Multisensory Design (ITPG-GT 3027)

Our users have senses that they use to perceive information in different ways. Some perceive best through sight, some through hearing, others through touch. Designers often prioritize visual information, excluding those who benefit from other sensory modalities. In this class, we’ll take a multisensory approach to design that makes interfaces more accessible to disabled and nondisabled users. Students will learn how to design for the senses (think tactile controls combined with atmospheric sounds and olfactory or taste experiences), while gaining an understanding of the assumptions we make about our users’ sensory preferences. Students should come with prior experience with physical computing and fabrication techniques and can expect to learn technical processes for the user research, usability testing, and iterative design of multisensory interfaces. Over the course of 14 weeks, students will design an interface for the 5 senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell), culminating in one final project that includes at least 3 sensory modalities.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2024)


ITPG-GT 3027-000 (15736)09/05/2024 – 12/12/2024 Thu6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Race, Lauren

Outside The Box: Site-Specific Immersive Explorations (ITPG-GT 3029)

This course introduces students to modalities for creating site-specific and immersive art and performance. Assignments will examine the work of artists who challenge the limitations of the physical, psychological and transactional spaces that have come to define conventional production models. Students will regularly receive prompts from which collaborative work will be workshopped, generated and presented. The sites and practices explored will de-center script/text as spine, institutional space as gathering place, linear storytelling as narrative, and separation between audience and artist as social contract. Through group performance projects and presentations, students will investigate how Site evokes Narrative and Event differently in brick & mortar, virtual, historic, liminal, dead, found, contested, democratized and community spaces. Our work will unpack the challenges and opportunities presented when we relinquish creative control of such unfixed elements as serendipity, impermanence, improvisation, audience agency, public space, weather, and pandemic.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2023)


ITPG-GT 3029-000 (21888)09/11/2023 – 12/11/2023 Mon6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Rovegno, Mia

Game Design & the Psychology of Choice (ITPG-GT 3028)

“As game and interaction designers we create systems and choices that can either prey upon our psychological foibles or help us avoid decision pitfalls. It is our responsibility to understand how we decide, to consider the ethics of the systems we create and to practice designing systems in a purposeful manner. Game Design & The Psychology of Choice will provide interaction and game designers with an understanding of the factors that influence behavior and decision-making by looking at the intertwining of cognitive psychology and economics through the development of behavioral economics. These disciplines study behavior on the individual and group level, often revealing some of the why behind the rules of thumb and folk wisdom that game designers come to intuitively. But understanding the why—why we fall into decision traps; why certain tradeoffs tax our brain more than others; why we are overconfident about our abilities; why certain decisions make us uncomfortable—allows us to more purposefully apply our design craft, both in and out of games. Finally, as a class, we will take what we learn about how we think and create series of game experiences based around key cognitive science concepts. Assignments may include: •Mod a cognitive science experiment into a game or experience •Analyze and present a game through the lens of cognitive science and behavioral economics •Create game or experience based around a particular insight from cognitive science or behavioral economics”

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3028-000 (11391)09/03/2025 – 12/10/2025 Wed6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Parker, Matthew

Alter Egos: Assuming New Identities Through Costume and Performance (ITPG-GT 3024)

Throughout history, musicians have channeled their creativity into outrageous fashion statements and invented personas: think MF DOOM, Sun Ra, Ghostface Killah, Daft Punk, Leikeli47 and Rammellzee. By embracing their alter egos in extreme and outlandish ways, artists have found their authentic creative voices. This course will introduce participants to the art of masquerade using their resourcefulness to create costumes from found materials, and performance as an exploration in creative expression using new media and technology. Students will be introduced to ideas surrounding abstract storytelling, experimental audio video production, and A/V performance using a combination of technical and hands-on approaches. This course requires CL: Hypercinema or equivalent experience. Prerequisite: CL: Hypercinema (ITPG-GT 2004)

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 13 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3024-000 (11388)09/08/2025 – 12/08/2025 Mon12:00 AM – 2:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Santana, Ali

On Becoming: Finding Your Artist Voice (ITPG-GT 3023)

On Becoming is a two-part professional development course. Finding Your Artist Voice (part one) filters your fears and apprehensions so you can declare your creative process and practice courageously. The seven-week system will help you proclaim your artistic identity, theoretical underpinnings, and trajectory with clarity, precision, and commanding written language. Students will build personalized masterplans and workflows to facilitate measurable professional growth while learning to catalog and archive their work. Students will develop a working artist biography, artist statement, and fully documented work samples. For the final project, students will be supported in selecting and submitting a post-graduate fellowship, residency, grant, or open call!

