Prerequisite/Corequisite Key
| P = Course must be taken previously | C = Course must be taken concurrently | E = Course can be taken previously or concurrently |
| (RQ) = Required | (RM) = Recommended |
ART 100
Visual Communication
3 credit hours
This course is an introduction to basic visual communication in a variety of media formats, including the still, moving and interactive image. Theoretical, historical and perceptual models of visual communication will be covered. Students will be engaged in the creation, execution and analysis of visual presentations. This course is not for art majors. Studio.
ART 101
Drawing I
3 credit hours
This course is an introduction to the basic elements, techniques and media of drawing. Emphasis is on the role of perception. Group critiques help students assess the effectiveness of their efforts. Studio.
ART 103
Introduction to Art
3 credit hours
This course is a survey course covering the basic principles underlying the arts and their application to selected examples of architecture, sculpture, painting and graphic arts. This course is not for art majors.
ART 105
Painting I
3 credit hours
This course is an introduction to the general techniques and uses of acrylic and oil painting and will explore visual painting problems and ideas. Studio.
ART 106
Introduction to Game Design Introduction to Game Design
3 credit hours
An introduction to the gaming industry pipeline focusing on pre-production. Topics include: game design, concept art, character creation, storyboard formats, terminology, and animatics.
ART 108
Art in Virtual Reality
3 credit hours
This is an introductory level 3D animation course using industry standard techniques and principles and applying them to action sequences to characters. The class focuses on using the principles to create realistic actions in characters.
ART 111
Introduction to Film Analysis
3 credit hours
This course will introduce the field of film studies, including the formal analysis of film, film style, national cinemas and technological developments in the medium. In addition to in-class film screenings, the class takes a field trip to the Chicago International Film Festival. Through screenings, discussion and writing, students develop an enhanced understanding of film art and industry.
ART 113
Art: Photography I: Digital
3 credit hours
This is an introduction to digital photography course. Emphasis will be on composition, camera craft, and visual expression. In a series of assigned problems, the students will learn to use their digital cameras to communicate effectively and artistically with images. Studio.
ART 116
Computer Graphics
3 credit hours
This course is an applied introduction to digital art and design. Students will be introduced to the elements of art and the principles of design while exploring the tools and processes of the contemporary graphic artist and designer. Projects in this course will focus on Digital Illustration and Two-Dimensional Design. Students will be introduced to the Macintosh computer and Adobe Illustrator.
ART 118
Drawing and Painting from Nature
3 credit hours
In this introductory-level course, the theme of nature is used to explore basic drawing and painting principles such as line, space, value, color, texture, perspective, balance and repetition. Students will work both outside (weather permitting) and in the studio. Imagery derived from "Mother Nature" will provide a focus, expanding each participant's awareness of the environment and him/herself. Studio.
ART 119
Digital Imagery
3 credit hours
Digital image manipulation and design is the focus of this course, which includes photo enhancement, altering and manipulating photographs, computer-generated images, animation and design. Instruction in Adobe Photoshop and Painter programs will be used to explore the digital image environment. Studio.
ART 120
Graphic Design I
3 credit hours
P: ART-116 or consent of instructor
This course is an introduction to graphic design emphasizing the elements and principles of visual communication as applied to print formats. Consideration of type, image and space are presented in a series of studio projects. Hand-rendered and computer-generated approaches to the design process are included. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 124
Art Portfolio Seminar
3 credit hours
Through the analysis of gallery visits, critiques, lectures and the creation of a variety of portfolios, the students in this class will be introduced to the world of the artist/designer. The goal of this course is to provide a critical and technical foundation for speaking, writing, and cataloging the student's creations for successful completion of the Art and Design degree at Saint Xavier University. This course is highly recommended for all Art and Design majors and not recommended for non-majors. Seminar. Offered fall.
ART 128
Digital 3D: Modeling
3 credit hours
Introduction to 3D Modeling teaches students how to create 3D polygon models using industry-standard modeling tools. A firm understanding of edge flow and polygon count will be obtained. Students will learn modeling techniques, and modeling pipelines to achieve industry standard models.
ART 135
Art Scenes in Chicago
3 credit hours
This course explores some highlights of the vast and ever-growing cultural resources of the city of Chicago. In the classroom we examine the artworks in a historical context considering the issues of who makes art and why it is made. Field trips to museums and galleries downtown supplement the students' understanding of the Chicago art scene, past and present. Lecture.
ART 138
History of Animation
3 credit hours
This course is a survey of animation, exploring fundamental concepts from the first moving objects through present time. This course will consider trends and developments in animation looking through film, motion graphics and games.
