. Techniques and material for both handbuilding and wheelthrowing will be included. The goal of this course is to build an appreciation for the spirit of the handmade object as well as give students the tools to develop a personal creative practice that supports individual expression and self awareness. Course activities and clay projects will prioritize hands-on learning and creative problem solving while introducing students to the diverse and expanding field of Ceramic Art. Critiques, discussions and meditation practices will support studio work and build community within the class. This course meets the Fine Arts distribution requirement.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This introductory course will provide a supportive studio environment for the exploration of diverse approaches to the ceramic field. With specific emphasis on the vessel, both functional pottery and sculpture will be introduced. Techniques and material for both handbuilding and wheelthrowing will be included. The goal of this course is to build an appreciation for the spirit of the handmade object as well as give students the tools to develop a personal creative practice that supports individual expression and self awareness. Course activities and clay projects will prioritize hands-on learning and creative problem solving while introducing students to the diverse and expanding field of Ceramic Art. Critiques, discussions and meditation practices will support studio work and build community within the class. This course meets the Fine Arts distribution requirement.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course introduces the conceptual, technical, and historical aspects of photography within a fine-arts context. The emphasis throughout is on photography as a creative and expressive medium and will introduce strategies and methods related to this goal through assignments and class activities. Students will learn the foundational aspects of digital photography from manual camera operation to the editing of images through Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Along the way, students will be introduced to the digital workflow, the critique process, and how to take their images from screen to print. Presentations and assigned readings will help students develop the critical and creative skills needed to understand how artistic photographs function in society and culture. $75 materials fee charged for course to cover printer paper and ink. Note: A digital SLR camera is required for this course--students may be able to rent one from the department on a first-come, first-served basis.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

An introduction to the studio practice of painting, using oil paint on a variety of supports ranging from paper, board and canvas to non-traditional painting surfaces. Exploration of the practical techniques and mechanics of painting as well as a consideration of content and meaning will be studied. Topics that will be studied include: paint-mixing, color matching, composition, design and a variety of painting styles. Readings and class discussions of historical and contemporary painting practices and issues will develop a visual vocabulary as well as critical/theoretical knowledge to complement technical skills. Lectures, demonstrations, critiques and a gallery/museum visit will supplement studio work.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

An introduction to the studio practice of painting, using oil paint on a variety of supports ranging from paper, board and canvas to non-traditional painting surfaces. Exploration of the practical techniques and mechanics of painting as well as a consideration of content and meaning will be studied. Topics that will be studied include: paint-mixing, color matching, composition, design and a variety of painting styles. Readings and class discussions of historical and contemporary painting practices and issues will develop a visual vocabulary as well as critical/theoretical knowledge to complement technical skills. Lectures, demonstrations, critiques and a gallery/museum visit will supplement studio work.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This hands-on studio class serves as an introduction to the rich and diverse field of inquiry we call sculpture. Over the course of the semester we will investigate a variety of concepts, materials, and fabrication methods employed in the realization of sculptural works. Examples of fabrication methods may include basic woodworking techniques, carving, basic sewing techniques, "non-traditional" techniques, and others. The early part of the semester is devoted to brief exercises that introduce materials, processes, techniques, tools/equipment, and ways of thinking/unthinking. The latter part of the semester is devoted to fully realized individual projects. Final projects are self-assigned and self-directed via prompts. In addition to the formal and spatial aspects of the sculptures we create, we will consider their symbolic, sociopolitical, ethical, material, and tactile dimensions. Slide presentations, short readings, critiques, group discussions, and gallery/museum visits supplement our studio research. The goal of this class is to conduct a serious and sustained - yet playful - inquiry into the question of sculpture while nurturing individual expression. This class is appropriate for any and all curious students interested in play, thinking with the hands, and reflecting on the results. $150 materials fee charged.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