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3023-000 (11387)09/05/2025 – 10/17/2025 Fri9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Williams, Tanika

Hedonomic VR Design: Principles & Practices (ITPG-GT 3025)

To be a VR creator, it’s not enough to learn the hard skills—it’s also our responsibility to prime ourselves for the human impact of our work. As a means to design VR that is both enjoyable and accountable, this class proposes we borrow design principles from Hedonomics, a branch of ergonomic science that facilitates pleasurable human-technology interaction. Through the Hedonomic Pyramid, we’re able to section our thinking off into regions (Safety, Function, Usability, Pleasure and Individuation) and map out industry-tested VR design guidance for each. The result is a hierarchical checklist of proven principles, specifications and practices—that promote a culture of inclusive and holistic design—built to serve as a quickstart guide to designing accountable VR interfaces and systems. This class, divided into units that represent each level of the Hedonomic pyramid, will unpack both technical and conceptual strategies for creating VR, from visual interface fidelity to avoiding locomotion cybersickness to designing safer social VR spaces.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3025-000 (11389)09/04/2025 – 12/11/2025 Thu9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Cortese, Michelle

Multisensory Storytelling in Virtual Reality and Original Flavor Reality (ITPG-GT 3026)

“In this course, we will explore how to create narratives that leverage our lesser used senses like touch, taste and smell as well as lesser-known ones like space, time, balance and scale. We will dig into the history of experiential storytelling, starting from immersive theater and Smell-O-vision to cutting-edge haptics and mind-bending illusions of proprioception. To help center this back in practical applications, we will also explore how this evolving art is commonly used in exhibition design, experiential marketing and brick and mortar retail. The class will be a healthy mixture of game theory as well as experienced based learning (meaning there will be a couple field trips and multisensory VR projects to explore). A basic knowledge of game engines is ideal but not mandatory because we will be using predesigned templates in Unreal engine to be experienced and manipulated in real-time through virtual reality hardware.”

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3026-000 (11390)09/04/2025 – 12/11/2025 Thu3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Porter, Winslow

MoCap for the Archive (ITPG-GT 3021)

“How can motion capture (MoCap) be used to archive, preserve, and share intangible heritage forms, such as performing arts, rituals, and other social practices and traditions? This course approaches motion capture through the lens of ethnography — drawing on techniques of observation, participation, and qualitative design research. This class will offer an overview of different motion capture technologies, such as 2D-3D pose estimation and depth mapping, with a practical focus on learning the OptiTrack system at ITP. We will start by covering the basics of OptiTrack and build up to other workflows and techniques used across animation, game design, and virtual production (e.g. OptiTrack to Unreal Engine or Unity).” Prerequisite: CL: Hypercinema (ITPG-GT 2004)

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3021-000 (11385)09/03/2025 – 10/15/2025 Wed6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Mehta, Ami

User Experience Design (ITPG-GT 3017)

“This 2-pt course aims to provide students with the critical thinking and practical skills for creating effective and compelling interfaces. We will dissect what a compelling user experience is, apply proven research techniques for approaching and defining UX problems and apply design frameworks including mapping and testing techniques. The class format will include lectures, discussion, in-class design exercises and a final project. Week 1: what is UX Week 2: inclusive research methods Week 3: frameworks for defining a problem Week 4: understanding behavior and motivation Week 5: mapping flow and visual strategies, final project intro Week 6: testing methods and future UX Week 7: final projects”

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3017-000 (11383)09/05/2025 – 10/17/2025 Fri12:00 AM – 2:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Su, Peiqi

Listening Machines (Digital Synesthesia: Seeing Sound) (ITPG-GT 3018)