ART 155
Films About Paintings
3 credit hours
In this course you will study the last 500 years of Western Painting through the lens of the camera. The class will discuss both influences and processes used by painters of different periods and how art historians communicate these to viewers of our time through the medium of documentary film.
ART 160
Art: Special Topics
3 credit hours
This course involves various thematic art topics.
ART 201
Drawing II
3 credit hours
P: ART-101
This course is designed to enhance the basic skills developed in Drawing I. Students will experiment with a variety of drawing tools and techniques, encouraging them to develop a conceptual framework for each drawing project. Majors and non-majors alike will benefit from the problem-solving emphasis that allows for personal solutions. Studio. Offered spring.
ART 202
Design: Three-Dimensional
3 credit hours
P: ART-116
This course explores the fundamental organization of 3-D objects and spaces, considering both formal and functional. This course will introduce the fundamentals of creating compositions that require the three dimensions of height, width and depth. Students in this class will be introduced to both analog and digital tools and techniques for composing in paper, wood plastic and light. Through a process of sketching, critiquing and reworking students will be encouraged to make their works clear, efficient and communicable. Studio. Offered spring.
ART 203
Book as Art and Design
3 credit hours
P: ART-101
This course explores traditional and non-traditional book formats with an emphasis on the design of the page, sequentially developed ideas and the relationship of book structure and content. Various hand-binding methods are demonstrated. Printing options for text and image span a spectrum from hand-rendering to computer generation. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 205
Painting II
3 credit hours
P: ART-105
This course is a continuation and expansion of Painting I problems. More opportunity for concentration on individual development. This course involves outside assignments and field trips. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 206
Watercolor Painting
3 credit hours
This is a course in exploration of the techniques and methods of watercolor painting. Studio.
ART 207
Collage: Alternative Expressions
3 credit hours
This course is a cross-cultural study of designer/artists of the African Diaspora and the Americas, primarily women, with special attention to their influence on 20th century modern art movements. Textiles, tribal and populist arts will be the focus of lectures. Hands-on collage project assignments will encourage creative response. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 208
Ceramics: Hand Construction
3 credit hours
This course focuses on hand construction techniques emphasizing three-dimensional drawing, construction of sculptural forms, concept realization and creative personal invention. Appropriate surface design treatments, ceramic glazing and firing methods will be presented. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 209
Figure Drawing I
3 credit hours
P: ART-101
This course is about exploration based on the figure (all media). Emphasis on form, expressive content and composition. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 210
Printmaking: Silkscreen and Lithography
3 credit hours
P: ART-101 or consent of instructor
This is an introduction to stencil and planographic printmaking techniques in the form of silkscreen and stone lithography processes. Emphasis upon the development of the student's technical understanding of each process and the visual and conceptual relationship of image to media. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 211
Typography
3 credit hours
P: ART-116 or consent of instructor
This course develops an aesthetic, historic and organizational sensitivity to type. Emphasis on formal visual principles (structure, form, weight, texture, size, color and direction) is applied in exercises that require both hand-rendered and computer-generated letterforms. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 212
Photography II: Digital/Darkroom
3 credit hours
P: ART-112 or ART-113, or consent of instructor
Experimental and thematic photographic work will incorporate all aspects of photography, including digital and darkroom manipulations for this course. Creativity and advanced visual awareness are the main goals of this course, as well as a complete understanding of the craft of photography in silver-based and digital media. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 217
History of Film
3 credit hours
This course is a survey of the history of film. This class examines technical, social and artistic influences on film from its inception to 1960. In-class screenings, lectures and discussions provide opportunities to examine original materials. Lecture. Offered as needed.
ART 220
Graphic Design II
3 credit hours
P: ART-120
This course is a series of sequential visual communication projects that challenges the student to further refine visual thinking and extend basic graphic design concepts into formal and practical commercial applications. A variety of software programs, such as Illustrator and Photoshop, are integrated with hand-rendering projects. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 222
Art of the Renaissance Through Enlightenment
3 credit hours
This course is a survey of European art from the 14th to the 18th century. Research includes evaluations of Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces in The Art Institute of Chicago. Offered fall.
ART 223
Modern and Contemporary Art
3 credit hours
This course is a survey of art from the Neo-Classicism and Romanticism in the early 19th century through Post-Modernism and other contemporary developments. Efforts are made to integrate the class lectures with current exhibitions at The Art Institute of Chicago, Museum of Contemporary Art and commercial galleries. Lecture. Offered spring.
