Degree Requirements and Courses


Studio Emphasis: B.A. or B.F.A.

Core Courses B.A. B.F.A.
ART 1103, Drawing I 3 3
ART 1113, Composition & Color 3 3
ART 2023, Drawing II 3 3
ART 3003, Life Drawing 3 3
ART 3053, Advandced Drawing 3 3
Support Subjects
The following courses must be selected from outside the major subject area:
ART 2113, Painting I, or
ART 2123, Printmaking I		 3 3
ART 2133, Ceramics I, or
ART 2103, Sculpture I		 3 3
ART 2153, Photography I, or
ART 3243, Graphics Communication I		 3 3
Upper Division
(2000 level)  Introduction to Subject of Emphasis 3 3
(3000-4000 level) Subject of Emphasis 9 15
(3000-4000 level) Upper Division Elective 6 12
TOTAL HOURS 42 51
Minor Area
ARTH 2203 and 2223, Survey of Art History I & II 6 6
Nine hours of Art History, at least 6 of which must be upper division 9 9
TOTAL HOURS 15 15


Art History Major: B.A.

Core Courses B.A.
ART 2203 and 2223, Survey Art History I & II 6
Major Subjects
Studio Art Electives (2 courses: one 2D and 3D) 6
Art History Electives (7 courses) 21
TOTAL HOURS 33

Art History Minor Area

In consultation with advisor, students choose 15 hours in a minor field, at least 6 of which must be upper division courses.


Art Course Descriptions

ART 1013 (3 hours)
Introduction to Studio Art for Non-Majors
Applied studio art, surveying drawing, painting, and three-dimensional design, with discussion of master artists, contemporary artists, and concepts relevant to present trends in art. Limited to non-majors.

ART 1103 (3 hours)
Drawing I
The development of fundamental observational skills and the basic visual language of drawing in a variety of media.

 ART 1113 (3 hours)
Composition and Color
Visual issues and ideas in a variety of modes and dimensions: drawing, color, three-dimensional studies, materials, tools, composition and exercises in form, aesthetics and concepts. Enhances perceptual and tactile sensitivity, technical facility, and creates understanding of creative processes while developing individual talents.

ART  2023 (3 hours)
Drawing II
Constructive drawing as the language of visual thinking; drawing as creative metaphor in conceptualizing and delineating three-dimensional forms. Students’ cognitive and technical skills evolve from understanding principles of spatial geometry, visual perspective, shades and shadows, and complex permutations of structure.

ART 2053 (3 hours)
Icons and Images: The Visual Dialogue
The artist as specialist in visual thinking: a mixture of perception and abstraction, symbol and reality, and imagination, emotion, and intellect. Exploration of various modes of visual thinking through examples of art from several centuries.

ART 2103 (3 hours)
Sculpture I
Problems in figure modeling, with emphasis on life study. Attention to rhythm, movement, space, mass and volume through sculpting the human form in a variety of media. Final Project: A casting or fabrication.

ART 2113 (3 hours)
Painting I
Introduction to painting with oil or acrylic paints. Emphasis will be placed on the use of form, light, paint, and color, beginning with still-life, figure, interior, and landscape.

ART 2123 (3 hours)
Printmaking I
Introduction to the principal printmaking processes (intaglio, relief, and monotype.)

ART 2133 (3 hours)
Ceramics I
Introduction to ceramic materials and processes.  Emphasis on hand-building and wheel-throwing.

ART 2143 (3 hours)
Design I
Introduction to basic two- and three-dimensional design. Concepts of form, space, line, texture, value, and color are covered. Emphasis on design in the environment.

ART 2153 (3 hours)
Photography I
A contemporary exploration of photography as cultural and personal phenomenon. Involves projects in basic photographic processes and practices including conventional black & white, color, digital imaging, single / multiple image production and the opportunities of collection. Emphasis on the redundancy of the photographic and in the development of student-directed content. Involved critique and readings required.

ART 2263 (3 hours)
Critical Thinking and the Visual Image
Merging the lateral thought process with applied processes in the visual arts through drawing techniques in various media and explorations of the discipline of sculpture. Students strive to make the familiar strange and the strange familiar. Attention to development of personal ideas through critical thought techniques.

