ARTS 280 - Advanced Studio in Painting and Drawing

Fall 2011 Topic: Painting: The Spectrum of Abstraction Just over a century ago, the first modern abstract painting was created. Despite cultural and technical developments since that time, many of the questions posed by early abstractionists still engage artists today — Can simple forms convey complex ideas and deep meaning? How does color alone influence perception? What role might this contemplative practice play in a rapidly changing world? Through a series of painting assignments, students will address these issues by creating art works that examine abstraction across various movements. We will explore fauvism, abstract expressionism and minimalism, along with other historical precedents. Investigation of contemporary themes will encourage experimentation with new concepts, materials and processes. Museum visits, short reading and writing assignments and dialogues will provide a critical context for these studies.  

Spring 2012 Topic: Encaustic Painting This course will examine encaustic’s venerable traditions, its rediscovery by modern practitioners, and the medium’s recent revitalization among contemporary artists.  Studio projects will investigate a variety of methods for working with molten wax and explore many of its most compelling properties — luminosity, translucency malleability and adhesion.  Sculpture, photography, printmaking, painting and drawing techniques will be employed to create works that combine multiple practices.

Prerequisites: ARTS 102, 132 or 133 strongly recommended.