> Overview
Overview
Art & Design Department
The Art and Design Department provides a creative environment for Saint Mary’s students with opportunities to cultivate aesthetic diversify and enrich cultural awareness. The department offers two majors: one in Art Studio for the training of student artists in the processes of the fine arts, and a second in Graphic Design for students who wish to pursue a career in visual design and communications. The department also offers a number of courses which are required for majors in Theatre, English, and Mass Communication (Electronic Publishing, Journalism, and Public Relations). Courses are also offered to complement the general education program and the liberal arts commitment of Saint Mary’s University.
General Department Goals
Art Studio and Graphic Design majors are be able to:
- demonstrate a working knowledge of design fundamentals and vocabulary, and incorporate these visual communication skills in their daily lives;
- recognize major figures and movements in art history, and draw connections between historic and contemporary trends;
- demonstrate and articulate an understanding of issues related to the visual arts;
- identify and discuss major uses of the visual arts in our society: communication of information, transmission of religious/spiritual values, social/political action, utilitarian design, personal expression, and environmental enhancement;
- think creatively and critically; and
- analyze a work of art, using correct terminology and proper art criticism criteria.
The Art and Design Department manages two galleries on campus for the enrichment of all students and the local community. The department presents four professional art exhibits and two student exhibits each year in the Center Gallery, located in the Toner Student Center. The Student Gallery on the second floor of the art and design department is used by various classes for presentation of their work. This gallery is also the site of the sophomore review.
The department insists that each student, before he or she graduates with a degree in studio art or graphic design, possess a basic set of drawing and design skills. To ensure students have reached this level, they are required to present a sample of their work in an exhibit during their sophomore year. This work is evaluated by faculty of the department. If the work is found lacking, the student may be required to take additional courses in drawing and/or design to attain an acceptable level.
Each student, before he or she graduates, also participates in a senior exhibit in the Center Gallery. This show is evaluated by the art and design faculty to judge if it is at the professional level required for a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Studio Art or Graphic Design. Graphic Design majors have the added responsibility of preparing a traditional portfolio and an electronic website portfolio.
The department has a thriving Art Club which enhances student involvement in the arts by offering workshops, field trips to museums and galleries, and increases campus awareness of the arts.
Art Departmental Honors
Departmental honors are reserved for students who perform academically and creatively at the top level of all graduates from the department. Minimal criteria are a 3.700 department and major field GPA, a 3.300 cumulative GPA, and the presentation of work in the Senior Exhibition judged to be of superior quality by a committee of departmental faculty.
Majors Offered
Minor Offered
Course Descriptions
Click on courses below for descriptions
AR101 Art Appreciation (3 credits)
Art appreciation is intended for non-majors who want a better understanding of the role of visual art in our culture. A combination of lectures, slides, films and discussion are used to enable students to appreciate works of art. Topics include a study of the elements of art and the principles of design, two-dimensional and three-dimensional media, and an overview of the history of western art.
AR103 Art Foundations I (3 credits)
Foundations I is a study of the principles and elements of two-and three-dimensional design. It is also an introduction to drawing, color theory, and painting for the professional. The course is conducted in a studio-lecture format.
AR104 Art Foundations II (3 credits)
This is a continuation of AR103 with further work in drawing, composition, color theory, painting, and design for the professional.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR103.
AR122 Drawing I (3 credits)
This course requires no art background. It includes a variety of subject matter, media and techniques with emphasis on visual perception and awareness.
AR211 Ceramics (3 credits)
This introductory course combines instruction in hand building and the potter’s wheel. The emphasis is placed on methods of construction, surface decoration, glazing, and firing techniques.
AR222 Drawing II (3 Credits)
The focus of this course is the development of drawing skills. A variety of media are used – pencil, charcoal, conté, ink, pastels, etc.
Prerequisite: AR122.
AR243 Photography (3 credits)
A study of the use and function of the camera with emphasis on a personal style and photographic aesthetics. Darkroom processes and procedures are covered as well as preparing prints for exhibition.
Students must provide their own 35mm camera.
AR260 Introduction to Italian Art and Culture (3 credits)
This elective course is designed to provide an opportunity for students to study Italian art history, architecture, religion, culture, and civilization and to incorporate some of these ideas about art, politics, and religion that have been important in the shaping of the modern world. This course helps students develop critical thinking skills and creative perspectives from an international experience. Travel and study in Rome, Florence, Venice, and the surrounding Veneto region of northern Italy are the focus of this course.
Prerequisite: consent of instructor and Study Abroad Office approval.
AR303 Graphic Design I (3 credits)
An introductory study of the principles, tools, and techniques of design for publishing and advertising. It includes a study of typography, designer’s and printer’s vocabulary, and the aesthetics of graphic design. This course is taught on the computer using the most widely used software applications in publishing and printing.
