University Bulletin (2023-2024)

FA 3a Introduction to Drawing I
[ ca ]

Beginning-level course. No previous drawing experience necessary. Preference to first-year students and sophomores. May be repeated once for credit if taught by different instructors.

A studio class that introduces a range of drawing materials and methods, intended for both studio majors and non-majors. Students will draw from direct observation of still-life, landscape, and the human figure. Drawing media may include graphite, charcoal, ink, and collage, as well as watercolor and pastel. The drawings of great artists throughout history will be studied to provide examples of what is possible within this broad and expressive visual language. Usually offered every semester.

Ariel Freiberg, Alfredo Gisholt, and Staff

FA 4a Sculpture Foundation: 3-D Design I
[ ca ]

Beginning-level course. Preference to first-year students and sophomores. May be repeated once for credit if taught by different instructors.

Exploration of three-dimensional aspects of form, space, and composition utilizing a variety of materials and sculptural techniques. Emphasizes students' inventing of images through the use of modern materials and contemporary ideas about sculpture. Assignments are based on abstract thought and problem solving. The intent of this course is to give students a rich studio experience and promote a fresh and meaningful approach to visual concepts. Usually offered every semester.
Tory Fair and Christopher Frost

FA 5a Sculpture: Utilizing Waste Stream Materials
[ ca ]

Encourages students to consider their studio practice through the lens of sustainability. Through out the semester, we will collaborate with the waste stream culture on campus to access materials for fabricating sculptural ideas and installations. Projects will be introduced through images and videos from contemporary artists that help inspire conversations as we move through the semester. A significant part of the course is participating in critique and trying to articulate what we see. Your skills will advance as a maker, and also as a more informed viewer. Usually offered every second year.
Tory Fair

FA 5b Sculpture: Blurring the Boundaries
[ ca ]

This studio course is an opportunity to work both in painting and in sculpture. Students are expected to create a dialogue between methods of collage, drawing, monotype, painting, and methods of constructing three-dimensional objects, including mixed media and installation. We use paintings as a source for sculpture, and sculpture as a source for painting. There will be an additional two hours of monitored shop time that students are required to attend weekly outside of scheduled class time. Usually offered every year.
Tory Fair and Christopher Frost

FA 6a Sculpture: Body as Source
[ ca ]

Explores how the body can be involved in the subject of making sculpture. Examines different ways in which the body is used as a source, including observation, process, fragmentation, narrative, and performance. Projects are introduced through slides from contemporary artists implementing the concepts put forth. Usually offered every second year.
Tory Fair

FA 7a Drawing Under the Influence
[ ca ]

This course is intended for first-year students and sophomores.

Explores various historical and contemporary ideas and techniques. Through differing art practices, students create unique works of art that integrate genres and time periods in the service of self-expression. Students will examine, study and recreate facsimiles from the Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassic eras as well as from Pop, Photorealist, Abstract Expressionist, and Minimalist movements. Usually offered every semester.
Joseph Wardwell

FA 8a Introduction to Video Art
[ ca dl ]

Explores producing moving images as fine art. While a basic overview of Adobe Premiere software is offered, emphasis is on conceptual framework and cultivating methodologies that best suit ideas. Students will experiment with materials, modes of production (performance, experimental documentation, appropriation, non-linear narrative), and exhibition (video monitors, projection, theatrical, installation, Internet) in order to consider the effect of these decisions on generating meaning and to better communicate one's statement through the genre. Usually offered every semester.
lauren woods

FA 9a Introduction to Digital Photography: Ethics of Photography
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: One studio art course, FA 3a - FA 28a. May be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.

An introduction to the visual forms and concepts of the photographic image. A range of digital techniques is covered along with aspects of the history of photography. Students must provide their own digital camera. Field trips and image presentations supplement the studio aspect of the course. Usually offered every semester.
Sheida Soleimani

FA 10a Intermediate Photography: Constructing Imagery
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: FA 9a.

