ART 313 is an upper-division course you developed to help students build a deep historical understanding of graphic design as a driver of cultural, technological, and visual innovation. Through lectures, research, and hands-on style-recreation projects, students trace design’s evolution from ancient writing systems and illuminated manuscripts to Modernism, Postmodernism, and the digital revolution, using Meggs’ History of Graphic Design as a scholarly anchor. The curriculum emphasizes visual analysis, typographic systems, movements in global design, and the socio-technological conditions that give rise to new forms of communication. Students critically examine how designers throughout history have shaped public perception, systems of meaning, and visual culture—while also drawing connections to contemporary tools and workflows, including AI-assisted ideation and stylistic exploration in select assignments. By engaging both theory and practice, students gain the historical literacy, critical thinking skills, and contextual awareness necessary for informed, responsible, and innovative design work in today’s rapidly evolving creative landscape.

Art Nouveau Project – Alex Moore

Shannon Egyptian Motif

History of Design project using Egyptian motif

ART 316 is an upper-division studio course developed to teach typography as both a historical discipline and a contemporary design engine, combining technical training with conceptual exploration. Students study the evolution of type, font technologies, typographic anatomy, spacing systems, hierarchy, grid structures, and the integration of text with imagery while completing a series of hands-on projects that build precision and visual literacy. The curriculum emphasizes kerning, leading, tracking, type family relationships, OpenType features, and the nuanced decision-making that shapes clear, intentional communication. Digital workflows—including InDesign-based layout, typographic illustration, and non-print applications—prepare students for modern design environments. Select assignments incorporate AI-assisted ideation or typographic mood exploration to help students understand how emerging tools can influence process and form while reinforcing ethical authorship and typographic rigor. The course culminates in complex multi-page compositions and typographic systems that demonstrate students’ ability to apply type thoughtfully across media.

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Student-Typography-Sample-01

ART 322 is an introductory photography course developed to teach students how digital image-making functions at the intersection of technology, perception, and creative intent. The curriculum begins with DSLR fundamentals—aperture, shutter speed, ISO, focal length—and progresses through composition, framing, exposure, color management, and digital darkroom techniques including layering, masking, retouching, and tonal refinement. Students learn to evaluate photographic choices critically, articulate visual strategies using appropriate terminology, and shape images for both expressive and communicative purposes. To reflect contemporary workflows, select assignments incorporate AI-assisted reference generation or enhancement to help students compare traditional shooting/editing processes with emerging hybrid techniques while reinforcing ethical considerations and authorship. Through hands-on demonstrations, iterative projects, critiques, and portfolio refinement, students build the technical fluency, visual awareness, and adaptive mindset necessary for advanced photographic, design, and digital media courses.

Structural Posing Project

Studio Posing

Natural Light Posing

Developing a Shot List

ART 215 is a foundational design studio developed to cultivate the analytical, perceptual, and technical skills that anchor all upper-level creative practice. Through sequential projects exploring form, line, plane, texture, value, color theory, spatial organization, and compositional systems, students learn to think critically about visual structure and to apply design principles with clarity and intention. The course models professional design processes—iterative sketching, prototyping, critique, and portfolio development—while emphasizing the habits of sustained focus and reflective judgment essential to studio culture. To prepare students for contemporary creative environments, select exercises introduce AI-assisted ideation and reference-generation tools, allowing students to compare traditional exploratory methods with emerging technologies in a responsible, concept-driven framework. By the end of the course, students demonstrate strengthened problem-solving abilities, refined craftsmanship, and a deeper understanding of how visual systems function across both traditional and digital domains.

Mosaic Project

Papermache 3D Project

ART 211 is a foundational studio course designed to build the perceptual accuracy, visual reasoning, and disciplined craft that underpin all upper-level creative and design practice. The curriculum emphasizes observational drawing, value structure, perspective, spatial analysis, mark-making systems, and the translation of three-dimensional form into two-dimensional representation, while also encouraging students to explore conceptual approaches to imagery and meaning-making. Projects progress from fundamental exercises in line, proportion, and tonal rendering to more complex studies involving composition, narrative intent, and experimental media. To support contemporary practice, 1–2 assignments introduce AI-assisted reference generation and iterative ideation strategies, helping students evaluate and refine visual choices responsibly while maintaining a strong foundation in hand-drawn technique. Through critiques, research, and sustained studio practice, students develop confidence in visual communication, reflective judgment, and the technical fluency necessary for subsequent courses in illustration, design, animation, and advanced drawing.

Drawing Studio

Sketchbook Practice

Architectural Drawing Project

ART 318 is an upper-division studio course teaching students how advertising functions as a strategic design system rather than a collection of isolated visual artifacts. The curriculum guides students through the full lifecycle of an advertising campaign, including research, audience analysis, concept development, copywriting, visual strategy, media selection, and brand consistency across print, digital, web, and motion-based platforms. Students examine historical and contemporary advertising models while engaging in applied projects that simulate professional workflows such as creative briefs, storyboarding, campaign sequencing, and presentation to stakeholders. Ethical considerations, regulatory frameworks, and the cultural impact of advertising are embedded throughout the course to reinforce responsible practice. Select assignments incorporate AI-assisted ideation and rapid prototyping as contemporary extensions of brainstorming and campaign development, encouraging students to critically evaluate emerging tools without bypassing strategic thinking. By the end of the course, students demonstrate the ability to design cohesive, conceptually grounded advertising systems that balance creativity, persuasion, and strategic intent.