A hands-on introduction to original printmaking in the media of relief, intaglio, lithography and handset type. Included are discussions of esthetics, the impact of printed imagery on society, the political power of prints, printmaking practices from diverse cultures and from around the world. Learn hand printing technologies as well as use of printing presses and tools in the service of developing your ideas in printed form. Trips to local exhibits and museums frame contemporary and historic understanding of the field. Emphasis is on personal expression and appropriate techniques for the content. Students edition one print at the end of the semester to trade in a portfolio with classmates. Students will be required to purchase some class materials from an art store. Contact the instructor directly for more information.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

Contemporary Ceramics is an expansive art form. This hands-on studio course will reach beyond functional pottery and examine experimental approaches to working with clay that prioritize content, emotional impact and aesthetic experience. Slab building and solid building techniques will be introduced to provide a deeper understanding of the physical properties of earthenware clay. Students will study the work of key innovators in the field of ceramic sculpture including Peter Voulkos, Jun Kaneko and Arlene Shechet. Slide presentations, group discussions and a field trip will supplement studio work and provide context for deeper understanding of the diverse and expanding field of contemporary Ceramic Art.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

In this foundations course we explore the fundamentals of two-dimensional design through a series of hands-on and digital projects. Topics such as the design process, pattern development and application, typography and branding are explored through both fine-art and commercial design projects. Demonstrations, presentations, and artist talks are included in addition to lab time and class discussions.  Students will finish the semester with a sketchbook full of ideas, a self-directed final project, and a well-rounded design portfolio. Software introduced includes Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. Three two-hour periods per week.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

In this foundations course we explore the fundamentals of two-dimensional design through a series of hands-on and digital projects. Topics such as the design process, pattern development and application, typography and branding are explored through both fine-art and commercial design projects. Demonstrations, presentations, and artist talks are included in addition to lab time and class discussions.  Students will finish the semester with a sketchbook full of ideas, a self-directed final project, and a well-rounded design portfolio. Software introduced includes Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. Three two-hour periods per week.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course will focus on transnational feminist art praxis in conversation with histories of feminist art from the 1970s to the present. We will trace a wide range of practices and processes and study how gender and sexual politics intersect in art with race, class, sovereignty, Indigeneity, citizenship, and migration at particular historical moments and within specific geopolitical contexts. We will begin with an overview of the history of feminism and feminist art in Europe and the United States but quickly extend our study to contemporary examples of feminist art, gender, and sexualities as they have been articulated by artists based in Africa, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Russia. During the course of this semester, students will develop an understanding that feminism is not an assumed, universal category or identity. Rather it is a constellation of different ideologies that contests heteropatriarchy, transphobia, racism, xenophobia, ableism, ageism, and religious fundamentalism. We will explore how transnational feminist trends and the LGBTQIIA+, nonbinary, genderqueer artists and communities expand our vision for justice and allow us to see the complex demands for political and social change globally.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course focuses on Contemporary Art from 1945 to the present, with special attention to art in the United States but with inclusion of many other artistic developments that shaped contemporary art practices. We will begin with an overview of the post-World War II art and modernist theories, but move quickly to examine the crisis of modernism and the emergence of postmodern and decolonial artistic trends. Throughout the course we will consider various themes that are prevalent in contemporary art, such as Abstraction, Representation, Narrative, the Body, Time, Ecology, Technology, Spirituality, Identity, and Posthumanism. We will also explore the relation between contemporary art and critical theory by discussing key thinkers and ideas informing debates around contemporary art and aesthetics. We will visit various exhibitions of contemporary art at the Walker Art Center, the Mia, and local galleries.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This hands-on, studio class serves as an introduction to the fundamentals of organizing forms in three dimensions. Over the course of the semester we will work both independently and collaboratively to solve basic formal and spatial problems encountered in fields such as sculpture, architecture, and industrial design. We will develop a technical working vocabulary and think critically about the formal, spatial, structural, tactile, and ethical dimensions of the forms we create. This class is appropriate for any and all curious students interested in design, thinking with the hands, and reflecting on the creative process. Slide presentations, short readings, critiques, group discussions, and gallery/museum visits will supplement our studio research.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course examines the art and visual culture of China from the Neolithic era to the twenty-first century. Lectures and readings will teach methods of formal visual analysis as well as provide the opportunity for students to think critically about how scholars write the artistic history of the region. Through this class, students will engage with a broad array of media, from jade carvings, Buddhist cave painting, architecture, calligraphy and monumental landscape paintings to ceramics, imperial palaces, and contemporary installations. While examining the intended meanings and functions of these objects and spaces, we will discuss the varied contexts and value systems that have informed visual production in China.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course explores the making and function of art and architecture in ancient Egypt along with its socio-economic and political context from pre-dynastic times (ca. 5300 - 3000 BCE) to the Roman era (30 BCE - 391 CE). The lectures and class discussions will focus on concepts of design, representation and aesthetics in Egypt, and explore the uses of art objects and monuments in politics, religion, private and state cults, and burial practices. Addressing topics such as pharaonic ideology, imperialism, gender, and afterlife, this course will help students comprehend the fundamental place of art and visual culture in the creation and sustenance of one of the oldest civilizations in the world.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

