Fine Arts Modules

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NOTE: Level 500 courses are open to undergraduates who have demonstrated their ability to successfully complete them.

Courses numbered 501 – 520 are independent focus studies, and will be tailored to the individual interests of each student. Within the course area (i.e. portraiture, sculpture, digital art) students will select a tradition, an artist, a particular work of art, and/or an approach, which the student believes is representative of his or her own artistic goals. The student will work with the instructor to identify what and how the student needs to examine, within the framework of criteria that the student and instructor will establish together. The student will complete a course project of his or her own design and in the student’s preferred form and medium. The work must incorporate the concepts the student has absorbed from his or her analysis, but must clearly reflect the student’s personal vision and style. The work created must be accompanied by a concise paper that discusses the student’s work, and the artistic influences that have contributed to it. The purpose of this course is not to train students to sculpt like Michelangelo or Rodin, or paint like Leonardo or Picasso. Rather, it is to train students on how to learn from other artists and traditions, without compromising their own unique styles. Selecting a course from this series will provide undergraduates with an excellent exit to the undergraduate experience, and offer graduate students an excellent entrance experience to their studies.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS501 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN PORTRAITURE AND SELF-PORTRAITURE (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to portraiture and self-portraiture. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS502 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN THE HUMAN FIGURE(10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist or artists whose work(s) he or she believes embody those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to portrayals of the human figure. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist(s).” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the
student artist has learned from the mentor artist(s). A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS503 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN DIGITAL ART I (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will
select several works of digital art and/or digitally enhanced art, which he or
she believes embody those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards
as most essential to digital or digitally enhanced art. Working with the
Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the selected
works. The student will then create a project or series of projects that
reflect what the student artist has learned from the process of analysis. A
written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the
final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS504 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES RELIEF SCULPTURE (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist or relief work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to relief sculpture. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the selected work or “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the analysis. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS505 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN WATERCOLOURS (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to watercolours. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS506 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN PAINTING (ALL MEDIA) (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a painter whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to painting. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s). Students may work in their preferred painting medium.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS507 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN ASSEMBLAGE (credits)”]
Each student will select an assemblage work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to assemblage art. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis the “mentor work.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor work. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS508 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN PRINTMAKING (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to printmaking. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project (comprised of a minimum of 5 prints) that reflects what the student artist has
learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS509 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN SCULPTURE (ALL MEDIA) (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to sculpture in the round. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor
artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS510 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN ABSTRACT APPROACHES (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose abstract work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to the creation of abstract art. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s). Students may work in their preferred fine arts form and medium.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS511 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN GRAPHIC ARTS (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist or graphic work, which he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to graphic design arts. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist”or “mentor work.” The student will then create a project or component project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist or mentor work. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s). Examples of final projects are newsletters, business kits, promotional packages, media kits and/or desktop books.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS512 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN NATURE AND WILDLIFE (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a nature and wildlife artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to nature and wildlife art. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s). Students may work in their preferred fine arts form and medium.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS513 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN THE MINOR ARTS (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select works from a minor arts tradition, which he or she believes embody those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to the selected tradition. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor works.” The student will then create a project or series of projects that reflect what the student artist has learned from the mentor works. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project(s).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS514 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN THE LANDSCAPE (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a landscape artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to landscape painting. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS515 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN MARINE ART (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a marine artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to marine painting. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS516 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN FOLK ART (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a folk art tradition, which he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student would most like to incorporate into his or her own work. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor tradition.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project. Students may work in their preferred form and medium(s) and may also take this opportunity to establish a new folk art tradition!
