Introduction to Printmaking

Catalog description

Instruction and practice in elementary printmaking and papermaking processes. ART 40 Introduction to Printmaking (3) (GA)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. ART 40 is intended as a general survey of the art of printmaking for non-majors. As a studio offering, emphasis is placed on hands-on studio activities, which promote visual literacy and sensitivity to the various printmaking conventions. Students are given the opportunity to briefly explore the various approaches to printmaking, which may utilize some or all of the following: screenprinting, relief, intaglio, lithography, and others. As well, slide presentations, studio visits and museum critiques will augment studio exercises to facilitate a greater awareness of the cultural context in which the art of printmaking functions.Students enrolled in this course will be required to participate in the following active learning components:1. Studio Printmaking Assignments: a) Screenprinting b) Relief c) Itaglio d) Lithography e) Others (collagraph, monotype, electrostatic, artists books)2. Creating a social and historical context for printmaking through slide presentations, studio visits and museum critiques: a) Slide presentations: students will be asked to consider the concepts of their creative projects in relationship to prints of historical and contemporary artists in order to understand the ways in which the two-dimensional aspects and various processes of printmaking convey meaning. b) Studio visits: Students will visit the personal studios of local printmakers to learn how professional artists develop best practices as related to the basic approaches to printmaking outlined above. Additionally, they will explore and discuss with these artists the concepts expressed in their printed images. c) Museum critiques: Museum visits will enable students to learn how to engage and respond to actual prints as compared with those that they experience as slide and book/journal reproductions. The role of museums and galleries in exhibiting prints will also be discussedGrading and evaluation: Students' printmaking projects will be evaluated according to the following criteria: 1) the uniqueness of the visual concepts developed in their studio assignments; 2) the strength of their visual compositions-their ability to communicate concepts clearly; 3) the quality of their craftsmanship-an effective use of materials and procedures and commitment to the studio assignments-the effort expended on each project; 4) Their willingness to participate in critique sessions-a thoughtful and informed interpretation of visual ideas in prints produced by them in class as well as those discussed during slide presentations, studio visits, and museum critiques.