A foundational course that explores observational strategies and theories of perception using a range of drawing tools. Project work is focused on observational drawing methods with attention to the articulation of line, shape, time, form, gesture, perspective, and value. In-class drawing exercises, weekly homework assignments, and group critiques address a variety of approaches to image making and visual expression, with some attention put towards the human figure. Aimed at first years and sophomores and those considering majors in Studio Art or Architecture. Also recommended for those considering majors in Media Arts and Sciences, or Art History.

Photo I is a foundational studio course exploring key methods and concepts in analog photography and visual media. Technical skills will be addressed through camera and darkroom work and the discussion of photographic images. Studio assignments, readings, discussions, lectures, gallery visits, and critiques will help students understand photography's broader role in contemporary art, history, and society. Aimed for first year and sophomore students, and those pursuing majors in Studio Art, MAS, or CAMS.

This foundational studio course addresses the issue of composition in two-dimensional media. It focuses on the fundamental elements of visual design (e.g., line, shape, value, space, color) and their compositional impact. Studio projects emphasize visual problem-solving skills as a means of achieving more effective communication, with some attention to the issues of typography. Assignments explore a range of media and encourage creative experimentation with both analog and digital processes.

This introductory, time-based media production course explores motion graphics, performance art, social practice, installation, Internet art, game design, animation, and the expanding digital domain of 'new media.' The focus will be on experimental, artistic practice using various methods of animation, video, and motion graphics. Studio projects will utilize Photoshop, Maya, Animate, and other imaging and audio programs. Aimed for first and second-year students.

This studio course addresses the theoretical and practical aspects of the manufacture, publication, distribution, and survival of the book. Studio projects in Clapp Library's Book Arts Lab explore themes such as the evolution of the book form, the sequencing of image and text, and the relationship between form and content. Class sessions will feature demonstrations, visiting artists, and presentation of Special Collections materials. Readings and studio projects culminate in a book-based studio project. The knowledge base and skills acquired in this course can be applied to advanced coursework in a variety of disciplines.

This introductory course explores the basic formal and spatial considerations when working with three-dimensional structure and form. Studio projects incorporate a range of materials and methods of visualization. Outside assignments and class discussions are aimed toward helping students enhance their creativity and spatial awareness while acquiring sensitivity for placement, process, and materials. Required for Architecture majors.

Time-Based Media I provides a focused introduction to the creation and analysis of video art within contemporary screen culture. The course bridges technical proficiency with creative theory by linking the history of the medium to modern media consumption, from traditional cinema to social media formats. Students explore themes of identity, performance, and social issues, learning to transform everyday experiences into meaningful artistic projects. A practical focus of this introductory class is building professional digital habits and understanding how the moving image fits into different worlds, including cinema, art galleries, and live performances. Through weekly screenings, student presentations, and discussions, students develop the creative and critical skills needed to navigate today’s visual landscape. 

This introductory course explores video as an art form. Organized around a series of assignments designed to survey a range of production strategies, the course is a primer to the technical and conceptual aspects of video production and to its historical, critical, and technical discourse. Relationships between video and television, film, installation, and performance art are investigated emphasizing video as a critical intervention in social and visual arts contexts. Weekly readings, screenings, discussions and critique, explore contemporary issues in video and help students develop individual aesthetic and critical skills. Practical knowledge is integrated through lighting, video/sound production and editing workshops.

Photo I is a foundational studio course exploring key methods and concepts in analog photography. Technical skills will be addressed through camera and camera-less work and traditional darkroom practices. Studio assignments, readings, discussions, lectures, and group critiques will enable students to develop the conceptual, aesthetic, and critical skills necessary for understanding photography's broader role in contemporary art, history, and society. Aimed for first-year and sophomore students, and those pursuing majors in ARTS, MAS, or CAMS.

An intensive, intermediate studio course addressing a range of contemporary drawing approaches, with considerable attention put towards color, graphic production and mixed media pictorial strategies. Project work integrates print and digital design tools with freehand drawing in various media. Weekly assignments, readings, and studio discussions consider the graphic conventions inherent to reproducible media. Building on fundamental concepts introduced at the 100 level (particularly in ARTS 105 and ARTS 109), this course helps students strengthen and expand their personal drawing practice and connect it to a wider range of creative disciplines that integrate hand and machine.

