Courses
VISUAL ARTS COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - FIRST YEAR
(Please note that the scope and sequence as well as course offerings may be subject to change.)
FUNDAMENTALS OF DRAWING: THEORY AND PRACTICE
According to Cennino Cennini (14th c.), the activity of drawing is "both the necessary foundation of practice for all and a natural inclination of the talented." This foundation course introduces students to fundamental principles and methodologies, including basic elements of two-dimensional art (line, shape, value, texture and color) and its ingredients (subject, form and content). Drawing from direct observation will be emphasized as students learn skills of proportion and various spacial strategies, including perspective and foreshortening. Students will work primarily in charcoal as well as other wet and dry media. Drawing skills learned in the first semester will be augmented in the second semester by an introduction to basic color theory and use of more sophisticated compositions. Students will work from live models, still life, landscapes and imaginative imagery. Students will also use the sketchbook as a tool for technical experimentation and conceptual development. Individual and group critiques will be held regularly. Guest artists, field trips, readings/research and art history, as pertinent to each unit project, will be introduced.
DRAWING BY DESIGN
Drawing by Design is an introduction to two-dimensional art, design and visual culture. In this foundation course, students will learn the Elements and Principles of Design, using this language as a tool of visual analysis and intelligent decision making in their own work. As a routine part of this class, students will dissect the formal properties of other artists' work. Students will then apply this essential knowledge to the making of their own dynamic and complex pieces. Students will explore a variety of wet and dry media--including watercolor, blockprinting, collage and the like--in a series of multi-week unit projects. Students will learn to brainstorm and collect relevant source material, skills essential to the making of conceptually and compositionally strong work. Students will use their sketchbooks to develop ideas, complete assignments and explore on their own. Students will take part in at least one field trip per semester.
THREE DIMENSIONAL DESIGN/SCULPTURE
This foundation course introduces students to the fundamental practices and theories of three-dimensional design through use of clay and plaster. Students will understand concepts of shape, mass and volume as they build clay relief sculptures and sculptures in the round. Students will learn skills of additive and subtractive sculpture as well as various modes of assembly and manipulation of the medium. Students will work from life and become further acquainted with the Elements and Principles of Design as related to the three-dimensional realm. Individual and group critiques will be held regularly. Field trips and visiting artists will also be a relevant component of this course.
VISUAL COMMUNICATION/INTRODUCTION TO DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
This foundation course will provide a solid introduction to the medium of photography and its practice today. As students develop their visual skills and begin to "think in pictures," they will learn about the essential features of a digital camera and how to control them. Students will be given an overview of the techinical aspects of resolution, file formats and work flow. The bulk of the class will concentrate on the practice of photography as an art form, emphasizing the organization, function, manipulation and communication of visual ideas. Students will use tools such as Fuji cameras, Apple computers, Adobe Photoshop software and Epson printers. Classes will be enriched by visits from practicing professional artists, field trips to galleries and an ongoing survey of the history of photography.
VISUAL ARTS COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - SECOND YEAR
DRAWING II
Building upon the first year, curriculum students will continue to navigate the integral fundamentals that make up the key component of visual training: drawing. The objective is to gain a higher level of competency in drawing from observation. Figurative work will be emphasized throughout the yearlong curriculum with references to experimental approaches and principles in the second semester. Students will have access to a live model for a number of weeks each semester.
PAINTING I
This course introduces painting as a language for communicating ideas and emotions in an art historical context. Students will practice the painting methods of various cultures and periods as a means of understanding the relationship between aesthetics and context. Using paint, students will use the design elements of shape, color, and value to manipulate edge and light. Further, students will learn to paint various types of illusory space consistent with the strategies of painting past and present. Students will have a rich understanding of the cultural role of painting as a global language. They will develop various painting skills from which to find meaning and direction for their own work and learn relevant vocabulary. In class assignments will focus on skill building and understanding the relationship between form, function, and context. The vocabulary of aesthetics and art criticism will be used in discussions, writing assignments and critiques.
SCULPTURE II - CONTEMPORARY
This second year course explores the concepts, techniques and practice of contemporary sculpture. Its aim is to develop and build upon knowledge and technical skills acquired in the first year of Three Dimensional Design through a series of projects utilizing different sculptural materials as well as conceptual frameworks. The course will investigate what it means to make three-dimensional objects through class discussions, readings, slide presentations, projects, field trips and critiques. Studio time will begin with modeling the figure in clay through observation and transition later in the year to more experimental approaches to making objects. The class will question how the figure fits into the aesthetics of the Ancient Era, the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution, the DIY movement and rave culture, to name a few. Students will continue to develop the skills to eloquently speak about their work and the work of their classmates while contextualizing what they make within the broader frame of contemporary culture.
ART HISTORY STUDIO I: FROM ANCIENT TIMES TO THE AGE OF ENLIGHTMENT (PREHISTORY-1800)
This course is a historical survey of the visual arts ranging from Prehistoric to Romanticism. Selected works of painting, sculpture, and architecture will be studied in relation to the cultures that produced them. Students will be introduced to work of the Prehistoric, ancient Greek and Roman and Medieval periods. During the second semester, students will explore the classical styles of the Renaissance, the innovative styles of the Baroque and the large cultural shifts and technological developments of the Age of Enlightenment that shaped the 19th and 20th centuries. The structure of this course is primarily discussion/lecture with an emphasis on reading, writing, testing and research presentations. Artmaking will also be a component of this course and will include sketching and journaling.