This photo is a fake! Through examining the notion of artifice, the creation of a photograph can adopt an interdisciplinary practice. By constructing the subject of an image, we are able to mediate the idea of what exactly a photograph can be. We will be examining the history of the constructed image alongside artistic approaches to image making, involving intervention and manipulation of a subject. In direct opposition to the methods of the candid and documentary genres in photography and film, the constructed image depends on artifice and invention to create or manipulate the subject. This genre makes use of a vast range of techniques including staging, directing, collaging, sculpting and painting, as well as creating a performative studio-based practice, where images are fabricated instead of being "found."

Students will work independently to produce visual works demonstrating the concepts learned in class. Topics will include: the history and theory of the constructed image, lighting equipment and techniques, intro to film software, as well as philosophical and political perspectives in the history of the constructed image. By the end of this class, students are expected to have a series of images (still or moving) that utilize these techniques to create a coherent body of work. Through constructing these images, students will be able to create their own visual language to convey personal narratives and ideologies. Usually offered every third year.
Sheida Soleimani

FA 11a Beginning Painting: Visual Concepts
[ ca ]

Previous drawing experience recommended.

A 6-hour per week class recommended for Studio Art majors and minors, and other students with drawing or pre-college painting experience. Concepts of form, color theory, and composition will be introduced while working from landscape, still life and the figure. Museum trips and slide lectures will augment studio work. Usually offered every fall.
Ariel Frieberg and Staff

FA 11b Beginning Painting: Visual Possibilities
[ ca ]

Previous drawing experience recommended.

This is a six-hour per week studio class recommended for sophomore studio art majors or other students desiring an in-depth painting course. Color theory and various methods of oil painting will be introduced while working from landscape, still life, and the figure. Museum trips and slide lectures will augment studio work. Usually offered every spring.
Ariel Freiberg and Staff

FA 12a Printmaking: Intaglio
[ ca ]

Using the etching press in the Printmaking Studio, this course is an introduction to basic intaglio processes of drypoint and etching as well as monotype, carborundum prints and collograph. Students will work on metal, plastic or cardboard plates and make experimental, painterly images in both black and white, and color. Usually offered every year.
Sonia Almeida

FA 12b Printmaking: Woodcut and Relief
[ ca ]

Introduction to relief printmaking using linoleum and woodblock. Students become familiar with working in a print shop, how to use color in printmaking, planning images, direct drawing on wood, and how to critique printmaking in a group setting. Usually offered every year.
Sonia Almeida

FA 13a Intermediate Drawing I
[ ca ]

Previous drawing experience recommended.

Intended for students seeking drawing experience beyond FA 3a and for studio art majors. Various materials and methods of drawing are used, as historical and contemporary works are studied through slides and museum strips. Students hone basic skills and use drawing as an increasingly personal language. Usually offered every fall.
Alfredo Gisholt

FA 13b Drawing: Advanced Visual Concepts
[ ca ]

Previous drawing experience recommended.

Offers a wide range of experience in drawing. Perceptual and conceptual issues will be pursued, and students will be encouraged to concentrate on the more complex and creative aspects of drawing. Usually offered every spring.
Alfredo Gisholt

FA 14a Intermediate Painting: On Location
[ ca ]

Prerequisites: FA 11a or FA 11b, or permission of the instructor.

An intermediate-level painting course emphasizing the plastic and formal means necessary to create work that will become an increasingly personal statement. Usually offered every fall.
Staff

FA 14b Intermediate Painting: The Figure in Context
[ ca ]

Prerequisite: FA 11a or FA 11b, or permission of the instructor.