This intermediate level studio course addresses a range of sculptural approaches by way of various materials, including clay, wood, metal, plaster, and cardboard. Each of these materials will be used to explore a specific technique or sculptural method such as carving, modeling, or fabrication. By the end of the semester, emphasis shifts towards the completion of more independent projects and conceptual questions regarding the tangible impact of materials, functions, and histories on sculptural artworks.

Photo II focuses on digital photography, photographic color theory, studio and location lighting, digital retouching, inkjet printing, and Adobe software. Assignments address contemporary and historic theories of photography as contemporary art and the aesthetic and cultural implications of the ubiquity of digital photography. Studio assignments, readings, discussions, lectures, gallery visits, and critiques will help students prepare for project-based work.

An intermediate studio course designed for architecture and studio art majors wishing to strengthen their visual and spatial responsiveness. Class work explores various forms of drawing in two and three dimensions, including basic architectural rendering, fixed viewpoint perspective, mapping, modeling, and some digital work. Following a series of projects and discussions considering issues of space and place, the physicality of space, and our historic relationship to architecture, each student produces a self-directed final project. Strongly recommended for architecture majors before enrolling in the architectural design sequence at MIT.

Understanding the human form through sustained observational drawing, research, and experimentation. An intensive, mixed media drawing course that balances careful visual analysis with empathetic, gestural response. Tactile, experiential drawing exercises are complemented by shared readings and research addressing questions of representation in art and cultural conceptions of the body.

An intermediate studio course centered on the fundamental issues of painting, emphasizing color, composition, and paint manipulation through direct observation and response. Studio assignments, presentations, discussions and critiques help students gain technical skills, visual sophistication, and critical awareness of the medium. Students paint from a variety of subjects, including the self-portrait, nude model, and still life.

This intermediate level studio course centers on forms of hand printing, from stone and plate lithography to screen printing and pochoir. Projects incorporate image/text juxtapositions, color theory, digital photo processes, zines and vector based graphics using the extensive Dactyl Press facilities. Field trips, readings, and collaborative print exchanges complement the individual studio assignments. Recommended for students interested in drawing, design, architecture, media arts, book studies, and art history.

A studio exploration of intaglio and relief printing methods, including copperplate etching, collograph, and woodcut. Students develop visual and graphic flexibility through hands-on projects considering image sequences, pattern, text, and multiples. Several projects address color and typography and/or incorporate digital methods. Students participate in a collaborative print exchange in addition to completing individual projects. ARTS 219, ARTS 220, and ARTS 221 are complementary graphic arts courses and may be elected in any order.

Introduction to artistic production through electronic imaging, manipulation, and output. Emphasis on expression, continuity, and sequential structuring of visuals through the integration of image, text, and motion. Image output for print, screen, and adaptive surfaces are explored in conjunction with production techniques of image capture, lighting, and processing. Lectures and screenings of historic and contemporary uses of technology for artistic and social application of electronic imaging.

This intermediate studio course is centered on the relationship between text and image through letterpress relief printing techniques and handmade book structures. Studio projects will include the production of limited edition artist's books that focus on the interplay of two and three dimensions in the book form. Emphasis will be placed on creative problem solving within the limitations of technology, and on the importance of the act of revision. Class sessions in the Papermaking Studio and Special Collections will augment intensive studio work in the Book Arts Lab.

This intermediate studio course explores new hybrid approaches to graphic thinking, integrating traditional and new print technologies in experimental ways. Students develop greater visual and conceptual range in the Dactyl Press studios while developing iterative projects involving color, text-based art, handmade books, and installations. Some projects explore photo-digital print processes, laser-cutting, and vector graphics. Readings, discussions, critiques, demonstrations, and collaborative exchanges consider the ongoing impact of media culture. Especially recommended for students interested in design, architecture, media arts, and book studies.

