Fine Arts

This course will introduce and develop the method, process, and applied techniques utilized in creating visual narratives. Whether it’s comic art, concept art, or storyboarding, this course places heavy emphasis on interpreting written concepts, ideation, composition planning, and crafting a finished product. Students will explore a variety of traditional mediums while creating assignment based narrative imagery within structured deadlines. Prerequisite: ARTS123M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

A creative practice can be described as all of the intense research, efforts and initiatives creative people engage with to create works of art that elicit a response from the viewer. Whether it’s exhibiting paintings in a gallery, or creating illustrations for a client, this course teaches students how to foster the rigorous engagement necessary to position oneself within the creative economy. Students will be taught how artists function within a studio through engaging with the fundamental tenets of creative practice - problem setting, tangential research, play, articulation, exhibition and conversation. Corequisite: ARTS123M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

An introduction to digital skill development within the creative process. Emphasis is placed on the application of digital skills in relation to the hands-on nature of studio art practices necessary for fine artists and illustrators. Topics may include: preparing images for a digital portfolio, building a promotional artist’s website, creating storyboards for an illustrated book, and creating digital art based on traditional hand rendering/building techniques. Drawing and creating by hand are also key aspects of the course. (Fulfills Fine Arts Requirements)

This course introduces the fundamental elements of art and principles of organization in visual art through a survey of concepts, techniques, and material practices. Emphasis is placed on critical thinking and creative problem solving through investigations of compositional arrangement, visual perception, studio practice, and the intersections of form and concept in two-dimensional space.

An introduction to welding for the artist. Students develop structurally and aesthetically sound welding techniques in arc and gas welding to create two- and three-dimensional artwork. Emphasis is on safety, hands-on practice, equipment and process selection, joint design and filler metal characteristics. Students learn to safely flame cut mild steel as well as bend metal using torch heat. Braze welding is discussed and practiced. Includes demonstrations in other welding processes more suitable to welding aluminum and stainless steel. Also covers the art of blacksmithing, an introduction to the history of sculpture and examples of sculptors and their work. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

This course surveys the history of art and design in Western and non-Western traditions from the prehistoric to the dawn of Modernism. Each module is oriented around a core question that enables the class to make connections across the timeline of art history. This course emphasizes the connections among historical, political, social, religious and artistic developments, showing how artists and designers are influenced by the culture and time in which they live. Prerequisite: ENGL110XM or ENGL110M. (Fulfills a Social Science or Fine Arts requirement)

This course provides an introduction to the principles and application of pixel-based photography and students are required to provide their own DSLR camera or equivalent. Utilizing digital equipment, industry standard editing applications that correspond with traditional darkroom techniques and rules of composition, students will produce creative images based on modern and traditional photographic genres. A brief history of photography will be introduced with emphasis in critique and contemporary issues. Students will utilize today’s industry standard applications as the primary image-editing tool. The lab component includes both editing and off-campus/individual photography assignment completion. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement).

Explores various drawing media and techniques. Assignments are designed to build drawing observation skills necessary for visual communications. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

Students will acquire basic watercolor painting skills and explore painting techniques, different papers and watercolor mediums. Experimental techniques and effects along with tools and various watercolor mediums are demonstrated; students will use skills they have acquired in assigned class projects. Prerequisite: ARTS123M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

This course concentrates on merging traditional drawing and art-making techniques with Photoshop. The instructor will mentor students through the use of utilizing this industry-standard, digital program as a tool for enhancing the concept design, research, and ideation processes of the illustrator. Students will gain an understanding of how to use many of Photoshop’s assets as drawing and painting tools. Prerequisites: ARTS100M and ARTS105M (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

In this class, fine art and illustration students will focus on acquiring the essential skills they will need to be successful creative professionals. They will practice communication skills, and learn to budget their time to accomplish their goals and thrive. Basic accounting skills including taxes, cash flow statements, as well as other personal finance topics will be explored. They will learn about self-promotion, social media marketing, and various essential legal criteria such as contracts will be discussed. Market research will be explored and students will work to define their real world career goals beyond their education. Prerequisite: ARTS105M.

Students of this course will study theories behind comic illustration by reading excerpts from some of the best examples of graphic literature today. Topics studied include visual metaphor, story arcs, plot development, character design, panel structure, word placement, storyboarding, word versus image, and page design. These elements will serve students as they develop their own story, design characters and settings, and create thumbnails for finished pages of a minicomic, web comic, or first chapter of a longer work. Prerequisites: ARTS100M and placement into ENGL110XM or ENGL110M (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

Students will acquire painting skills. There will be experimentation with several painting mediums, including watercolor, gouache, acrylics and oils. Tools and techniques will be demonstrated, examined and used. Some basic drawing abilities are helpful but not required. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

Students will enhance painting skills with the knowledge already established in Drawing I and Painting I. Where Painting I began with experimentation of several painting mediums, Painting II involves more advanced painting techniques. The major concentration will involve portrait and figure studies, still life and “plein-air” outdoor paint tints. Prerequisites: ARTS123M, ARTS210M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

This capstone course focuses on five distinct areas of the illustration marketplace: Editorial, Institutional, Advertising, Concept/Character Design, and Book Illustration. The course is designed to give students real world experiences creating artwork for prospective clientele. Guest speakers offer different views, and share their experience of the art direction, freelance experience, and the overall illustration profession.Prerequisite: ARTS100M and ARTS205M. Corequisite: ARTS207M

This course focuses on American and European art produced since 1945, although art from other cultures will also be considered. Students will critically examine works of art and their cultural circumstances, with the goal of recognizing, understanding, and discussing various art forms in their broader contexts. The course centers on themes that run through contemporary art, including issues of identity, the art object, and the avant-garde. Prerequisite: ARTS117M (Fulfills a Social Science or Fine Arts requirement)

Students will acquire more advanced watercolor painting skills including exploring more complex and unconventional painting techniques, mixed media with watercolors, high key and low key paintings, non-traditional tools, “natural dyes”, portrait and figure studies. Prerequisites: ARTS123M, ARTS125M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

Students will continue developing drawing skills based on the knowledge and training acquired in Drawing I. More complex still-life, portrait and life figure drawings will be created in class. Further investigation of drawing materials and an introduction to more mediums are also covered. Prerequisite: ARTS123M. (Fulfills Fine Arts requirement)

Students collect projects from all of their Fine Arts and produce an academic portfolio which represents the best examples of their creative and technical skill sets. Additional artwork may need to be created and/or produced for admission requirements into certain four-year colleges. Students will learn to scan, photograph and print their portfolio pieces. They will also electronically reproduce a CD format portfolio. Students will produce a resume, business card and letterhead. They will also research colleges and their application processes. Preparation for interviews and practice interviews will also be included. Prerequisites: All ARTS courses prior to fourth semester.