AHSE2131 Responsive Drawing and Visual Thinking

Drawing and Visual Thinking is a semester length course that meets twice per week during a standard 100 minute block and assumes no prior experience in drawing. Students will learn to visualize objects in three-dimensional space and commit them to the two-dimensional space of a sheet of paper. Students will draw subjects from life, i.e. stationary objects and life models using media including charcoal, graphite, conte, and ink. The emphasis will be realistic depiction as compared to non-objective abstraction. Students will begin with basic exercises in drawing and rapidly move to more complex intensive drawing experiences. Approximately one-third of the classroom time will be used for drawing from a life model. Class discussion and sketchbook homework assignments will be an essential element in the learning process. Homework assignments will include drawing and visual thinking exercises to be completed in personal sketchbooks. Reading selected text material is also part of the homework requirement. Invited speakers will contribute to the course and provide informal critiques of student work. At least one field trip is planned to a local art museum. Other in-class activities will include participation in discussion of drawings (old master, 19th century and contemporary) group critique sessions, and viewing documentary material. Assessment will be measured by improvement based on weekly homework assignments, classroom work, and three drawing projects to be completed outside of class. This can be fun, and you will surprise yourself with how well you can draw realistically by the end of the course.

Credits

4 AHSE

Hours

4-0-8