Through a series of lectures and weekly prompts, this hands-on course introduces a methodology that facilitates the process from thinking to making. Softness is used as both a theoretical and material framework that asks students to rethink the edges of the real and to to engage with structures, organizations, materials and relationships as malleable, fluid, and open to transformation. Students are introduced to foundational concepts through a wide range of examples and readings, and are invited to critically reflect on how these concepts inform and guide their own practice and creative journey. The weekly assignments are meant to help students become comfortable with a variety of techniques and making practices, and in a rapid, playful and experimental manner engage with ideas in an embodied and enacted way. Given that they have a week to complete each assignment, the goal is to help students delve into the core and essential properties of each concept and find ways to express and explore them in their work. The cadence of the lectures and survey of a wide range of artistic practices aims to expose students to different approaches to making, and importantly help them understand how theory and practice are not separate realms but indeed intertwined.
Collaborative Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks
Sections (Fall 2024)
OART-UT 32-001 (17897)
09/03/2024 – 12/12/2024 Thu 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Washington Square
Instructed by Papadopoulos, Despina
Credits: 4
Duration: 6 Weeks
Dates: Fri
“What does biology have to do with art? Bioart is a discipline in which artists use life itself as a medium for creative experimentation and reflection on the social implications of cutting edge biological science. Biopolitics describes the ways in which DNA and other forms of biological knowledge combine with the accumulation of data to segment, categorize, and predict our behavior. In this course we will take a tour of the materials and techniques utilized by artists in the emerging field of biological art, with a focus on genomics and its political and social implications. This hybrid art and science class will introduce concepts in personal genomics, genetic engineering, speculative design, bioart, biopolitics, critical engineering, and bioethics as sites for activism and artistic exploration. Students will extract and analyze their own DNA while discussing human evolution and the social construction of identity. They will learn how DNA extraction and sequencing works, how to analyze real genomic data, and will incorporate this in creative and critical projects. Regular readings and in-class discussions will supplement artistic projects.”
Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 6 Weeks
Credits: 2
Duration: 6 Weeks
Dates: Fri
Time to get your hands dirty. Prototypes need to be created, motors have to be mounted, enclosures must be built. Understanding how things are fabricated makes you a better maker. But hardware is hard. You can’t simply copy and paste an object or working device (not yet anyway), fabrication skills and techniques need to be developed and practiced in order to create quality work. You learn to make by doing. In this class, you will become familiar and comfortable with all the ITP shop has to offer. We will cover everything from basic hand tools to the beginnings of digital fabrication. You will learn to use the right tool for the job. There will be weekly assignments created to develop your fabrication techniques. There will be in class lectures, demos, and building assignments. Emphasis will be put on good design practices, material choice, and craftsmanship.
Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks
Credits: 4
Duration: 14 Weeks
Dates: Wed
For better or worse humanity is heading down the virtual rabbit hole. We’re trading an increasingly hostile natural environment for a socially networked and commercially driven artificial one. Whether it’s the bedrooms of YouTube streaming stars, the augmented Pokestops of Pokemon Go, the breakout rooms of a Zoom meeting, or even the “airspace” of Airbnb; we are witnessing a dramatic transformation of what occupying space means. The socially distanced measures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic have only accelerated this societal embrace of the virtual. So where are these dramatic spatial paradigm shifts occurring? Who owns and occupies these spaces? Who are the architects and what historical and ethical foundations are they working from? What world do they want to build for humanity and where does the creative individual fit into it? Will it be a walled garden, a role-playing adventure or a tool for creating more worlds? The course will ask students to embrace the role of virtual architect, not in the traditional brick-and-mortar sense of constructing shelter, but in terms of the engagement with the raw concept of space. However this virtual space must be considered and evaluated as a “site,” that is activated and occupied by real people and all the limitations of physical space that they bring with them from the real world. This is the foundation of synthetic architecture; simulated space met with biological perception. This conceptual architecture is free from the confines of physics but host to a whole new set of questions: How do we embrace the human factors of a dimensionless environment? How do we make or encourage meaningful interactions within the limits of current technology? New models of interaction must inform and shape the architecture of virtual space – what does that look like? How can architecture and aesthetics inform the creation of virtual environments and immersive narratives? How do we acutely consider the psychological and social impacts of the worlds we design and what is the metaphorical ground plane to make sense of this virtual world, unbound by physics? About Jonathan Turner: http://www.jonathanwilliamturner.com/about/
Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks
Credits: 3
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Mon,Wed
Credits: 3
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Mon,Wed
Credits: 3
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Mon,Wed
Credits: 3
Duration: 15 Weeks
Dates: Mon,Wed
This course provides an overview of image making and presentation techniques, from still to moving. Students will also be introduced to experimental image making. This course will cover introductory still and video camera use, as well as how to begin integrating image within media. Students will gain practical and analytical skills through workshops, assignments, critiques, technical instruction, readings, screenings, and discussions.
Integrated Digital Media (Undergraduate)
3 credits – 15 Weeks