ART111 - Communicating with Color & 2D Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): None
This course combines the application of color theory and introductory design principles. The function of traditional design principles incorporating color perception and color psychology give students a strong understanding of basic visual communication elements. Digital and traditional methods in design, color issues, and media manipulation are covered, along with designing for an ethnically diverse international audience.
ART121 - Beginning Drawing I
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): none
Is drawing a gift that has to come naturally? It is actually a skill like any other. This course will demonstrate how easily it can be learned. Drawing is as much about learning how to see and think about form and space as it is about technique. The drawing part itself is just marks on paper. Those marks come together to tell the viewer something about the world that the artist experienced. Drawing also gives one a deeper understanding of the subject being captured. As students progress through the exercises in this class, they will develop a better understanding of the forms being observed and become more skillful in representing them. Improving drawing skills on paper can improve digital drawing skills. ART121 is an introduction to basic drawing concepts and provides a basic foundation in drawing. The course emphasis will be on traditional compositional theory, drawing principles, fundamentals of observing and describing form. Students will gain a strong understanding of tonal and dimensional perspective.
ART260 - Art and Technology
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): None
Technology and artistic practice have always been closely linked together, from cave paintings to computers. The course will provide an overview of their intersections and overlaps throughout history, with an emphasis on the 20th century and on new technological developments and their integration in art research and production. It will unveil some art trends of more modern technological innovations such as the internet, cyborgs, virtual reality and genetic engineering. Students will be introduced to contemporary and historical directions and methodologies through seminar lectures, research resentations and a final project.
CIS100 - Beginning Web Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): none
This course lays the foundation for Web design and programming sequences by teaching students how to create and maintain static Web pages and websites. Students will design Web pages using XHTML and CSS in conformance with current and future Web standards, learn the basic underlying concepts of XML-based markup languages, Web page design, site design, usability, accessibility and best practices. They will also learn the basics of maintaining a site on the Web, including server technologies, the fundamentals of HTTP and FTP, and how search engines work.
MTM101 - Digital Imaging
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): none
This course is an overview of the primary industry software tool (Adobe Photoshop) used in the creation of 2D computer graphics. Students will learn the commands and interfaces of industry-standard raster graphics software applications in order to create and manipulate 2D images.
MTM105 - Code + Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): None
Within the context of emerging media forms, computational and procedural literacy are now critical skills for contemporary artists and designers. This class is an introduction to the basic programmatic structures emphasizing visual output and allows students to investigate the technical and aesthetic potential of programming as a creative practice. As a foundational course, this course introduces skills necessary for the future explorations into the aspects of interactivity, generative forms, visualization, digital fabrication, and physical computing.
ART131 - Algorithmic Art
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): none
Which is more important: An artwork that dynamically changes over time, or a finished product? Algorithmic (or generative) art is a new form of artistic creation that emphasizes the process of creating a work of art, rather than the final product. The course gives an overview of its historical perspective emphasizing the essential role of concept art as a direct precursor to the algorithmic art. Students will be encouraged to make artworks that evolve over time based on a clear set of instructions and often require an active role of the viewer/participant. As a final product, students will create an interactive digital piece that fulfills the framework of the class.
ART209 - Computer Typography and Layout Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): ART111, MTM235
This course is an introduction to computerized layout and typography principles. The emphasis is on the visual effects of type as a design and communication element. Students will form an understanding of the fundamental rules related to page layout and type design, the study of letterforms and the practical application of these principles through student projects. The primary focus of the instruction addresses how type is used in contemporary graphic design applications. Students explore the creation of informative, experimental and expressive typographic forms by using traditional and computer-generated techniques.
ART255 - Visual Communications/Graphics Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): MTM101
The course explores the principles and elements of design and challenges the student to produce creative compelling solutions for promoting a variety of products and services. The student will learn how to build brand recognition and corporate identity through individual and team projects. The course emphasizes aesthetics and visual problem solving including typographic issues, color management, hierarchy of information and effective layout.