ART 3003 (3 hours)
Life Drawing
Application of drawing principles and media to traditional and non-traditional life figure problems. Prerequisite: Art 1103 or permission of instructor.

ART 3013 (3 hours)
Sculpture Studio
Introduction to personalized approach to making art in the third dimension. Information gathered by technical, historical, and genealogical research, and performance through applied artistic processes in various media.

ART 3033 (3 hours)
Watercolor Studio
Problems in watercolor painting, with emphasis on composition, color, form and space. Basic and advanced techniques addressed as needed. Prerequisite: Art 1103, 1113, 2023, or permission of instructor.

ART 3053 (3 hours)
Drawing: Advanced Studio
The language of drawing. In-class projects investigate a wide range of media and attitudes toward drawing. Prerequisite: Art 1103, 1113, 2023, or permission of instructor.

ART 3063 (3 hours)
Printmaking Studio
Intermediate level work in intaglio, lithography, monotype or relief serigraphy. Prerequisites: Art 1103, 2123, or permission of instructor.

ART 3072-3 (2-3 hours)
Crafts
Basic art media, tools, materials, and methods. Emphasis on individual expression, effective use of materials, and design. Open to elementary secondary, art education, education, recreation, and special education majors. Four hours lecture and laboratory per week.

ART 3113 (3 hours)
Web Site Design
The objective of this course will be met by two areas of study: the students will evaluate and critique web sites (both successful and poorly designed sites) and during the semester the students will each create two web sties for their design portfolios. Prerequisites: Art 3243, 3443.

ART 3133 (3 hours)
Creative Arts for Elementary Teachers
ART-Basic fundamentals of art methods, art history, and philosophy to enable the elementary teacher to build a broad, diversified program of art experiences in basic content areas. MUSIC-Basic skills activities, materials, methods, and philosophy of music.

ART 3213 (3 hours)
Performance Art
Explores the art form in which the artist is the primary medium for expressing a notion. Performances range from intimate gestures (solo) to larger scale theatre-type pieces (groups), of varying lengths, presented spontaneously, or after rigorous rehearsing. Discussion of fundamental precepts and video examples from around the world. Basic performance exercises involving elements of formal content and improvisation.

ART 3223 (3 hours)
Early Childhood Elementary Art Education
Theory, processes, and procedures for teaching early childhood elementary art education. Two hours lecture and two hours methods laboratory per week. Prerequisite: admission to the teacher education program.

ART 3232 (2 hours)
Art Education, Secondary
Theory, processes, and procedures for teaching art in secondary schools. Two hours lecture per week. Prerequisite: admission to the teacher education program.

ART 3243 (3 hours)
Graphic Communication
Introduction to graphic design as a medium of communication. Promotes appreciation of visual tools and principles that lead to exploration and personal methodology. Techniques of pre-print production, with the use of typography, photography, and illustration. Students are taught the effectiveness of visual communication and its practices in the professional world today. Prerequisites: Art 1103, 3443.

ART 3253 (3 hours)
Graphic Communication II
Corporate design is the process of creating and disseminating the image or identity for a collective entity. Course involves designing a corporate symbol that is then implemented in stationery, marketing, packaging, architecture, advertising, brochures, billboards, and miscellaneous projects. A designer must create the personality/voice for a company. Prerequisites: Art 1103, 3243, 3443.

ART 3263 (3 hours)
Computer Graphics
Problems involving computer techniques and the visual vocabulary of digital paint/draw programs. Students learn with the help of a video image grabber and digital image scanners. Assignments encourage creative thinking and familiarize the student with the Macintosh graphic format. Prerequisite: Art 1103, 1113, or permission of instructor.

ART 3273 (3 hours)
Typography and Graphic Production
All aspects of typography are covered through lectures, demonstrations and studio work. Creative thinking is encouraged. Strong emphasis on the technical problem-solving and aesthetic use of display and text type. Prepares the student for significant design challenges in virtually all areas of communication design.  Prerequisites: Art 1103, 3243, 3443.

