Visual Art

Drawing class is fundamentally about learning to see and translating a vision onto paper through a variety of mark-making techniques. This class will consist of in-class drawing assignments, and some homework assignments designed to supplement the classwork. In-class sessions will be utilized as studio time to work on assignments, along with occasional group critiques and short lectures that relate to projects and drawing concepts.

By taking this course, students will develop an understanding of the elements of art and principles of composition that relate to drawing, including: line, shape, form, value, space, positive and negative space, and texture. Students will acquire and practice a visual art vocabulary through one-on-one as well as group discussion. Students will explore and master basic skills by experimenting with traditional and non-traditional drawing techniques and materials. This class will encourage students to discover creative expression beyond preconceived notions, and hone a sustainable studio work ethic.

Working from a live model is a challenging and important experience for any young art student. Using everything from pencils to collage and mixed-media, students in this class learn to work with a variety of materials and expressive techniques. As they continually emphasize observational accuracy and proportions, they are also learning to experiment, quickly edit, and make individualized stylistic decisions as they draw.

Clay is a grounding medium. In Ceramics class students discover their own voice in this most elemental material.. They learn both functional and sculptural techniques including pinching, coiling, slab work, and wheel throwing while working from prompts which develop their conceptual thinking. They experiment with and learn diverse surface techniques, including glazes, underglazes, slips, oxides and cold finishes, and types of firings, including electric, saggar and smoke firing, to experience clay as a rich medium

of personal expression, creating both functional ware and sculptural objects. Over the course of their ceramics education in a professional studio environment, students experience a multitude of ceramics techniques while also developing their own language and vision in clay. They gain knowledge of the depth of clay historically and the breadth of contemporary practice. By engaging with both intellectual and physical skills, they grow technically and conceptually. They deepen the connection between the eye and the hand, using this ancient medium to form contemporary work.

In Painting class students are introduced to the basics of the oil painting medium. Skills and concepts like relative value, color mixing, temperature of color, drawing and composition are foundational to the students' experience. Assignments are uniquely and specifically designed to help each student explore conceptually, refine pictorial sensibilities, and learn the many different formal and stylistic approaches to making a painting. Knowledge of tools and materials is crucial to students gaining a full experience with this medium. Instruction in the use of painting mediums, importance of brush sizes and shapes and when to use each, experimentation with different tools for applying, moving, and removing paint, as well as techniques like underpainting, washes and glazes serve to enrich the evolving student painters engagement with materials, methods and concept. As students mature and develop expertise there is more emphasis on a creative approach that is flexible and responsive to the discoveries made during the process, where each stage is evaluated on how useful it is for setting the stage that comes after it.

This course begins with an historical overview of public art; including but not limited to ancient cave paintings, fresco paintings of the Renaissance era, and public art as political and social propaganda. Students are introduced to public mural initiatives in Philadelphia, Los Angeles and other large cities, as well as the ancient historical roots and contemporary worldwide influence of graffiti art. This overview lays the groundwork for each group’s mural building experience.

Working together in small groups of three to five, students design and create large-scale paintings in an existing public space on campus and are guided through the unique challenges and rewards of creating large scaled art pieces. Through group collaboration, students develop strong communication skills, strengthening their active listening abilities. Group members are expected to share responsibilities, an important developmental aspect of each group’s project.

In Sculpture class students explore the elements of working in three-dimensional space using traditional and found materials. Students in this course will learn multiple techniques, applying them via prompts to create artwork that increases their technical ability, visual perception and conceptual power. Students review contemporary and historical art for inspiration and context. Concepts covered in the class include but are not limited to, the following elements of sculpture: color, form, mass, scale, movement, place, texture, volume, light and memory. Through creation, group critique and self-reflection, students grow in their ability to analyze the elements of sculpture and their ability to form and medium create meaning. They create work that incorporates their growing knowledge of three-dimensional art entwined with their developing personal vision.

Students learn use of the camera, film development, darkroom techniques, and photo composition. Students work on a variety of projects ranging from photograms and pinhole photography to portraiture, documentary, and alternative printing processes.

In Printmaking class students will explore methods of drawing, transferring, and creating original art through relief printmaking techniques. Each assignment encourages students to create dynamic and intriguing imagery within the unique processes of the printmaking medium. Students will be introduced to the power of repeated imagery, as well as master labeling, titling, and signing unique prints and print editions. Students will form an understanding of paper types in relation to printing techniques, mediums, and desired outcomes. They will learn ink application and consistency; and master the operation of a printing press and other printmaking equipment. Students will draw inspiration from the collaborative environment of the printmaking studio, and have the freedom to further their explorations from other classes, art disciples, or studio practice and implement this exploration and discovery to the art of printmaking.

In Printmaking: Advanced Studio, students are invited to build off and expand on skills learned in the prerequisite course, Printmaking. Students are expected to use a variety and combination of printmaking techniques to create a meaningful body of prints that is an extension of their overall studio practice. Students will be asked to pull from subject matter, ideas, and visual language that might be explored in other arts classes or material. Students will learn to hone a sustainable printmaking practice that might be reflective of and aid to an overall creative pursuit. Students are invited to work in, explore and combine relief, monotype, and intaglio techniques.