In this team-taught, creative writing/studio art hybrid course, students will contribute to the rich medium of graphic novels by writing, drawing, and inking their own original comic book story. The stories will then be mass-produced into individual zines, and collected into a class-wide graphic novel anthology and ebook. This course has two fundamental goals: To help students work individually on a graphic storytelling project of their own devising: from the cultivation of an initial idea, to the further exploration of that idea through multiple drafts and storyboards, and then finally to sending it out into the world as a “completed” project, which is to say a project that is “good enough for now.” Our second, equally important goal, is to work collectively to build a mutually supportive artistic community dedicated to helping everyone achieve their best work. Along the way, students will also strengthen their technical drawing and design skills, view and analyze examples of visual storytelling from diverse artists, investigate storytelling structures across a wide range of cultures, learn how to communicate more effectively through images, and gain hands-on experience in a variety of publishing modalities. Prerequisites: ENGL 150 (Intro to Creative Writing) or ART 130 (Drawing).

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:

Course Materials

A continuation of ART 234, expanding both technical and critical/theoretical knowledge through projects which demand the development of each student's individual interests. Required projects will encourage increasing self-direction and development of the students' own artistic vision. Readings will supplement students'  critical and theoretical understanding of historical and contemporary art practices. Frequent group discussions and critiques, as well as museum/gallery field trips. Three two-hour periods per week. Offered every other semester. Prerequisite(s): ART 234 .

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course is a continuation of Printmaking I, with the introduction of new techniques appropriate for the content. Advanced printers can explore known media in more depth and learn new processes such as photo polymer relief, laser stencil cuts, collagraphs, pronto plate lithography or photo screenprint. Individually generated concepts are explored with expanded forms such as monoprinting, printing on unusual surfaces, or installation and performance work involving printed components. Trips to local galleries, printshops and museums add depth to understanding the diverse contexts in which contemporary prints are made, as well as the vital role prints play in social movements. In addition to exchanging prints within the class, students research and identify an external opportunity to share their prints. Students will be required to purchase some class materials from an art store. Contact the instructor directly for more information.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

From ancient Mesopotamia to modern Europe, people attacked, mutilated and smashed images with motivations influenced by religion, politics and other ideological agendas. This course will explore the dynamics of such iconoclastic attacks on images by examining case studies from ancient, medieval and early modern contexts in the Near East, Mediterranean world and Europe. How and why have images been perceived as a threat by monarchs, invading armies or religious zealots? What were the intended outcomes of image destruction? By focusing on these main questions, this course will explore the function and power of images in pre-modern and early modern societies.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