ART 3293 (3 hours)
Packaging Design
Explores graphic design for three-dimensional formats such as packaging, point-of-purchase display, exhibition graphics and container design. Marker and finished comprehensives are executed for advertising and specialty graphics. Clarifies the process of developing graphic and visual articulation in package design. Prerequisites: Art 1103, 3243, 3443.

ART 3313 (3 hours)
Photography II Traditional; Exposure, Light and the Contrived Image
Intensive intermediate study of photographic content, exacting exposure - development, and the relevancies of light. Projects employ black & white and color negative materials output using traditional fiber printing and digital inkjet printers. Field and studio lighting instruction. Emphasis on the photograph as constructed/contrived image and in the development of student-directed content. Intensive critique and readings required. Prerequisite: Art 2153 or permission of instructor

ART 3323 (3 Hours)
Photography II Digital; The Seemingly Still and the Falsely Moving
Rigorous investigation of still and moving digital images, both silent and sounding, on screen and in print. Instruction and exercise in the intermediate to advanced use of Adobe Photoshop 7 and Apple's Final Cut Pro. Emphasis on the digital image as both unique and ever-changing. Further emphasis in the development of involved student-directed content. Intensive critique and readings required. Prerequisite: Art 2153 or permission of instructor.

ART 3443 (3 hours)
Adobe Photoshop
Techniques and visual vocabulary of contemporary illustration, focusing on today’s dominant image-generating application, Adobe Photoshop. Lessons begin with generating basic shapes, textures, and lighting, and move to layering and montage effects. Scanning, retouching, and manipulation of photos, drawings, and other images are used in illustration assignments and visual problem solving. Prerequisite: Art 1103, or permission of instructor.

ART 3453 (3 hours)
Advertising Design
Through lectures, field trips, demonstrations, and studio work, students explore all facets of realistic advertising campaigns. Proceeds from market research and sound, valid visualizations for advertising media through comp presentations. Students gain familiarity with methods of creating original advertising concepts via text and image. Prerequisites: Art 1103, 3243, 3443.

ART 3463 (3 hours)
Adobe Illustrator
Techniques and visual vocabulary of digital vector illustration and typography using the graphic application Adobe Illustrator. Lessons begin with generating basic linear shapes, patterns, gradations, and blends. We then move on to combinations of Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop. Some real world illustration problems will be assigned. Prerequisite: Art 3443, Adobe Photoshop, or permission of the instructor.

ART 3993 (3 hours)
Independent Study

ART 4012-6 (2-6 hours)
Sculpture Studio (varied emphasis)
Advanced problems utilizing tools, materials, and techniques of sculpture, with emphasis on individual and group problem solving of contemporary aesthetic issues. Projects may take the form of site-specific performance art and the exploration of intermedia, interdisciplinary and intercultural art works.

ART 4032-6 (2-6 hours)
Painting Studio
Advanced creative problems in painting, with emphasis on the composition and functions of color in achieving form and space. Six hours lecture and laboratory per week. Prerequisite: Art 2123.

ART 4062-6 (2-6 hours)
Printmaking Studio
Printmaking utilizing advanced techniques and concepts in the areas of relief, intaglio, lithography, serigraphy, or monotype on individual problems. Prerequisite: Art 3063 or permission of instructor.

ART 4072-6 (2 - 6 hours)
Portfolio: Graphic Design
The student’s job-seeking portfolio is the major focus of lectures, demonstrations and studio work. Existing projects are refined and incomplete portfolios are completed with new projects. All projects meet professional standards with emphases on quality and job related subject matter. Students work on résumés, job interviews, and personal projects. Prerequisites: Art 3113, 4903, and permission from the instructor.

ART 4152-6 (2-6 hours)
Photography Studio
Advanced creative problems emphasizing individual investigation of various photographic techniques and materials. Readings required. Prerequisite: Art 2153.

ART 4182-6 (2-6 hours)
Ceramic Studio
Advanced problems in the use of clay as a medium of expression. Explorations include hand-building, wheel-throwing and glaze formulation at various temperature ranges. Semester course emphasis is listed on schedule of courses. Prerequisite: Art 2133 or permission of instructor.

ART 4323 (3 Hours)
Use of the Photograph
Exploration of contemporary possibilities for the photograph using the structural study of recognized contexts as a departure point. Emphasis on innovative and personalized approaches and in the development of highly involved student-directed content. Intensive critique and readings required. Prerequisites: Art 2153, 3313 Traditional -or- 3323 Digital, or permission of instructor.