An intermediate-level painting course emphasizing the plastic and formal means necessary to create work that will become an increasingly personal statement. Usually offered every spring.
Staff

FA 16b Sculpture: Object in Clay
[ ca ]

With clay as the focused material, this course offers an in-depth examination of sculptural concepts ranging from object-making to site-specific works. Numerous techniques and processes will be introduced including hand-building, wheel-throwing, and working from the figure. Students will be encouraged to develop their own visual vocabulary and to understand their ideas in the context of contemporary sculpture. Usually offered every semester.
Christopher Frost

FA 17a Printmaking: Monotypes
[ ca ]

Offers a hands-on experimentation with Monotype Printing. Monotypes are unique images produced using a plate/matrix. Monotypes can be created on metal, glass, plexiglass or cardboard using subtractive, additive or a combination of multiple processes. Students will also explore collagraphs; a collagraph print is made from a collage of various materials glued together and inked, using relief, intaglio and embossing printing techniques on an etching press, creating dimensional prints. Usually offered every second year.
Sonia Almeida

FA 17b Printmaking: Silkscreen
[ ca ]

Explores silkscreen using photographic stencil techniques. Students learn how to create stencils that are handmade and computer-generated. The relationship between fine art and commercial printing is discussed. Usually offered every second year.
Sonia Almeida

FA 27b Book Arts and Editions
[ ca ]

Hands-on exploration of the book format and artist book editions, including a brief introduction to the history and aesthetics of bookmaking. Students will learn about the form and structure of the book, sequencing, page layout and binding techniques, by doing their own books in class. The class includes demonstrations of various techniques, adhesive and non-adhesive bindings, sewn binding (single/multiple structures), experimental object-book formats and the preparation/layout of a book editions. No previous experience required. Usually offered every year.
Sonia Almeida

FA 28a Painting Siena
[ ca ]

Course to be taught at Brandeis program in Siena.

Explores the unique cultural and artistic contributions of Siena, Italy. Students will study and practice traditional and contemporary painting techniques with excursions to visit masterworks and experience the cultural life of the medieval city. Usually offered every year.
Joseph Wardwell and Staff

FA 92a Internship and Analysis in Studio Art

Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 98a Independent Study in Studio Art

Prerequisites: Normally open only to studio majors in their junior and senior years. As the number of times FA 98a may be taken is limited by department regulations, the interested student should consult the department studio advising head and his or her adviser.

Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 99a Senior Research in Studio Art

Prerequisites: A GPA in fine arts courses of 3.00.

Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 99b Senior Research in Studio Art

Prerequisites: A GPA in fine arts courses of 3.00. Interested studio students must take FA 99a in the fall semester of their senior year, in addition to FA 110a and 110b. At the beginning of the spring semester, students wishing to pursue honors will have their artwork reviewed by studio faculty. Based on this review, eligible students will be given permission to enroll in FA 99b for the spring semester.

Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 110a Senior Studio I
[ ca ]

Prerequisite: Instructor permission.

FA 110a and FA 110b are considered two halves of a full-year experience required for studio art majors. Heuristic in nature, this course culminates in a final studio faculty review of the work produced. Review will take the form of an exhibition. Student work can be undertaken in sculpture or painting or a combination of both. Usually offered every fall.
Sheida Soleimani and Joseph Wardwell

FA 110b Senior Studio II
[ ca ]

Prerequisite: Instructor permission.

FA 110a and FA 110b are considered two halves of a full-year experience required for studio art majors. Heuristic in nature, this course culminates in a final studio faculty review of the work produced. Review will take the form of an exhibition. Student work can be undertaken in sculpture or painting or a combination of both. Usually offered every spring.
Sheida Soleimani and Joseph Wardwell

FA 118a Studio Seminar
[ ca oc ]

Introduces students to crucial facets of a successful studio practice that happen concurrently, and in dialogue with art making. Writing, reading, communication, and professional practices will be explored as ways of bolstering students' understanding of their own studio practice within the wider history of art and particularly within the context of contemporary art. Usually offered every year.
lauren woods

FA 119b Professional Practice in Art
[ ca wi ]

This is an introductory course to business practices of working artists and arts professionals for students who plan to pursue cultural work/production professionally. Part seminar, part laboratory, students will gain practical experience through hands-on writing exercises while contemplating the philosophical ramifications of what it means to be a contemporary practicing cultural worker through the course's curated reading material and discussion. We will explore diverse modes of professional engagement as well as various opportunities/possibilities, in and outside of traditional art world structures. Usually offered every year.
lauren woods

FA 210a Post-Baccalaureate Studio

Post-baccalaureate studio art students should enroll in FA 210a in the fall and FA 210b in the spring. Studio faculty are available to meet with students for individual critiques. Participation in these studio visits, as well as group critiques, visiting artists' lectures, and field trips are considered part of these courses. Usually offered every year.