Photography is a versatile medium that can take on many forms. In this course we will experiment with photography at various scales, expanding and contracting its visual and physical dimensions while creating photographs that function as assemblage, as object, and as installation. Projects in this course will introduce students to photography that is layered, sculptural, and spacious. This is a studio art course based on a series of creative assignments, demonstrations, lectures, and visiting artists. Prerequisite: ART233, Photography I, or with instructor permission.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to fundamental drawing materials and techniques. Students explore a variety of themes and subjects, including still life, architecture, figure drawing, portraiture, and imagination. Formal elements covered include: line, value, volume, space, proportion, perspective, mark-making, and composition. Context for assignments is given through frequent discussion of both historical and contemporary artworks. In group critiques and discussions, we consider composition, representational accuracy, creative expression, content, and intention.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This introductory course will provide a supportive studio environment for the exploration of diverse approaches to the ceramic field, ranging from investigation of utilitarian object making to sculptural practice. Techniques and applications for both handbuilding and wheel throwing will be presented. Emphasis is placed on development and understanding of strong three-dimensional forms as well as the relationship with surface decoration. Content-based assignments allow for individual expression through creative problem solving. The course goal is to present students with a historical perspective and the understanding of contemporary ceramics, building an appreciation for the spirit of the handmade object as well as preparing students for upper level self-directed work. Lectures, demonstrations, critiques and gallery/museum visits will supplement studio work. Learning will be assessed primarily through portfolio production and review, along with class participation. Three two-hour periods per week. $100 materials fee is required.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course introduces students to the history of art from Renaissance to Modern Art. The course focuses on the developments in art in Europe and the United States but within a larger global context in order to de-center privileges of Western artistic traditions. The course will introduce students to art periods such as Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassicism, Romanticism, Realism, Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and a wide spectrum of modern art movements, including Fauvism, Expressionism, Cubism, Dada, Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, and Post-Modern Art but always with a critical interpretive lens that reveals deeply entrenched cultural, social, and political hierarchies in the art word and complex relationships between diverse cultures and artistic traditions. This course will provide students with tools how to look at art and interpret meaning in individual works of art.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This studio course introduces the basic principles of color in the visual arts and wider culture.  Students explore a range of topics, including the historical uses of color, the psychology of color and the formal elements of color including: value, temperature, color interaction, afterimage and color as a design element. The class will be comprised of a series of small color studies advancing to more involved studio assignments. Some projects will be completed using paint while others will use media chosen by the student. The class will include painting/color demonstrations, color assignments, image presentations, readings, museum visits, individual and group critiques.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course introduces the conceptual, technical, and historical aspects of photography within a fine-arts context. The emphasis throughout is on photography as a creative and expressive medium and will introduce strategies and methods related to this goal through assignments and class activities. Students will learn the foundational aspects of digital photography from manual camera operation to the editing of images through Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Along the way, students will be introduced to the digital workflow, the critique process, and how to take their images from screen to print. Presentations and assigned readings will help students develop the critical and creative skills needed to understand how artistic photographs function in society and culture. $75 materials fee charged for course to cover printer paper and ink. Note: A digital SLR camera is required for this course--students may be able to rent one from the department on a first-come, first-served basis.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

An introduction to the studio practice of painting, using oil paint on a variety of supports ranging from paper, board and canvas to non-traditional painting surfaces. Exploration of the practical techniques and mechanics of painting as well as a consideration of content and meaning will be studied. Topics that will be studied include: paint-mixing, color matching, composition, design and a variety of painting styles. Readings and class discussions of historical and contemporary painting practices and issues will develop a visual vocabulary as well as critical/theoretical knowledge to complement technical skills. Lectures, demonstrations, critiques and a gallery/museum visit will supplement studio work.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This hands-on studio class serves as an introduction to the rich and diverse field of inquiry we call sculpture. Over the course of the semester we will investigate a variety of concepts, materials, and fabrication methods employed in the realization of sculptural works. Examples of fabrication methods may include basic woodworking techniques, carving, basic sewing techniques, "non-traditional" techniques, and others. The early part of the semester is devoted to brief exercises that introduce materials, processes, techniques, tools/equipment, and ways of thinking/unthinking. The latter part of the semester is devoted to fully realized individual projects. Final projects are self-assigned and self-directed via prompts. In addition to the formal and spatial aspects of the sculptures we create, we will consider their symbolic, sociopolitical, ethical, material, and tactile dimensions. Slide presentations, short readings, critiques, group discussions, and gallery/museum visits supplement our studio research. The goal of this class is to conduct a serious and sustained - yet playful - inquiry into the question of sculpture while nurturing individual expression. This class is appropriate for any and all curious students interested in play, thinking with the hands, and reflecting on the results. $150 materials fee charged.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