ART 4433 (3 hours)
Advanced Web Site Design/FLASH
The objective of this course centers on the power of web motion graphics. The students learn to manipulate these programs and learn the importance that design plays in this process. The class is about communication rather than technology. Prerequisites: Art 3113, 3243, 3443.

ART 4523 (3 Hours)
Student Directed Projects
Studio-based examination of artists relationship to authority and established standards of the creative fields. Creative inquiry of students’ own design, research, experimentation, planning and production. Instructor and student group form an atelier, act as secondary assistants and critics. Emphasis solely on highly involved development of student-directed creative inquiry including management of criticism and reception. Highly intensive critique and readings required. Prerequisites: Art 2153, 3313 Traditional -or- 3323 Digital, or permission of instructor.

ART 4803 (3 hours)
Special Topics in Design
Working with a professional in graphic design, students pursue particular and significant change in the technique and business in the area of design. Group instruction and an individual project. Subjects vary according to instructor’s area of expertise, i.e.: high definition printing, pre-press output, setting up work to reproduce on different platforms, etc. Prerequisites: Art 3243, 3443.

ART 4902-6 (2-6 hours)
Internship
On-the-job training in a professional environment. The senior, on the recommendation of his or her advisor, may earn two to six hours credit. By arrangement only. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

ART 4903-6 (3-6 hours)
Third Floor Designs Internship
In-house design studio that closely approximates the working environment of a professional design/advertising studio (e.g., client meetings, deadlines, budgets, and production). With faculty guidance, students design projects from concept to actual production. Clients are primarily non-profit organizations such as the United Way agencies. Prerequisite: Graphic Design junior or senior, or permission of instruction.

ART 4973 (3 hours)
Senior Seminar 
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.


Art History Course Descriptions

ARTH 2033 (3 hours)
Native North American Art
Introduction to some of the prehistoric and historic artistic traditions (in a multitude of media) of various North American cultural regions, including the Southeast, the Pueblo Southwest, California, the Northwest Coast, the Far North, and the Plains. Slide lecture and discussion.

ARTH 2113 (3 hours)
Key Monuments in the History of Architecture
Selected representative monuments from ancient to modern architecture as keys to the prevailing values of each culture when seen within their social, political, philosophical, and aesthetic contexts.

ARTH 2203 (3 hours)
Survey of Art History I
Western art and architecture from prehistoric times through the Middle Ages. Explores basic artistic principles and vocabulary, specific examples of works, and the historical and social context from which these works emerged.   Provides the background to take more advanced art history courses and ability to critically assess works of art.

ARTH 2223 (3 hours)
Survey of Art History II
Western art and architecture from Proto-Renaissance through 20th century, introduces basic artistic principles and vocabulary, specific examples of art and architecture, discuss historical, social context from which work emerged.  Provides background for more advanced art history courses; develops ability to critically assess art by placing it into proper historical context.

ARTH 3053 (3 hours)
Medieval Art
Examination of the visual arts of various media from the Early Christian period to the Gothic period, c. 300-1300, including the Byzantine, Islamic, Migration, Carolingian, Ottonian and Romanesque arts, with a focus on the theological, social and political forces that molded their production and reception.

ARTH 3083 (3 hours)
 History and Theory of the Museum
Consideration of an array of issues dealing with the collection and display of objects in the museum, including museum genealogy and typology, the role of museums in society, museums as formulators of cultural values and national identity, and the future of the museum.

ARTH 3093 (3 hours)
American Art
 16th to 21st century. Places art into broader cultural, historical, social , political context, examining discourses that shaped American art: mapping new terrain, defining America, representing republican virtue, nature and nation, art and commerce, machine aesthetics, and modernism, defining identities in a multicultural America, from Cold War to culture wars.

ARTH 3133 (3 hours)
Greek and Roman Art
Examination of Greek art from the Archaic to the Hellenistic period and Roman art from the Early to the Late Empire. Offers a critique of the historigraphic presentation of Greek works of art as developmentally progressive and an examination of the use of Roman form and content for political purposes. 