This interdisciplinary studio art course invites students to explore the intricate connections between art, disability, and medical experiences. Designed for those with lived experiences or a keen interest in these areas, the course seeks to foster a supportive community for open discussion and creative experimentation. Students will engage in hands-on projects that reflect diverse embodied experiences while examining themes of identity, healing, and representation. Through critical readings, collaborative studio work, and interactions with local organizations, students will develop artworks that challenge societal norms surrounding disability and illness. By integrating theory with practice, participants will cultivate a deeper understanding of how art serves as a powerful medium for expression and empowerment.

Critical examination of the expanding field of information and interface design for interactive media. Emphasis will be on effective visual communication, information design, and creative content creation for online and digital platforms. Hands-on production will focus on design methods, theory, limitations leading to innovative approaches. Screenings and discussions on contemporary practices, theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues.

Creative exploration of the moving image as it relates to digital methods of animation, video, and motion graphics. Hands-on production of audio, image, text, and time-based media synthesis, with a conceptual emphasis on nonlinear narrative, communication design, and visual expression. Screenings and lectures on historical and contemporary practices, coupled with readings and discussions of the theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues in the moving image.

This intermediate course focuses on the creation of film and video projects that combine performance, installation, and analog media. Students examine interdisciplinary approaches to working with the moving image by linking contemporary digital tools to their historical and analogue foundations. By experimenting with different genres such as narrative, documentary and experimental and techniques such as looping, physical interventions on film, and the body in space, students learn to manipulate sound and image both technically and conceptually. Through assignments, production exercises, readings and lectures, this class encourages students to approach their projects considering how the moving image occupies space as much as it occupies a screen and to think about their work with film and video as a deliberate construction of space and experience. 

An intermediate level studio that guides students through different approaches to film/video production while challenging linear narrative and documentary conventions. Students experiment with non-narrative approaches to content, structure, and technique. Investigations of space and performance are informed by poetry, literature, sound, color, fragmentation, and abstraction. Building upon the historical legacy of the moving image, students incorporate self-exploration, social critique, and manipulation of raw experience into an aesthetic form. Students develop independent or collaborative moving image and/or performance projects and articulate their artistic process through a series of presentations and critiques.

An exploration of sculptural concepts utilizing a variety of materials and methods. This course will integrate the constructed and tangible, with process and practice, culminating in the development of independent projects. Emphasis will be placed on conceptual considerations, such as audience, context/location, materials, functionality, and histories.

Advanced explorations of aesthetic and content issues through the use of both traditional light-sensitive and digital methodologies. Advanced photographic techniques and equipment will be presented in response to each student's work. Continued emphasis is placed on research into the content and context of the photographic image in contemporary practice through visiting artist events as well as gallery and museum visits.

Introduction to the design and production of three-dimensional objects and spaces using industry-standard modeling software. Overview of basic modeling, surface design, and camera techniques. Emphasis on creative application of the media, in relation to architectural, experimental, and time-based forms. Screenings and lectures on traditional and contemporary practices, coupled with readings and discussions of the theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues in the virtual world.

An intensive studio course for juniors and seniors, considering the visual, conceptual, and spatial issues driving contemporary drawing practices. This course explores the act of drawing as a speculative and critical thinking process as well as a visual language. Class work addresses various observational and technical methods as well as reciprocities between sound, drawing, and time, and/or drawing and materiality. In-depth studio critiques, field trips, and interaction with visiting artists and musicians augment the projects. Following a period of intense studio exploration and dialogue, each student develops and hones an independent, cohesive body of work.

A project-based course that examines in depth the history and the processes of painting. This studio provides an opportunity for advanced students to share their painting practice and benefit from intensive and well-informed critical dialogue. The group interacts in a seminar fashion, in which topics and problems are presented and students are asked to develop independent projects examining them. Students explore painting as object, painting in space, site specificity, and consider the impact of digital technologies on image making. Each student will continue to explore elements pertaining to the construction of painting while developing an independent vocabulary and a substantial, cohesive body of work.

Part I of a year-long seminar supporting advanced studio students, divided into one half-credit course offered during the Fall semester and one half-credit in the Spring. This methodology-based course functions as an overlay to advanced studio projects underway in the context of 300 level studio classes and thesis projects. Students enrolled in the course will have access to independent workspace for the year and benefit from sustained dialogue and studio critiques with a range of faculty and visiting artists, including those hosted through the Frank Williams Visiting Artist Lecture Series. This course is mandatory for all Studio Art majors and strongly recommended for Studio Art minors and related visual arts majors.