A hands-on introduction to original printmaking in the media of relief, intaglio, lithography and handset type. Included are discussions of esthetics, the impact of printed imagery on society, the political power of prints, printmaking practices from diverse cultures and from around the world. Learn hand printing technologies as well as use of printing presses and tools in the service of developing your ideas in printed form. Trips to local exhibits and museums frame contemporary and historic understanding of the field. Emphasis is on personal expression and appropriate techniques for the content. Students edition one print at the end of the semester to trade in a portfolio with classmates. Students will be required to purchase some class materials from an art store. Contact the instructor directly for more information.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

In this foundations course we explore the fundamentals of two-dimensional design through a series of hands-on and digital projects. Topics such as the design process, pattern development and application, typography and branding are explored through both fine-art and commercial design projects. Demonstrations, presentations, and artist talks are included in addition to lab time and class discussions.  Students will finish the semester with a sketchbook full of ideas, a self-directed final project, and a well-rounded design portfolio. Software introduced includes Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign. Three two-hour periods per week.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course contemplates the definition of Sacred Art and Sacred Space by focusing on religious visual culture in Asia and examining how intangible concepts of the divine have become tangible in art and architecture.  To better understand the multilayered functioning of devotional objects and spaces associated with religious doctrines such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, and Shintoism, the class will explore foundations in iconography and then compare different religious objects and spaces through concepts such as gender, state power, the body, nature, ritual, the grotesque, and death.  To account for the shifting meaning of religious icons over time, the class also reflects on how the significance of religious objects changes in the space of a museum.  Ultimately, this course allows us to contemplate the multifaceted ways religious beliefs have been visualized and how these manifestations exemplify systems of cultural exchange in Asia.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course examines the art, architecture, and visual culture of Japan, spanning a broad temporal frame from the ancient Neolithic era to our own contemporary moment.  We will discuss a diverse array of art and architecture from ancient Jomon pottery, Shinto shrines, and print media to Buddhist sculpture, painting practices during World War II, anime (cartoons) and manga (comics). In addition to learning methods of formal visual analysis, students will gain insight into how these works articulated complex artistic, social, economic, political, and religious trends. Through this course, students will develop skills to reflect critically on the production of narratives of Japanese culture, while considering concepts such as tradition, hybridity, value, authority, authenticity, sexuality, commodity flows, nationalism, and militarism.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course explores the art and architecture of the Ancient Near East from the earliest agricultural societies in the 10th millennium BCE to the arrival of Islam in the 7th century CE. Within this historical framework the lectures and class discussions will focus on culturally specific concepts of design, representation and aesthetics in ancient Mesopotamia, Iran, Anatolia and Syro-Palestine, and explore their uses in politics, imperialism, burial practices, private rituals and state cults. The lectures will explore topics such as the development of narrative representation, monumental public art, portraiture, small-scale glyptic arts and the design, and production of personal ornaments such as jewelry.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course will explore the art and architecture of the medieval Christian world from the time of Constantine the Great (306-337 CE) to the fall of Constantinople in 1453. The lectures and class discussions will focus on the role of images and relics in Christianity as well as the developments in sacred and secular architecture across Europe and the Byzantine empire. Special emphasis will be given to certain trends such as the foundation of monasteries, pilgrimage, icon and relic worship, and the emergence of Romanesque and Gothic styles in architecture, which changed the urban and rural topography of the continent.