“In even the tiniest fragment of digital sound (especially music) there lies a multiplicity of information hidden within. Using audio analysis techniques, this data can be distilled into a vast array of characteristics that describe various different features of the sound. These include things like the loudness, pitch, or the spectrum of frequencies being detected. Through additional analysis, these data points can be used to detect higher level musical features representing things like tempo, rhythm, or melody. Furthermore, the sound and music information can be used to train deep learning models that can then make accurate predictions (eg. what a sound is, what genre a song is, what mood a song evokes). Or, we can use machine learning for generative purposes using the data to guide the creation of new sounds, synthesizers, or even entire songs. The preceding are activities that fall under the areas of digital signal processing, music information retrieval, and machine learning, a trifecta that form the technological foundation for the research area known as machine listening. With a focus on ambient sound and music, this class will explore how tools and techniques from the field of machine listening can become a powerful aspect, or even strategy, in the realm of creative applications. This course will not cover, nor will it assume knowledge of, the underlying technical aspects of machine listening, or music theory. Resources for further pursuance of each week’s topics will be provided but will not be required for class. Instead, our aim will be on understanding what these techniques are doing, when and where to apply them, and how to access and apply them effectively through powerful software libraries. This high level approach will allow us to keep our efforts directed towards creative experimentation without becoming bogged down. Ultimately, students will synthesize the semester’s work into their own creative application involving sound. Here are some examples of the types of projects this class could support: An app that visualizes audio through graphics or DMX/LED lighting to create synesthesia-like effects An automatic system for transcribing music based off of a recording or real-time input A music remixing system where tracks are automatically selected, spliced, processed, and rearranged A musical instrument that adapts to its player based on real-time analysis of the played sound A synthesizer that uses machine learning to optimize and tune its parameters A music education software that visualizes rhythm and melody for the purpose of instruction A rhythm game that derives its gameplay from music information (Guitar Hero, Rock Band, DDR) A tool that analyzes the health of a machine based on its sound through a contact microphone The course will be taught in JavaScript with ICM-level programming experience recommended. No formal training in sound or music is expected or required. This course will be a great fit for any student that is interested in sound and wants to explore it more deeply. Please feel free to reach out to me via email with any questions about the class.”

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 7 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2023)


ITPG-GT 3018-000 (21877)09/11/2023 – 10/23/2023 Mon6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by

Text-to-Image Ais (ITPG-GT 3020)

“Over the past few years, the unprecedented advancement in text-to-image artificial intelligence models has sparked widespread attention, discussion, and mainstream adoption of these innovative co-creative interfaces, which has resulted in novelty, excitement, and curiosity, as well as concern, anger, and insult. Alongside this, the booming open-sourced text-to-image model development contributes to expanding access to working with AI tools beyond experts, tech giants, and professional technologists. In this 14-week course, we will go over the landscape of text-to-image AIs and dive deep into some of the most well known ones (such as Stable Diffusion and its variants), to see what potential they have in terms of exploring new modes of content creation and helping us re-examine our language pattern. This will be a practice technique course – in the first half, we’ll focus on building good prompting practices, and in the second half, we’ll explore different image synthesis skills related to text-to-image AIs, use Python to train our own models to create customized visuals, and create animations from text. We’ll also discuss how such tools could intervene in the workflows of artists and technologists, what they can provide for researchers, and what are the caveats and things we should look out for when we’re creating with these AIs. Pre-requisites: Introduction to Computational Media (ICM) or the equivalent.” Prerequisite: ICM / ICM: Media (ITPG-GT 2233 / ITPG-GT 2048)

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2024)


ITPG-GT 3020-000 (15729)09/06/2024 – 12/11/2024 Fri3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Zhang, Yuguang

Canvas for Coders (ITPG-GT 3016)

Your web browser is a digital canvas for 21st-century artists. While being one of the most common mediums today, web space has infinite possibilities for new aesthetics. This course covers Three.js fundamentals, providing students with the skills and insights to create arts in web 3D. This course requires ICM or equivalent coding experience. Prerequisite: ICM / ICM: Media (ITPG-GT 2233 / ITPG-GT 2048)

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 7 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3016-000 (11382)10/23/2025 – 12/11/2025 Thu6:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Evening)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Park, Joo Hyun

The Medium of Memory (ITPG-GT 3019)

“What is the medium of memory? In this 14-week studio class, we will dig into this question through creative storytelling. Starting from a lens-based practice, this class will introduce traditional and bleeding-edge documentary methods to inform our own varied approaches to activating archival material. Through weekly “readings” (articles, podcasts, films), written reflections, and creative assignments, we’ll explore: • how technology has impacted our relationship to memory; • how visual interventions can can surface alternative narratives; • how to make under- and unrecorded histories visible, and call into question the power dynamics embedded in “official” records; and • how we might recast objects and sites of memory-keeping, like heirlooms, journals, and memorials, as a mode of engaged preservation. Mid-way through the course, students will identify either personal or collective histories to open up to their own individual creative reexamination, memorialization, or transformation––each producing a final project with the technology and approaches of their choosing that serves to answer the question we started with––what is the medium of memory?”