INTRODUCTION TO GRAPHIC DESIGN
Graphic Design is one of the most important and powerful communication tools human beings have to promote, to protest, to beautify, etc. This course will introduce students to the world of Graphic Design though a set of projects that will challenge their visual problem solving skills and reinforce the formal principles of design. Students will be given a review of Adobe Photoshop and an introduction to Adobe Illustrator and new hands-on processes. Emphasis will be placed on typography, layout techniques and methods, storytelling, graphic reduction and conceptual development for specific audiences and clients. Real world design practices will be discussed and projects will push students beyond a simply theoretical application of the medium.
VISUAL ARTS COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - THIRD YEAR
ADVANCED PLACEMENT (AP) MAJOR STUDIO COURSES
YEAR ONE: AP DRAWING AND PAINTING, AP 2D/3D MIXED MEDIA , AP 2D: GRAPHIC DESIGN, AP 2D: DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
The junior year is the first half of a two-year AP studio curriculum, as approved by the College Board. In this course, students will build upon their technical and conceptual skills to make more complex, sophisticated work worthy of inclusion in an AP portfolio. Assignments will be structured to address the AP requirements of quality, breath and concentration. In the junior year, students will primarily focus on the breadth section, i.e. assignments that show a range of conceptual, technical, compositional and stylistic approaches through use of a range of media. Students will also begin to formulate their intended concentration topic to be explored senior year. Critique, research and slide presentations of relevant artists' work will be featured in this course.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SEMINAR
Professional development seminars are a vital support of a student's application to college and potential career in the arts. Seminars are run twice monthly in the major class and led by the AP studio faculty. Sample topics include Researching College, Financial Literacy, Presenting Yourself in Writing, the Interview Process, Writing An Artist Statement, Composing Your Resume, Portfolio Development and Careers in the Arts. Students will complete research and assignments as part of each seminar. Also during this time, students will be visited by college representatives who will give presentations and review student portfolios. Lectures and visits by art professionals will be a relevant part of this course. In addition, students will use this time to further develop the thematic structure for their ongoing junior studio projects and to brainstorm their senior concentration topic.
MINOR STUDIO COURSE: PAINTING II, 2D/3D MIXED MEDIA, GRAPHIC DESIGN II, and DIGITAL PHOTO II
DRAWING III
In this course, students will strengthen their drawing skills by using more complex narratives/compositions in their work and by exploring the figure. In the second semester, students will work from a nude model, a centuries-old practice seen as integral to the development of every serious artist. Students will deepen their understanding of proportion and be introduced to strategies of anatomical drawing.
ART HISTORY II: MODERN & POSTMODERN SURVEY (1848-2008)
The modern and postmodern survey is designed to enhance student understanding of art made within the last one hundred and sixty years, 1848-2008. Students will explore the movements, artists, and cultural events of the modern and postmodern eras that have shaped visual art today. Instruction will be augmented by visits to the major museums of Chicago, extensive visual presentations and studio projects. Writing assignments, studio assignments, museum reports and a final thesis paper will be required in each term.
VISUAL ARTS COURSE DESCRIPTIONS - FOURTH YEAR
ADVANCED PLACEMENT (AP) MAJOR STUDIO COURSES
YEAR TWO
The senior year is the second half of the AP curriculum, as approved by the College Board. Students will use this year to primarily focus upon the AP requirement of concentration, for which they are to present a cohesive body of work in the AP portfolio. A particular concentration topic, clearly developed in a proposal and statement, will be required for this course. Each student will devise his/her own syllabus calendar for each semester, setting goals and deadlines under the supervision of the instructor. Students will also choose the specific idea and composition for each work and the materials that best serve it. Written and verbal analysis will be instrumental to this course as students further research their concentration topics and participate in individual/group critiques. In the second semester, the students' studio work will be juried and selected by the Visual Arts Department faculty for the final thesis show. Students will be responsible for the installation of their own work and will learn the appropriate methods.
MINOR STUDIO COURSE: PAINTING II, 2D/3D MIXED MEDIA, GRAPHIC DESIGN II, and DIGITAL PHOTO II
VISUAL ARTS SEMINAR
This seminar will offer students a behind-the-scenes peek at museums and other types of art institutions (e.g. auction houses/galleries and corporate collections). Through lecture and dialogue, students will be introduced to a particular collection of a museum/gallery and its associated research, preservation and exhibition. What choices were made in the creation of this collection? Why? How are viewers interpreting and responding to the collection? Students in this course will have the opportunity to further develop their communication and critical thinking skills in discussions, as supplemented by outside readings and research, group activities and lectures from visiting art professionals. Students will also use a portion of this course time to complete college application materials and AP portfolio requirements.
ELECTIVES: DIGITAL MEDIA, FASHION DESIGN, SEQUENTIAL ART, and DRAWING IV
