ART 100 Art Appreciation
3 Semester Hours
This course is an introduction to the appreciation of art through an examination of the themes and purposes of art, the exploration of visual arts media and methods, and culturally significant works of art from the past and present. The course informs students about the language of art and its relevance in everyday life. Upon completion, students should understand the fundamentals of art the materials used and have a basic overview of the history of art.
Art History ART 203 & 204:
General Humanities credit. In ART 203 the students will get a brief overview of Art History from pre-historic cave art and Paleolithic sculpture to the Byzantine era, roughly 1300 ce. In ART 204 the students will get a brief overview of Art History from the Renaissance to the mid 20th century. It will deal with many of the same topics that Art Appreciation hits on, but in a chronologically driven way. The textbook is Gardner’s Art Through the Ages.
Drawing 1 & 2 ART 113-114:
General Humanities credit. Required foundations class for any Studio Art Concentration at four year institutions. Students will learn how to draw representational realism, expressive and conceptual themes using graphite, charcoal, india ink, pen, and subtractive techniques. Advanced students will try larger drawing formats, relief printmaking, grid techniques, and colored media like pastel, prismacolor, conte, and colored inks. Most assignments involve observational drawings from still lifes.
2-D Design ART 121:
General Humanities credit. Required foundations class for any Studio Art Concentration at four year institutions. Highly recommended for students interested in Graphic Design, Web Design, Interior Design, Fashion Design, Advertising or Marketing. Materials used will include acrylic paint, india ink, pen, rulers, and x-acto blades (among others). Students will learn the visual elements, the principles of design, emphasis, subordination, composition, pictorial balance, pattern, repetition, use of modules, color theory, and explore ethnographic art and design unique to other cultures or time periods. Drawing 1 is a pre-requisite, but if you contact Patrick Mayton or Camilla Avery prior to registration the pre-requisite can be waived.
3-D Design ART 127:
General Humanities credit. Required foundations class for any Studio Art Concentration at four year institutions. Highly recommended for students interested in Architecture, Industrial Design, Culinary Arts, Furniture Design, and Dentistry or Medical prosthetics and fabrication. Materials used will include Plaster of Paris, bailing wire, balsa wood, and foam core (among others). Students will learn the visual elements and principles of design as they apply to 3-Dimensional objects through both additive and subtractive sculpture techniques. Students will deal with positive and negative space, building armatures, casting, carving, and assemblage techniques. Drawing 1 is a pre- requisite, but if you contact Patrick Mayton or Camilla Avery prior to registration the pre-requisite can be waived.
Intro to Computer Graphics ART 220:
General Humanities credit. This class may or may not transfer to 4 year schools, depends on the program of study. ART 220 counts as an elective credit for the CIS program of study. This class introduces basic graphic design concepts and projects involve creating logos, creating DVD or video game packaging, magazine spreads, web pages, and toy packaging. Students will learn a rudimentary understanding of 3 Adobe programs: Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe In-Design.
Intro to Digital Photography ART 175:
General Humanities credit. This class requires that the student own their own digital SLR camera. The students will learn the Adobe Photoshop photo editing software, and will learn to manually operate their digital camera by taking a variety of photos involving movement, low light, different depths of field, color and black and white (among other techniques). This class may or may not transfer to 4 year schools (discretion of photo teacher at the other school), but it will help the students develop a competitive portfolio and give them the basic skills to present themselves as wedding and portrait photographers.
Animation ART 283 & ART 253:
General Humanities credit. Our animation program is offered at the Jefferson Campus and is taught both locally by Camilla Avery and via video conference every two weeks by instructors from Warner Brothers and Sony Pictures in California. This is a very unique animation program and we are the only university in Alabama that offers this course. Students will learn several animation programs including Acme and Toon Boom.
Pottery/Ceramics ART 143p:
General Humanities credit. Our pottery class is offered at the Shelby Campus and focuses on wheel throwing cups, plates, bowls, closed forms, and teapots; and also hand-building techniques like slab forms, coil building, pinch pots, and conceptual sculpture in clay. This class is a crafts class that may satisfy a humanities credit for some programs of study. Students will learn the vernacular unique to the discipline of ceramic art, and gain skills that can help them produce sellable art and join a cottage industry of functional and decorative ceramic art makers. This class is a recommended class for culinary arts majors, dentistry majors, and industrial design majors.