General Education Requirements:
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This studio art course will examine the precarious position of Ceramic art at the intersection of Fine Art, Craft and Design and provide students with the tools and skills to make ceramic objects for daily use. Course content will consider the role of form, function and skill in ceramic art theory and practice, and evaluate how these categories are supportive or unsupportive of artists and makers. Hands-on projects will focus on design, and analysis of three dimensional forms. Students will consider the relationship between pottery and hospitality, food and the vessel in domestic and social life. Readings and discussion will provide historical/cultural context; touching on the American Studio Craft movement, Mingei folk art and the Warren Mackenzie legacy in Minnesota.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:

Course Materials

The end of the Cold War in 1989 marked the beginning of a new era for the former communist countries, bringing about great changes in the art world. The profound political, social, economic, and cultural transformations that took place in Russia and Eastern Europe also had a significant impact on the artistic climate in China and Cuba. As the cultural imperatives of the communist state became radically redefined, the function of a work of art shifted from a conduit of propaganda to a vehicle for social change and political contestation. The course will also examine the motives of thinkers and leaders important for the spread of communism, including Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, Castro, Che Guevara, and Mao. The course interrogates binaries of race and gender; democracy/authoritarianism; religion/secularism, and liberalism/conservatism— issues that are at the heart of current political debates worldwide. Students will have access to art and important materials presented in the Experimental Art in Eastern Europe exhibition at the Walker Art Center.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course explores both the structural and expressive aspects of figure drawing. Students will be introduced to the elements of surface anatomy and structure of the human body through working with nude and clothed models, the skeleton, anatomical texts, and other source material. Confidence, the ability to improvise, and an expressive connection with the figure will be encouraged through exercises that encourage experimentation with gesture and materials. In an in-depth, independent final project, students develop their own personal content related to the figure/body, using the materials and methods of their choice. Discussion of the various issues brought up by representation of the body will be part of our study of both contemporary and historical works of art. Prerequisite(s): ART 130 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

The development of art and identities in China over the last 400 years has been, literally, revolutionary. From the Manchu rule of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) and the emergence of the Chinese Republic (1912-1949) to the radical changes at work during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) under Mao Zedong and the appearance of complex reactionary artistic voices since the late 1970s, we have seen the dynamic development of modern subjectivities, evolving cultural connoisseurship, ethnic tensions, new definitions of citizenry, and counter-movements led by cynical agitators. Art and design have played a critical role in these developments, functioning as a formal and symbolic language through which communities and notions of personhood could form. This class draws on themes such as gender, sexuality, militarism, ethnicity, and commodity culture to delve into the rich resonance between the representation of the human figure and the expression of diverse identities. Students will not only learn to look closely at and write critically about a variety of media including paintings, calligraphy, prints, films, posters, performance art, and installations, but will also relate this historical cultural production to contemporaneous artistic, social, and political discourses. In the process, we will complicate notions of "Chinese" art and "Chinese" identity in Asia and on the global stage.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
Internationalism

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

A continuation of ART 234, expanding both technical and critical/theoretical knowledge through projects which demand the development of each student's individual interests. Required projects will encourage increasing self-direction and development of the students' own artistic vision. Readings will supplement students'  critical and theoretical understanding of historical and contemporary art practices. Frequent group discussions and critiques, as well as museum/gallery field trips. Three two-hour periods per week. Offered every other semester. Prerequisite(s): ART 234 .

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

Sculpture 2 offers a hands-on studio experience that builds on the tools, processes, concepts, and conversations introduced in Sculpture 1. This class supports the development and creation of individually-designed sculptural projects and research, with an emphasis on experimentation and ideation. Students will have the opportunity to explore both contemporary and traditional fabrication methods such as carving, assemblage, mold-making, and casting, and well as engage sculptural concerns such as context and display, materiality, mimesis, and ephemerality. Slide presentations, short readings, critiques, group discussions, and gallery/museum visits supplement our studio research. $150 materials fee charged. Prerequisite(s): ART 235