ARTH 3353 (3 hours)
History of Prints
Exploration of printmaking from c. 1400 to 1800, from woodcut to lithography, with an emphasis on the social and political uses of prints.

ARTH 4013 (3 hours)
Baroque Art
Analysis of the full range of visual arts (e.g., painting, sculpture, architecture, stage design, interior decoration, garden’s, prints, etc) of Italy, France and Spain (primarily), from 1600 to 1750, accessing the social, political and religious contexts in which these works were created.

ARTH 4023 (3 hours)
Art Since 1945
Art and visual culture from mid-20th century to present, including Neo-Dada, Pop Art, Minimalism, Conceptual Art, Feminism, Postmodernism, and Multiculturalism. Places art into broader cultural, historical, social, political context, examining impact of mass media, Cold War, rise of civil rights and women's liberation movement, and increasing globalization of culture.

ARTH 4083 (3 hours)
Introduction to Museum Work
Practical introduction to the organization of the museum and the work of a museum professional.  Exposure to key professional activities, including administration, curation and exhibition, collections management, education and development.  In the main, this course will be taught on site in a museum.

ARTH 4213 (3 hours)
Feminism and Contemporary Art
 Discusses development of feminist movement in the art world, introduce contemporary feminist and cultural theories that form framework for understanding intersection of feminism and contemporary art, and examine the way in which feminist artists have used art as a forum for political dissidence and a means to promote social change.

ARTH 4223 (3 hours)
Post-Impressionism through Abstract Expressionism
Art and visual culture from 1880 to mid-20th century, including Post-Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, Constructivism, Dada, Surrealism, and Abstract Expressionism. Places art into broader cultural, historical, social and political context, examining various discourses that shaped twentieth-century art: Modernism, impact of modern technology and science, primitivism, colonialism, and two world wars.

ARTH 4313 (3 hours)
Italian Renaissance Art
Examination of the visual arts from c. 1300 to 1550 in Italy, concentrating on the works of artists ranging from Giotto to Michelangelo, with a focus on some of the social, political and philosophical contexts in which they were produced and consumed.

ARTH 4323 (3 hours)
Northern Renaissance Art
Painting, sculpture, and printmaking of Northern Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. In the Netherlands, emphasis on Jan Van Eyck, the development of the Eyckian tradition, and the complex iconographic language of Bosch and Bruegel; in Germany, emphasis on Dürer, Grunewald, and the Danube School.  

Painting, sculpture, and printmaking of Northern Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries. In the Netherlands, emphasis is on Jan Van Eyck, the development of the Eyckian tradition, and the complex iconographic language of Bosch and Bruegel; in Germany, emphasis is on Dürer, Grunewald, and the Danube School.

ARTH 4353 (3 hours)
17th-Century Dutch and Flemish Painting
Examination of the form and content of the two-dimensional arts of the Protestant Northern Netherlands and the Catholic Southern Netherlands, with a focus on the art patronage system and the art market as they shape the painting of the 1600s.

ARTH 4593-6 (3-6 hours)
Museum Internship
Provides practical experience in an art museum or gallery setting. Engagement with more than one museum task, such as exhibition research and installation, collection management, and education and community outreach. Pre-requisites: ARTH 2203, 2223 and 2 upper-level art history courses or permission of instructor.

ARTH 4613 (3 hours)
19th-Century European Art
Art and architecture from 1780 to 1880, from Neo-Classicism to Impressionism. Places art into broader cultural, historical, social , political context, examining various discourses that shaped 19th-century art: Enlightenment and French Revolution, classical revival, rise of Romanticism, encounter with new cultures, industrialization and urbanization, impact of photography, emergence of avant-garde.

ARTH 4803 (3 hours)
Special Topics in the History of Art
In-depth examination of special topics through study of primary and secondary sources, extensive class discussions, and independent research projects. Topics change each semester. Recent offerings include History of Gardens, History of Print, Contemporary Public Art Practices, and Art and Feminism.  Prerequisite: ARTH 2203 or 2223 or permission of instructor.

ARTH 4993 (3 hours)
Independent Study
Independent research on a specific topic in the history and criticism of art conducted under guidance of faculty. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.