ART 224
Contemporary Cinema
3 credit hours
This course focuses on in-depth look at special issues and types of films, from international cinema to the films of independent filmmakers to the influence of gender on films. The focus changes each time the class is offered. Screenings, lecture and discussion will address developments related to the semester's theme. Lecture. Offered as needed.
ART 226
Chicago Architecture and Design
3 credit hours
This course focuses on an in-depth look at Chicago's celebrated architecture and the individuals who shaped its legacy. Chronological range is from the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 to the present, with special focus on the skyscraper boom, using both corporate and residential examples. Site visits/field trips included with some out of class time required. Lecture.
ART 227
Writing for Artists
3 credit hours
P: ART-201
This class aims to help you in your art and or design career through developing your writing skills. Over the course of the semester, you will develop a portfolio of writing that you tailor to your specific needs. The student should gain an understanding of their own artistic purpose and process, and how to clearly and creatively communicate that to others.
ART 228
Design: History and Inspiration
3 credit hours
This course will trace the development of modern graphic design and its inter-relatedness to architectural, industrial, interior and craft design, as well as modern painting and sculpture through a chronological survey of 20th-century styles. Students will develop their own design sensibilities through experiential design projects. Studio.
ART 229
Printmaking: Relief and Intaglio
3 credit hours
P: ART-101 or consent of instructor
This course is an introduction to relief and intaglio print-making techniques in the form of woodcut, linoleum block, etching, aquatint and soft ground processes. Emphasis on the development of the student's technical understanding of each process and the visual and conceptual relationship of image to media. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 237
Screen Printed Poster: Historic and Contemporary
3 credit hours
P: ART-101 or consent of instructor
Course covers historical origins of screen printing in poster formats, as well as its contemporary applications through image-augmented lectures and hands-on studio projects. WPA posters, advertising posters, political protest, Pop art inspired and psychedelic music posters will be investigated. Course fulfills Graphic Design track elective credits. Offered as needed.
ART 238
Intermediate 3D
3 credit hours
P: Art-128
In this course students will use advanced modeling techniques to create 3D characters and detailed visualizations of objects and spaces. Students will learn techniques for building organic and hard surface objects. Students will research and create models based on anatomy and technical reference materials using industry standard techniques. Students also illustrate the physical effects of lighting, textures, and prepare models for rigging and animation.
ART 241
Illustration: Image and Story
3 credit hours
This course is an introduction to making illustrations for advertising and publishing, focused on the powerful role that visual imagery has in storytelling. Visual problems solved in stages of thumbnail, rough and comprehensive sketches to finished artwork. We will explore traditional and contemporary techniques to better understand how to effectively render imagery as well as understanding the significance and effectiveness of the language of visual storytelling. Studio.
ART 243
Women in Art
3 credit hours
This course explores the topic of art by and about women through notions of feminism, colonialism/orientalism, representation, reception and the art historical canon. It will consider media including painting, printmaking, photography, video, film, textile arts, ceramics, architecture, installation art, performance and sculpture and comics. It looks at the way artists address issues of gender and sexuality, identity, history, violence, labor, embodiment, just to name a few. Taking historical context(s) into account, the course will emphasize contemporary iterations of women and representation. Lecture. Offered as needed.
ART 244
Latin American Cinema
3 credit hours
This course provides an introduction to Latin American cinema. From Cuba to Brazil, from Argentina to the Latino U.S., filmmakers have theorized and made films that express the unique conditions of (Latin) American identity and life. The focus of the course is film of the last 50 years and key film movements in Latin America. These include the Edad de Oro, Mexico's cinematic Golden age of the 40's and 50's; Nuevo Cine Latino Americano and third cinema of the 60's and 70's, and the 90's to present, globalization and continental film production renaissance. In addition to in-class screenings, students attend a field trip to the Chicago Latin American Film Festival. Lecture. Offered as needed.
ART 245
Latin American Visual Culture
3 credit hours
This course looks at the visual culture(s) of Latin America. It will explore expressions of Latin American and Latino culture from the ancient Andean region to contemporary Chicago. Along the way, we will look at pre-Columbian indigenous visual culture, the curious hybridity of the colonial era, with its violent contestations between indigenous and European systems of knowledge and the explosion of the modern in popular and fine arts, including murals and revolutionary posters, fotonovelas, performance art, graffiti and low-rider art. Lecture. Offered as needed.
ART 248
Motion Graphics
3 credit hours
P: ART-119
This course will introduce students to visual communication using motion and timing. This course will be using Adobe After Effects and will demonstrate the principles/elements of design with movement. It will enhance the students digital creativity with time-based media.