Prerequisite: AR103.
AR304 Typography (3 credits)
Typography is a study of the design and intelligent use and layout of the characters of our alphabet. The course covers the design principles governing the organization of type for readability and legibility. Students acquire this knowledge by completing a series of typographic projects using the computer applications Adobe Illustrator and Adobe InDesign.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR303.
AR322 Drawing III (3 credits)
This course is a requirement for the art studio major. It involves advanced problems in drawing emphasizing conceptual development, the human figure, and further exploration of media.
Offered in alternate fall semesters. Prerequisite: AR222.
AR326 Illustration (3 credits)
The course consists of an exploration of illustration as a means of communicating ideas through practical problems encountered in advertising, posters, books, packaging, etc.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR222 and AR303.
AR331 Painting I (3 credits)
This is an introduction to the techniques of painting using either acrylic or oil paints.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR122 or AR222.
AR341 Printmaking I (3 credits)
Printmaking is an experimentation with a variety of graphic media such as lithography, woodcuts, lino cuts, calligraphy, silkscreen, and intaglio. Different media is emphasized each time the course is offered.
Offered fall semester. Prerequisite: AR122 and AR222.
AR344 Photo and Digital Imaging (3 credits)
This is an advanced course which combines the skills acquired in AR243 Photography with the knowledge gained in AR303 Graphic Design I. The course utilizes the scanner, digital cameras, CDs and the imaging program, Adobe Photoshop, for the creation of new expressions of art.
Offered fall semester. Prerequisite: AR243 and AR303.
AR351 Sculpture (3 credits)
This introductory course considers materials and techniques of sculpture using wood, metal, and plastics.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisites: AR103 and AR104.
AR370 Philosophy of Art (3 credits)
This is an interdisciplinary course which explores the relationship between philosophy of art or aesthetics and the developments in art history. The course involves a study of traditional and contemporary philosophical theories of art, an examination of selected figures and movements in art history, and an analysis of the vital interrelationship between the two disciplines of philosophy and art.
Also offered as PH370. Offered fall semester.
AR371 Art History I (3 credits)
The first of a two-semester sequence in Western Art, this course contains units in prehistoric, Egyptian, Mesopotamian, Aegean, Greek, Roman, Early Christian, Early Medieval, Romanesque, and Gothic Art. The course includes study of painting, sculpture, architecture, and minor arts.
Offered fall semester.
AR372 Art History II (3 credits)
The second course in this survey of Western Art includes painting, sculpture, and architecture of the Gothic period through modern times.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR371 recommended.
AR403 Graphic Design II (3 credits)
This course provides more defined and specific graphic design problems. Emphasis is placed on working with computer applications and pre-press preparation. The student designs a personal portfolio as a final project.
Offered spring semester. Prerequisite: AR303 and AR304.
AR410 Web Design (3 credits)
Web Design is a study of both the technical and design aspects of web and multimedia design. It is an introduction to HTML, ActionScript, HTML forms, CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), and the current versions of Adobe Dreamweaver, Flash, and Fireworks. Images are manipulated and prepared in Photoshop. Students also learn how to create image galleries, design, and organize information for ease of navigation, and learn what makes a website into an effective communication or marketing tool.
Prerequisites: AR122 and AR303.
AR450 Arts Administration: Theory and Practice (3 credits)
This course is designed to introduce students to the field of arts administration as it applies to the performing arts, visual arts, and arts services organizations. Arts explored include management models, marketing, development, finances and facilities management and planning. Students apply knowledge in these areas to an arts organization which they create in class. The course culminates with the students presenting their projects in executive session.
Offered in alternate spring semesters. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.
AR451 Advanced Studio (2-3 credits)
In consultation with their advisor, art studio majors select an area for advanced study. They need to have completed two previous semesters in their chosen area; e.g., drawing, painting or printmaking.
AR461 Art Seminar I (2 credits)
These seminars involve the production of independent works in the art major’s primary area of concentration. The seminars also focus on professional practices, ethics, and contemporary trends in the arts. The hanging of a graduation exhibit in the senior year is required of all art majors.
AR461 offered fall semester; AR462 offered spring semester.
AR462 Art Seminar II (1 credit)
These seminars involve the production of independent works in the art major’s primary area of concentration. The seminars also focus on professional practices, ethics, and contemporary trends in the arts. The hanging of a graduation exhibit in the senior year is required of all art majors.
AR461 offered fall semester; AR462 offered spring semester.
For more information contact:
Robert McColl, M.F.A.
Chair, Art & Design Department
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
700 Terrace Heights #66
Winona, MN 55987-1399
(800) 635-5987, Ext. 1591
rmmcoll@smumn.edu