Staff

FA 220a Post Baccalaureate Studio Critique
[ ca ]

Introduces Post Baccalaureate students to crucial facets of a successful discussion and critique practice that happen concurrently, and in dialogue with art making. Communication will be explored as ways of bolstering students' understanding of their own studio practice within the wider history of art and particularly within the context of contemporary art. During group critiques, students are expected to critique both their own work and that of their peers. Students will be engaged in weekly active critique of their work and the work of their peers. Developing good critique skills will involve both one-on-one studio visits and group critique. Usually offered every year.
Ariel Freiberg

AAAS/FA 75b History of African American Art
[ ca deis-us ]

"Black art has always existed," stated artist Romare Bearden. "It just hasn't been looked for in the right places." This course examines how Black artists in the U.S. explore beauty, individuality, justice and other themes through personal, racial, and societal lenses. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

FA 23b Architectural Drawing and Digital Design I
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Only Architectural Studies IIM students may take both FA 23b and FA 24a for credit.

Intended to develop new skills in conceptualizing, designing, and communicating architectural ideas. Students will be exposed to conceptual strategies of form and space and site relationships within social and environmental factors. Students will study the basic techniques and concepts of architectural design and digital drawing, with two and three-dimensional representation skills. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 24a Architectural Drawing and Digital Design II
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Only Architectural Studies IIM students may take both FA 23b and FA 24a for credit.

Intended to develop new skills in conceptualizing, designing, and communicating architectural ideas. Students will be exposed to conceptual strategies of form and space and site relationships within social and environmental factors. Students will study the basic techniques and concepts of architectural design and digital drawing, with two and three-dimensional representation skills. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 30b History of Western Art II: From the Renaissance to the Modern Age
[ ca ]

Open to all students; first-year students and sophomores are encouraged to enroll.

A study of the major styles in architecture, painting, and sculpture of the West from the Renaissance to the early twentieth century. Usually offered every year.
Peter Kalb or Jonathan Unglaub

FA 149a The Age of Rubens, Rembrandt and Vermeer
[ ca wi ]

Explores the major figures of seventeenth-century painting in the Netherlands and Flanders: Rubens, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, and Vermeer. During this time, the ideal of Renaissance painter/courtier gives way to the birth of the modern artist in an open market, revolutionizing the subjects, themes, and styles of painting. Usually offered every second year.
Jonathan Unglaub

FA 171b Buddhist Art
[ ca nw ]

Surveys Buddhist art and architecture in different parts of the world. Primarily, religious buildings, artworks, and monuments from South Asia, Southeast Asia, and East Asia will be examined within their historical, cultural, and social contexts. Usually offered every fourth year.
Staff

FA 173b Art in Shanghai
[ ca nw ]

Examines the art and visual culture of Shanghai'China's symbol of modernity'from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth centuries, encompassing painting, architecture, calligraphy, fashion, advertising, among other topics. Usually offered every third year.
Aida Wong

FA 177b French Connection in Modern East Asian Art
[ ca djw ]

Examines the encounter of East Asian artists with France, Paris in particular, since the late nineteenth century. It deals with a range of artistic expressions, focusing on painting, but also covering fashion design, architecture, and conceptual art. Usually offered every third year.

Aida Yuen Wong

FA 178b Seminar on Chinese Calligraphy and Practice
[ ca nw oc ]

Prerequisite: Some knowledge of reading Chinese. May not be taken for credit by students who took FA 191a in prior years.