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3019-000 (11384)09/03/2025 – 10/15/2025 Wed9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Salvo, Simone

Digital Audio Workstations: ProTools (REMU-UT 1020)

During this course, students will acquire an in-depth, theoretical and practical knowledge of Digital Audio Workstations using the industry standard Pro Tools software through a weekly, lab-based workshop. Each class will be a combination of lecture and immediate application. An emphasis will be placed on getting to know Pro Tools, getting inside Pro Tools, creating sessions, working with media in sessions, audio recording, audio editing, file management techniques, MIDI recording, editing techniques, mixing techniques, backups and stereo mix-down.

Undergraduate

Digital Audio Workstations: Ableton Live (REMU-UT 1022)

We live in an age of digital production where so much of today’s music is produced with comparatively few tools, and at the heart of the modern production set up, whether in the bedroom of the studio, is software that uses MIDI. One of the most versatile of today’s platforms which can be used in production, live performance, and even as a visual tool is Ableton Live. Ableton is unique amongst the contemporary software programs making music in that it is the only one that was created by working musicians who were looking for a tool that allowed for both the seamless creation of ideas and could also serve as a performance instrument. In the past 15 years, Ableton has played an important role in creating countless tracks and records in numerous genres and the go-to software for live performance, whether for vocalists and bands or for massive spectacles like Cirque du Soleil. In this course, we will cover Ableton’s unique abilities to manipulate audio which make it the preferred platform for remixing and mash-ups. We will cover the fundamentals of the software, explore techniques to program beats, chordal and melodic ideas, as well as cover creative workflow – how to use Ableton to quickly generate ideas for producers and songwriters. Finally, we will discuss its use as a live performance tool for use with live instrumentalists and vocalists, as a DJ tool and even as a VJing tool. 

Recorded Music (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17977)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Fri1:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Carrero, Joanne


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17978)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Fri3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Carrero, Joanne


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17979)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Mon9:00 AM – 10:00 AM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Freeman, Dan


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17980)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Mon11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Freeman, Dan


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17981)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Mon1:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Freeman, Dan


REMU-UT 1022-000 (17982)09/02/2025 – 12/11/2025 Mon3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Freeman, Dan

Augmented Hacking (ITPG-GT 2356)

With recent advances in hardware and software, millions of us now carry unprecedented spatial computing and world sensing technologies in our pockets. With these technologies in hand, how do we design AR experiences that are contextual at the core – that are sensitive to the spaces we inhabit and the behaviors of people in those spaces? How do we augment this better understanding of reality? This course will be a hands-on workshop where we create spatially aware, contextually driven AR applications unique to particular situations. We will examine the opportunities and challenges when designing for site-specific experiences – museums, live events, retail, medical settings, industrial environments, schools, and others. Topics will include image and object recognition, world mapping, people tracking, location anchors, the ARKit “depth api” (LiDAR enabled features), spatial audio, scene understanding and semantics, and more. For design and development, we’ll primarily use Apple technologies – ARKit, RealityKit and RealityComposer. We’ll also tap a variety of cloud services to store, move, process, and bring intelligence to the data generated and consumed in our experiences. 3D modeling skills are helpful but not required. While we’ll cover the basics, students should expect to spend additional time outside of class learning Swift and other related programming concepts. Full-time access to an iOS device (LiDAR-enabled is ideal but not required) and a Mac laptop running the latest operating systems are required. As part of the design process, we’ll host workshops and guest critiques with designers from top studios around New York City as well as directly interfacing with various teams at Apple.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2023)


ITPG-GT 2356-000 (21868)09/07/2023 – 12/14/2023 Thu3:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Lam, Nien · Buys, Sebastian

Electronic Rituals, Oracles and Fortune-Telling (IMNY-UT 289)