Part II of a year-long seminar supporting advanced students, divided into one half-credit offered during the fall semester and one half-credit course in the spring leading towards the senior exhibition in May. This methodology-based course functions as an overlay to advanced projects underway in the context of advanced studio classes or thesis projects. Students enrolled in the course will have access to independent workspace and benefit from sustained dialogue and studio critiques with a range of faculty and visiting artists, including those hosted through the Frank Williams Visiting Artists Lecture Series. This course is mandatory for all Studio Art majors and strongly recommended for Studio Art minors and related visual arts majors.

Various topics in New Media are explored through research, creative activity, and theoretical discussion. Topics address historical as well as contemporary issues that bridge art and technology. This is an advanced level New Media course giving students the opportunity to focus on personal projects, explore contemporary and historical new media concepts as well as receive critiques from other students. Topics covered will focus on media history and research, contemporary intermedia artists, designers, thinkers and scientists, along with readings and discussions. Collaboration will be encouraged between Studio Art, Architecture, Music, CAMS, Media Arts, Theater and Computer Science. This course may be used to fulfill the capstone requirement for MAS.

What are graphic conventions and how do print methods inform contemporary artistic inquiry? A conceptually driven studio aimed for juniors and seniors who have successfully completed at least one graphics based studio course course at the 200 level. Readings, discussions, and field trips address sequential imagery, text/image interactions and the use of multiplicity in a range of visual formats, from the artist book to the site-based installation. Following a period of interactive studio experimentation and dialogue, each student develops a comprehensive self-directed project using the Dactyl Press facilities. May be repeated for degree credit.

Print studios are packed with metaphors of travel, and for good reason: the layered, iterative movement of an image from here to there is the central narrative guiding all graphic production. This topic driven, advanced studio course is aimed for juniors and seniors who can demonstrate previous experience in at least one print-based medium and are ready to pursue more independent project work. Students share a dialogue with visiting artists considering theories of travel while developing sustained, self-directed projects in reproducible print media. Studio research will be complemented by discussions, critiques, readings, and field trips. Recommended for Studio and Architecture majors, this course may be used to fulfill the capstone requirement for the MAS major.

This advanced, project-based course is aimed at students able to work independently in one of two broad categories of contemporary art-making: Drawing (including visual art, new media art, architecture, sculpture, and/or art theory) and Sound (composition, performance, analog or digital sound production, and/or sound studies). Together we will explore elements such as rhythm, line, space, and composition from the perspectives of sound studies and drawing, focusing in particular on the graphic mark. Students will interact with several visiting artists, and will visit working artists in their studios and observe relevant art installations and performances. Students will develop semester-long studio projects, which will be supplemented by discussions, critiques, and readings.

This advanced-level projects class centers on the production and critique of individual lens-based media, including film/video, photography, and digital time-based media. Students will develop semester-long projects and will articulate their artistic process through a series of presentations and critiques over the semester structured alongside screenings, readings, invited lectures, and discussions that investigate various positions from artists and directors on the dynamics of space on screen. This is a project-based rather than an assignment-based class, and students will be encouraged to try new techniques and exercises as their work progresses over the semester. Students work individually and in groups and will participate in their peers' production exercises.

This advanced-level studio class is for students interested in exploring the relationship between architecture, narrative and digital space. The class will begin with research into filmic environments that utilize place, architecture and objects as narrative tools. We will look at the use of interiors and exteriors, circulation between spaces, and the use of props and/or computer generated imagery to create space. Our focus will be on the construction of cinematic space as a formal and conceptual component of storytelling. Using architecture, installation, performance, film, and literature as guides to navigating both constructed and conceptual landscapes, students projects will explore advanced strategies of image and sound manipulation, both technical and conceptual. Students will develop semester-long projects and will articulate their artistic process through a series of presentations and critiques over the semester focusing on a project that integrates digital and physical narrative spaces.