MTM213 - 2D Vector Animation
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): MTM235
Students will learn techniques in animation using vector-based software such as editing symbols and instances, Flash vector drawing tools, staging, frames, motion and shape tweens, layers, foregrounds and backgrounds. Emphasis will be placed on the design, process and execution of Flash-based
movies through the use of crisp graphics, animation and sound.
MTM215 - Principles of Interactivity
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): None
As viewers increasingly take on roles of active participants in new technologies, the need has arisen for the assessment of the scope of interactive processes in the multitude of media such as computers, cinema, TV and web technologies, and virtual reality. The course traces the development of new media from their historical perspectives to their possible future developments within the framework of interactivity, and how participants' roles are going to evolve as new technologies emerge. This course will explore the criteria of meaningful interactions and will give students a basis for developing immersive interactive experiences.
MTM235 - Digital Illustration
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): None
This course is an overview of the primary industry software tool (Adobe Illustrator) used in the creation of 2D computer graphics. Students will learn the commands and interfaces of industry-standard vector graphics software applications in order to create and manipulate 2D images.
ART342 - Digital Painting
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): ART111, ART231, MTM101
This class explores the realms of digital artistic expression using the Wacom Tablet and programs such as Corel Painter X, Photo Shop and Illustrator. Students will study the traditional works of the masters and re-create them through entirely digital means. Knowledge of digital photography will be extremely helpful and necessary. Once students replicate the masters' works, they will then be free to create original designs.
MTM307 - Advanced Photoshop
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): MTM101
This course will take the student beyond the skills studied in the 2D Digital Graphics course. For those interested in pursuing a career in graphic or web design, it is necessary to gain experience using a graphical program such as Adobe Photoshop. Graphic design requires both artistic and technical skills in order to produce professional, technology-ready publications. By the end of the course, students will have extensive experience using Photoshop, including knowledge of the tools for photo retouching and enhancing photographs, painting tools and composite design using advanced knowledge of masks and channels. Students will also have created portfolio-level work.
MTM308 - Advanced Illustrator
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): MTM235
In this course, students will learn to use Adobe Illustrator to work with several graphic formats. Students will create dynamic effects using patterns and brushes. They will also use advanced text manipulation techniques to effectively integrate text into illustrations. Students will learn to create complex illustrations with primitive shapes, use intricate blending methods, define patterns, draw 3D shapes and work with special text effects. This course shows experienced Illustrator users how to include special effects and other advanced features in graphics and illustrations for publication and for the Web.
MTM310 - Aesthetic Principles of Interface Design
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): CIS100, MTM215
What is it that makes an engaging interface? What elements must be considered to hold user interest? This course explores the aesthetic and functional components associated with creating effective interfaces that encourage the user to be an active participant. Topics include product design, color and compositional ergonomics, and the design process as it relates to interaction with the content. Students will be involved in creating unique interface design solutions, as well as critiquing existing interfaces from a variety of media sources.
MTM372 - Interactive Multimedia Systems
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): ART360, AUD350, MTM371
This course walks students from conception to realization of an interactive multimedia system. Students will create and adapt non-traditional interfaces such as analog sensors, video tracking, audio analysis and Wacom tablets to interact with and manipulate the various media elements of their system. Topics covered include multimodal interface design and I/O mapping.
RBT307 - Physical Computing Studio
Credits: 3.00
Prerequisite(s): instructor approval
Interesting connections between the physical world and the computer world are investigated. Active sculpture, electronics based art, simple aesthetic machines and interactive art instillations are some of the topics that will be covered. Examples include projects that react to their environment. This
course assumes no prior electronics or programming experience, however, it will require instructor approval. Simple light/LED/relay control, small motors and servos, and simple sensors will also be covered. BASIC programming will be studied, as it applies to projects. Class interest will drive topics covered.Students will complete a project of their design by the end of the course.