According to anthropologists Filip de Boeck and René Devisch, divination “constitutes a space in which cognitive structures are transformed and new relations are generated in and between the human body, the social body and the cosmos.” In this class, students will learn the history of divination, engage in the practice of divination, and speculate on what forms divination might take in a world where the human body, the social body, and even the cosmos(!) are digitally mediated. Starting with an understanding of ritual and folk culture, we will track the history of fortune-telling from the casting of lots to computer-generated randomness to the contemporary revival of Tarot; from reading entrails to astrology to data science; from glossolalia to surrealist writing practices to the “ghost in the machine” of artificial intelligence. Weekly readings and assignments culminate in a final project.

Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2022)


IMNY-UT 289-000 (21942)09/07/2022 – 12/14/2022 Mon,Wed5:00 PM – 6:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Parrish, Allison

Interactive Multi-Screen Experiences (ITPG-GT 3002)

Credits: 2
Duration: 6 Weeks
Dates: Fri

We experience screens daily in many forms: in our hands, on our desktops, on walls and public installations as we travel. This course will explore the creative possibilities of real-time interactive and reactive art on screens in various forms. Using the recently developed p5VideoKit we will create standalone installations. p5VideoKit is a new library of live video effects – building on p5js – presented as a dashboard for mixing video in the browser. This library allows the user to apply visual effects to live video from connected cameras and sensors or streaming from devices on the internet. p5VideoKit is open source and can be extended with the user’s p5js code for a plethora of visual effects and interactivity. One possible application of p5Videokit would be a public facing installation allowing anonymous people on the street to use their hand held devices to interact with large street facing screens, thereby collaborating on real time creation of “digital graffiti”. Building on ICM, students will learn how to adapt simple sketches into components of p5VideoKit so that algorithms can be quickly composited and orchestrated into more complex works. Students will also learn how to edit and share code beyond the p5js editor, use nodejs/javascript to automate deployment of installations, and remotely configure dedicated computers with long running installations. Several dedicated computers and screens will be available to preview installations on the floor and street facing areas of the 370 Jay Street campus. Prerequisites: ICM or equivalent coding experience. About John Henry Thompson: http://johnhenrythompson.com

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Mobile App Development Lab (ITPG-GT 2372)

One of the most transformative consumer products in history, the iPhone remains the standard bearer for great design and user experience. With the latest versions of iOS and iPhone, Apple puts depth sensing and augmented reality in our pockets. How do we take advantage of this incredible platform to produce our own compelling experiences? This course will be a hands-on workshop where we explore the world beyond generic apps and push the boundaries of what’s possible on iOS hardware. Each week, you’ll be asked to complete a programming exercise meant to foster your understanding of iOS application development. We’ll leverage existing open source libraries to quickly build out your app with features such as real time communication and cloud storage. We aim to create distributed instruments for computed expression. Full-time access to an iOS device and a Mac laptop computer running the latest operating system and development tools are required. Prereq: Some programming experience (such as ICM) and willingness to learn Apple’s Swift programming language.

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks

Sections (Spring 2025)


ITPG-GT 2372-000 (11411)01/21/2025 – 05/06/2025 Tue9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Thompson, John

Designing for Well-Being (ITPG-GT 3000)

This course would focus on the questions of 1) what makes people healthy? and 2) how can we design tools and environments that support healthy lifestyles? Key topics to be covered include public health concepts like the multiple determinants of health and the social-ecological framework, plus a little evolutionary biology; the role of behavior in health, key tenets of behavioral economics and behavior change strategies; and systems thinking concepts from Donella Meadows and others. Students will come away with a much more sophisticated understanding of the complex system of factors and forces that affect people’s health; understanding of key systems concepts and some techniques for understanding systems; and experience designing for behavior at scale. A potential final project could be to reimagine/redesign a popular commercial service so that it would have a more health-producing impact — or, alternatively, to focus on designing changes to the ITP environment that would promote better health for students, faculty and staff. About Steve Downs: www.stevedowns.net

Interactive Telecommunications (Graduate)
2 credits – 6 Weeks

Sections (Fall 2025)


ITPG-GT 3000-000 (11381)10/24/2025 – 12/05/2025 Fri12:00 AM – 2:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Downs, Stephen