Introduces the major scripts and canonical works of Chinese calligraphy. Besides studying historical developments, students gain hands-on experience with producing their own works. The class combines theory and practice to advance understanding of the aesthetic, critical language, and the functions of this enduring art. Usually offered every second year.
Aida Wong

FA 187a Approaches to Architecture and the City
[ ca ]

Trains students in developing the ability to conduct architectural and urban analysis of the built environment. Through a comparative case-study approach, based on selected readings, real spaces, and creative projects, students will better understand architectural and urban design in relation to social, cultural, human, and political aspects. Usually offered every year.
Staff

FA 193a Studies in Modern and Contemporary Architecture
[ ca oc wi ]

Topics may vary from year to year; the course may be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.

Usually offered every third year.
Staff

FA 199a Methods and Approaches in the History of Art
[ ca dl wi ]

Prerequisite: One course in Art History and instructor permission.

Explores various ways of analyzing works of art and provides an overview of the historical development of the discipline. Designed specifically for junior and senior art history majors. Usually offered every year.

Jonathan Unglaub or Staff

FA 8a Introduction to Video Art
[ ca dl ]

Explores producing moving images as fine art. While a basic overview of Adobe Premiere software is offered, emphasis is on conceptual framework and cultivating methodologies that best suit ideas. Students will experiment with materials, modes of production (performance, experimental documentation, appropriation, non-linear narrative), and exhibition (video monitors, projection, theatrical, installation, Internet) in order to consider the effect of these decisions on generating meaning and to better communicate one's statement through the genre. Usually offered every semester.
lauren woods

FA 9a Introduction to Digital Photography: Ethics of Photography
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: One studio art course, FA 3a - FA 28a. May be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.

An introduction to the visual forms and concepts of the photographic image. A range of digital techniques is covered along with aspects of the history of photography. Students must provide their own digital camera. Field trips and image presentations supplement the studio aspect of the course. Usually offered every semester.
Sheida Soleimani

FA 10a Intermediate Photography: Constructing Imagery
[ ca dl ]

Prerequisite: FA 9a.

This photo is a fake! Through examining the notion of artifice, the creation of a photograph can adopt an interdisciplinary practice. By constructing the subject of an image, we are able to mediate the idea of what exactly a photograph can be. We will be examining the history of the constructed image alongside artistic approaches to image making, involving intervention and manipulation of a subject. In direct opposition to the methods of the candid and documentary genres in photography and film, the constructed image depends on artifice and invention to create or manipulate the subject. This genre makes use of a vast range of techniques including staging, directing, collaging, sculpting and painting, as well as creating a performative studio-based practice, where images are fabricated instead of being "found."

Students will work independently to produce visual works demonstrating the concepts learned in class. Topics will include: the history and theory of the constructed image, lighting equipment and techniques, intro to film software, as well as philosophical and political perspectives in the history of the constructed image. By the end of this class, students are expected to have a series of images (still or moving) that utilize these techniques to create a coherent body of work. Through constructing these images, students will be able to create their own visual language to convey personal narratives and ideologies. Usually offered every third year.
Sheida Soleimani

CLAS 111a Art and Archaeology of the Hellenistic World
[ hum ]

Surveys the art and archaeology of the Hellenistic world (including Greece, western and central Asia, north Africa, and Italy) focusing on the 4th century Mediterranean leading up to the conquests of Alexander the Great (336-323 BCE) and the kingdoms of his successors until the death of Cleopatra in 30 BCE. A major theme throughout this course will be the global culture of the cosmopolitan world created by Alexander the Great. Other themes will include encounters between varying cultural traditions, how material correlates of identity played out in all levels of society, and how the art, artifacts, and architecture of the Hellenistic communities were used to assert themselves in a rich multi-cultural environment. We will cover the elite, domestic, and funerary architectural remains associated with the Hellenistic kingdoms, as well as their material culture in the forms of mosaics, sculpture, and other portable artifacts. Usually offered every second year.