In Comic Book Production class students study the practices, traditions and history of comic books in North America, Europe, and Asia, and actively explore the potential of the medium. The study of storytelling, working for reproduction, lettering and visualized sound effects are emphasized. Students will explore how art styles influence storytelling, and how technical elements like panel structure can be used to guide the readers’ experience of the comics they create. Students create, print, and bind their own comic stories. Comic Book Production explores both image as narrative and the mix of image and text. These core concepts can be applied to a variety of media and practices.

This course in 2 Dimensional Mixed Media will provide students with opportunities for exploration in combining two or more mediums or materials to create new and unique works of art. Students will be encouraged to experiment with process-based and improvisational approaches rather than working toward a pre-imagined end result. In each class, students will be challenged by a color theory concept and exercise that might be directly applied to their projects. Each assignment will present opportunities for students to investigate artistic approaches in abstraction, conceptualism, realism, and address a wide range of aesthetic issues relating to design concepts through a variety of drawing, collage, transferring, and painting techniques. This course will present students with the creative freedom to explore subject matter and ideas of choice while using innovative problem solving strategies to arrive at new discoveries within their work.

Museum To Making employs an artist’s view of art history. It is a student- directed hybrid course focusing on research and process. Students take field trips to area museums and places of interest to connect their art practice to a lineage of material and visual thinking. They research pieces in the museum, discover context, reflect on their observations, and create personal work in response. Through exposure to the collections in area museums and other locations, students engage with the art historical record and develop an idea of their place within it. With deep looking and attention, they enrich their understanding of other artists and cultures with self awareness. They research artwork, evaluate the role of the museum in the curating of visual artifacts, consider the role of the viewer, and draw connections to their own art practice. By creating art in response, they internalize their inspiration and broaden their horizons while deepening their artistic knowledge.

In Apparel Design and Construction, students learn how to think three-dimensionally by manipulating materials around the human form. Students will create wearable garments while learning draping, pattern manipulation, garment construction and machine sewing. Apparel design serves both a utilitarian and aesthetic purpose. In the studio, design, self expression and functionality blend with cultural and period references to inspire and influence the students’ process. Sustainability, body positivity and gender acceptance are part of the ethos of this studio. In this class, students learn to frame their experiences that inform their learning through exploring and engaging these values in their projects. At the close of the semester, the students produce a fashion show of original student designs.

In Textile Design Studio, students explore the intersection of art and functionality. This course introduces students to the principles of printed textiles and incorporates their original print designs into a wearable garment.

Throughout the semester, students will engage with various design concepts, including printing original designs on fabric, learning about repeat patterns, exploring negative space, and testing pattern layouts for viability and balance before production.

At the culmination of the course, students will have the opportunity to showcase their work in a fashion show. This final project allows students to apply everything they have learned throughout the semester, demonstrating their creativity, technical skill, and understanding of how pattern relates to apparel design.

In Introduction to Darkroom Photography, students are introduced to the use of light sensitive materials and the basic science and history of devices that capture light. They also build a foundation for using camera-related tools to create expressive imagery by learning to use a 35mm film camera, developing film and practicing the basics of darkroom black and white silver gelatin printing.

The advanced photography class includes students across a range of photographic experience and skills. The aim of the course is to guide each of them in exploring photography as a means of expression while continuing to offer them opportunities to increase their understanding and control of the medium. As students work through a photography project or theme for the semester, they will be introduced to a variety of standard and alternative photographic processes. Depending on the theme, students may work with color film developing and printing, scanning negatives, Adobe photoshop and inkjet printing, developing slide transparencies, polaroid transfers and lifts, cyanotypes, lith printing, hand applied silver emulsions, medium format and large format cameras, pinhole photography, plastic cameras or mixed media.

In Digital Illustration students learn methods and approaches commonly used in commercial illustration and pop-culture-referencing fine art. Students primarily utilize Adobe Photoshop, but the focus is on big-picture art-making concepts and strategies, rather than photoshop-specific tips and tricks. Students do in-class skill-building exercises and larger take-home projects. The large projects provide students with a lot of choice for subject matter, but have requirements designed to increase the students’ competencies in specific skills. Because of its flexibility and ability to make quick revisions, Digital Illustration is an excellent context for exploring color theory and composition.

In Animation students study skills and approaches that are key to character animation, as well as some more experimental approaches to creating animated sequences. Students are taught and encouraged to use the “12 Principles of Animation” codified by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston in the Disney Studios. Throughout the course, students will learn to build an emotional response in the intended audience through dynamic animations. Additionally, students will learn to depict convincing movement and action. The class uses Adobe Animate as a primary tool and heavy emphasis is placed on the principles of hand-drawn animation as a core skill set.

In this course students explore experimental mediums and techniques on two dimensional surfaces. The title “Not Drawing” refers to two dimensional art processes unbound from notions of rendering reality on a picture plane using traditional art media. We do use some traditional media and concepts in the service of experimentation and expression. The goal of the class is to Not Draw our way into a new artistic territory, to make discoveries, and to explore each student’s potential through play. Each week presents a different technique and/or concept. 

Senior studio provides Visual Art seniors with an advanced, independent, experimental, project-driven art making experience. Students mostly work from given prompts but are also given opportunities to design and create assignments themselves. The purpose of this class is to stimulate independent critical and creative thinking, help seniors to establish a mature work ethic through self-reliance, cultivate the unique and specific descriptive language of the visual artist, and emulate the rigors of the art college studio environment. Assignments are typically due every three to four weeks. The end of each project culminates in a group critique as each senior presents and explains their project to the class and engages in a conversation with their peers about creative process and outcomes.