ART 258
Ceramics Wheel Throwing
3 credit hours
This course is an introduction to the potter's wheel, glaze application and the firing process. Emphasis is placed on the development of design and construction skills with ceramic materials, concept realization and creative personal invention. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 260
Special Topics in Art
3 credit hours
This course involves various thematic art topics.
ART 268
Character Animation
3 credit hours
P: Art-128
This is an introductory level 3D animation course using industry standard techniques and principles and applying them to action sequences to characters. The class focuses on using the principles to create realistic actions in characters.
ART 300
Independent Study
1 to 3 credit hours
This course focuses on individual study projects for advanced students in art. Topic to be determined by instructor and student. Consent of division director and instructor.
ART 305
Senior Seminar I
3 credit hours
This course is the first part of the seminar aimed at professional awareness and graduate preparation. Students taking the seminar will have their thesis work critiqued in class by the instructor and peers approximately every other week, and critiqued by the Art and Design Program full faculty at midterm and final. Guest artists' exhibitions and presentations, lectures, group discussions included. Senior art major; at least two semesters of any SXU studio or design art course. Presentation of a portfolio of creative and dynamic art work that shows student is prepared for independent artistic creation. Seminar. Offered fall.
ART 306
Senior Seminar II
3 credit hours
P: ART-305
This course is the second part of the seminar aimed at professional awareness and graduate preparation. Students taking the seminar will have their thesis work critiqued in class by the instructor and peers approximately every other week, and critiqued by the Art and Design Program faculty at midterm, culminating in the required presentation of the Senior Exhibition in the SXU Gallery and/or the Visual Arts Center Student Gallery in spring. Emphasis is placed upon the design and production of an advertising postcard, reception preparations and installation options within the Gallery space. Guest artists' exhibitions and presentations and viewing of previous Senior Thesis documented exhibitions included. Requirements for Admission: Completion of Art 305 with a grade of "C" or higher. Must be taken after Art 305. Offered spring.
ART 309
Figure Drawing II
3 credit hours
P: ART-209
This course involves the continuation and expansion of the content of Figure Drawing I. Studio.
ART 314
Studio Photography
3 credit hours
This course will introduce the fundamentals of Studio Photography such as the use of lights, lenses, flash, and other essential tools and techniques. Studio.
ART 315
Web Site Art and Design
3 credit hours
P: ART-119 or consent of instructor
This course is an applied introduction to principles governing effective coordination of text with images for the Internet. While knowledge of programming languages is not required, basic user-competence with Macintosh computers is presumed. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 317
Photo III: Advanced Photography
3 credit hours
P: ART-112 or ART-113, or consent of instructor
This course is the study and practice of color and studio photography. Color theory, advanced portraiture, lighting, view camera use and experimental techniques will be included. Knowledge of digital and film-based systems will be enhanced. The development of a professional portfolio through the practice of critical, creative aesthetics is a major goal of this course. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 322
Advertising in Marketing
3 credit hours
This course focuses on a wide variety of techniques used in advertising and commercial art from conceptualization to audience consumption. Discussion will center around creative processes, methods of application, marketing theory and how the agency creative department works in the development and execution of creative advertising solutions. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 326
Art of the Islamic World
3 credit hours
An introduction to the arts of architecture, book, illumination, ceramics, metalwork and carpets from Spain, North Africa, Middle East and South Asia. Emphasis is placed on the Islamic world's strategic role in the cultural exchange between East and West. Lecture.
ART 327
Multimedia
3 credit hours
P: ART-116 or ART-119, or consent of instructor
This digital production course offers students a range of experiences, techniques and tools for developing screen-based, time-based art. Projects in this course will allow students to experiment with a variety of digital processes for collecting, capturing and editing material. Output will include web publishing and digital video projection. Studio. Offered as needed.
ART 360
Special Topics: Art Topics
1 to 3 credit hours
This course involves various thematic art topics.
ART 365
Internship
1 to 9 credit hours
For this course, students will work in a professional design facility or on a faculty- supervised project of sufficient depth and responsibility. Consent of division director is required.
ART 371
Methods of Teaching Art in the K-12 School
3 credit hours
E: EDU-370
This course focuses on theoretical and applied investigation of practical and creative aspects of teaching art. Through classroom and field experiences, students will explore and discuss major visual art educational concepts and techniques including curriculum development and presentation of visual arts lessons. Course also includes field trips to a variety of schools where different teaching modes can be examined. 30 field experience hours. Offered fall.