Alexandra Ratzlaff

CLAS 133a The Art and Archaeology of Ancient Greece
[ ca hum ]

Surveys the main forms and styles of Greek art and architecture from the Bronze Age through the Hellenistic period in mainland Greece and on the islands of the Aegean. Archaeological remains and ancient literary evidence help explore the relationships between culture, the visual arts, and society. Usually offered every second year.
Alexandra Ratzlaff or Staff

FA 119b Professional Practice in Art
[ ca wi ]

This is an introductory course to business practices of working artists and arts professionals for students who plan to pursue cultural work/production professionally. Part seminar, part laboratory, students will gain practical experience through hands-on writing exercises while contemplating the philosophical ramifications of what it means to be a contemporary practicing cultural worker through the course's curated reading material and discussion. We will explore diverse modes of professional engagement as well as various opportunities/possibilities, in and outside of traditional art world structures. Usually offered every year.
lauren woods

FA 149a The Age of Rubens, Rembrandt and Vermeer
[ ca wi ]

Explores the major figures of seventeenth-century painting in the Netherlands and Flanders: Rubens, Van Dyck, Rembrandt, and Vermeer. During this time, the ideal of Renaissance painter/courtier gives way to the birth of the modern artist in an open market, revolutionizing the subjects, themes, and styles of painting. Usually offered every second year.
Jonathan Unglaub

FA 155a Impressionism: Avant-Garde Rebellion in Context
[ ca wi ]

Focuses on major 19th century artists in France, from the innovation of Edouard Manet to the formation of the group called the Impressionists. Study of the series of independent exhibitions, mounted between 1874 - 1886, and organized by the unlikely allies Edgar Degas and Claude Monet, including women artists Morisot and Cassatt. Also analysis of the influence of Japanese art from abroad, and the new 'objective' style, shaped in part by the invention of photography, will be a focus. The next generation - Cézanne, Gauguin, Seurat, and Van Gogh - develop stylistic ideas out of Impressionism, and re-shape its aims. Usually offered every third year.
Staff

FA 156b Postimpressionism and Symbolism, 1880-1910
[ ca wi ]

Artists Vincent Van Gogh, Gauguin, Seurat and Cézanne, first identified with Post-Impressionism, are contextualized with Toulouse-Lautrec and others who defined the French art world before 1900. Symbolism has its roots in the art work of Redon, Van Gogh and above all Gauguin, here studied in context with poetry and art criticism of the times. The Expressionist move toward an abstract idiom in Norway, Germany and Austria will focus on Edvard Munch and Gustav Klimt. Decorative styles such as Art Nouveau and Jugendstil define the bridge to the 20th century. The course ends with early 20th century masters, Matisse and the Fauves, and finally German Expressionism. Usually offered every fourth year.
Staff

FA 191b Studies in Renaissance and Baroque Art
[ ca oc wi ]

Preference to Fine Arts majors and minors, Italian Studies minors, and Medieval and Renaissance minors only. Topics may vary from year to year; the course may be repeated for credit as topics change.

Usually offered every third year.
Jonathan Unglaub

FA 193a Studies in Modern and Contemporary Architecture
[ ca oc wi ]

Topics may vary from year to year; the course may be repeated for credit with permission of the instructor.

Usually offered every third year.
Staff

FA 199a Methods and Approaches in the History of Art
[ ca dl wi ]

Prerequisite: One course in Art History and instructor permission.

Explores various ways of analyzing works of art and provides an overview of the historical development of the discipline. Designed specifically for junior and senior art history majors. Usually offered every year.

Jonathan Unglaub or Staff

FA 118a Studio Seminar
[ ca oc ]

Introduces students to crucial facets of a successful studio practice that happen concurrently, and in dialogue with art making. Writing, reading, communication, and professional practices will be explored as ways of bolstering students' understanding of their own studio practice within the wider history of art and particularly within the context of contemporary art. Usually offered every year.
lauren woods

FA 220a Post Baccalaureate Studio Critique
[ ca ]

Introduces Post Baccalaureate students to crucial facets of a successful discussion and critique practice that happen concurrently, and in dialogue with art making. Communication will be explored as ways of bolstering students' understanding of their own studio practice within the wider history of art and particularly within the context of contemporary art. During group critiques, students are expected to critique both their own work and that of their peers. Students will be engaged in weekly active critique of their work and the work of their peers. Developing good critique skills will involve both one-on-one studio visits and group critique. Usually offered every year.
Ariel Freiberg