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course is a continuation of Printmaking I, with the introduction of new techniques appropriate for the content. Advanced printers can explore known media in more depth and learn new processes such as photo polymer relief, laser stencil cuts, collagraphs, pronto plate lithography or photo screenprint. Individually generated concepts are explored with expanded forms such as monoprinting, printing on unusual surfaces, or installation and performance work involving printed components. Trips to local galleries, printshops and museums add depth to understanding the diverse contexts in which contemporary prints are made, as well as the vital role prints play in social movements. In addition to exchanging prints within the class, students research and identify an external opportunity to share their prints. Students will be required to purchase some class materials from an art store. Contact the instructor directly for more information.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course is for students with a passion for clay! Designed to engage and build on students' previous ceramic experiences, advancing their knowledge, techniques and concepts of contemporary ceramic art. Course content will be both assignment based and self-directed whether created on the wheel or through handbuilding. Through thoughtful discussion, critical examination and evaluation of concepts and ideas the class encourages students to develop a better understanding of their relationship to the rich tradition of ceramics and ceramic sculpture. Students will develop an understanding of glaze and clay materials while also taking on responsibilities for electric, gas and raku kiln firings. Lectures, demonstrations, critiques and gallery/museum visits will supplement studio work. Learning will be assessed primarily through portfolio production and review, along with class participation. May be taken without an introductory class with instructor's review and approval. Can be taken for credit multiple times. Three two-hour periods per week. $100 materials fee is required. Prerequisite(s): ART 131 or approval of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

This course provides an introduction to the diversity of twentieth century visual culture of the United States, within the historical, social, and cultural contexts in which it is created. It will analyze the intersection and the social dynamics of race and ethnicity, along with gender and class, and how these shaped the experience of American artists and their audiences at various historical moments during the last century. Studying the work of Native American, African-American, Asian-American, and Latinx-American artists in response to the mainstream US art and culture, will provide students with broad and complex understanding of concepts of race, ethnicity, class, and gender as reflected in artistic production of this marginalized artists and art groups.Frequency: Offered in the fall every two years.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WA
U.S. Identities and Differences

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials

Art reflects, refracts and helps construct a society’s culture. Thousands of pieces of sculpture survive from the ancient Roman period and can provide valuable information to the historian. Material from Rome includes looted Greek, Etruscan and Egyptian sculpture, copies of antique masterpieces, and new creations combining different styles for varied purposes. After we develop a basic history and understanding of Roman sculpture, this course will examine select pieces each week to explore questions that may be productively brought to bear on this unusual historical source. For example, the popularity and adaptations of masterpieces of Venus, Dionysus and Apollo will be used to explore the way artists shaped differences between male and female and the cultural assumptions about sexuality and the body these works communicate (Knidian Aphrodite, Praxitelean youths, Sleeping Hermaphrodite). In turn, we will investigate how these artistic conventions for gender could be employed to communicate the subjugation of enslaved or conquered people and the authority of the emperor (Antinoos Sculptures, Suicide Gauls, Dying Gaul, Marcus Aurelius reliefs, Portonaccio Sarcophagus). We will also look at self-representation, including how former slaves chose to present themselves in hyper-realistic portraits on their tombs; how this may have impacted Roman portraiture as a whole; and what it meant for some members of the elite to put such hyper-realistic portrait heads onto the bodies of gods and goddesses (Tomb of the Haterii, Tomb of Rabiria, Tivoli General, Flavian Matron as Venus). What can these varied representations of the human form tell us about the complex interplay of legal status, citizenship, gender, nudity, ethnicity, power, vulnerability and identity in the Roman Empire? The course will meet once a week during the day to allow for two field trips to see sculpture in the round. Responses to the weekly readings will be due every week. During the last third of the course, students will direct our classwork as they build toward a final project. No formal prerequisites, but some prior experience with ancient art, art history or Roman history is recommended.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Humanities

Course Materials

This course provides a setting in which art studio majors complete their capstone projects, including mounting a professional exhibition of recent work. It provides a look ahead to post-Macalester opportunities and the challenges of graduate school, jobs, and career opportunities in art. Arts professionals make presentations to the class and readings provide theoretical grounding for putting contemporary art in context. Students learn professional practices for studio artists, how to write artist statements, professional resumes and applications for grants, residencies and graduate school. Two three-hour sessions per week.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Fine arts

Course Materials