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS517 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN GENRE PAINTING (10 ECTS credits)”]
Genre painting, also known as history painting, depicts everyday people engaging in everyday activities as their subject matter. Each student will select a genre painter or painting, which he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to genre painting. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist” or “mentor work.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from their resource. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS518 INDIVIDUALIZEDSTUDIES IN PUBLIC ART (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a public monument or display, which he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to public art. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the work of the “mentor work.” The student will then create a reduced size project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor work. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project. Students may work in their preferred fine arts form and medium.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS519 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN RELIGIOUS ART (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select an artist whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to religious art. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project. Students may complete either a painting or a sculpture, in his or her preferred medium.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS520 INDIVIDUALIZED STUDIES IN PHOTOGRAPHY (10 ECTS credits)”]
Each student will select a photographer whose work he or she believes embodies those formal and aesthetic properties the student regards as most essential to the genre of photography of most interest to the student. Working with the Instructor, the student will follow a program of analysis of the works of the “mentor artist.” The student will then create a project that reflects what the student artist has learned from the mentor artist. A written statement describing the process and results will be submitted with the final project. Students may work in whatever photography format they prefer. Projects may be executed in black and white, sepia or colour.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS521 OUTDOOR STUDIO PROJECTS (10 ECTS credits)”]
Students who prefer the “plein-air” environment will work with the Instructor to develop a programme of outdoor projects, united by a theme. Students may execute their projects in painting, drawing, dry or oil pastels, pen & ink, and/or a combination of these mediums. The theme must be related to the outdoor environment(s) selected. A written statement describing the project will be included with the final submission.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS522 EXPERIMENTAL PAINTING FORMS (10 ECTS credits)”]
The concept of painting as a medium for creating illusions of space, volume, texture, light, and movement on a flat, stationary support has been challenged by many modern artists. Some recent forms, for example, have blurred the conventional distinctions between the mediums of sculpture and painting. Sculptors such as David Smith, Eduardo Paolozzi, and Philip Sutton have made
multicoloured constructions; painters such as Jean Arp and Ben Nicholson have created abstract designs in painted wood relief, and Richard Smith has painted on three-dimensional canvas structures the surfaces of which curl and thrust toward the spectator. This course will introduce students to a variety of modern painting forms, with an aim toward inspiring students to create a painting or sculpting form of their own design. Students will submit a final project, along with a written statement describing the invented form.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS523 PAINTING ON THREE-DIMENSIONAL CONSTRUCTED FOUNDATIONS (10 ECTS credits)”]
This course will allow students to be highly innovative, in terms of project format and execution. Students will examine examples of paintings produced on three-dimensional foundations. They will then develop a project idea and fully execute it, using the painting medium of their choice. Students will be required to submit their original ideas on paper. At the time of completion, students will submit a written statement, which evaluates the work in the context of the original idea. The goal is not for the student to strictly adhere to his or her original project vision. Rather, it is for the student to be able to assess the original design and the work process, explain the reasons for any departures from the original project design, and self-evaluate the overall
work.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS524 MASKBUILDING (10 ECTS credits)”]
This course will provide students with an opportunity to create several masks, as works of art. Students will examine a variety of masks, from a broad range of cultural and artistic traditions. An overview of their designs and significance within cultural contexts will be provided. Students will then develop a concept for a mask of their own creation, which will be submitted prior to production. Students will then execute their ideas in whatever media they prefer. At the time of completion, students will submit a written statement which discusses the work in the context of the its cultural origins and final significance. Students will identify and discuss those influences that had an impact on their artistic vision.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS525 TOPICS IN CRITICAL ANALYSIS (10 ECTS credits)”]
This course will
familiarize students with the process of critical analysis. Students will be
assigned a series of readings, which will then be discussed in terms of their
strengths, weaknesses and overall value. The purpose of this course will be to
prepare future professional artists for the kind of scrutiny their work may
either enjoy or suffer! Critical analyses can be productive or
counter-productive, depending upon the motives underlying those analyses, the
astuteness of the writer(s), and/or the orientation from which the analyses are
constructed. While constructive criticism of the critical works will be
encouraged, the primary goal is not to criticize the critics. Rather, it is to
use the body of work addressed to help students understand what their roles,
rights and responsibilities are, in the broader context of their public.
Individual artistic expression is a right that most of us enjoy. Once an artist
places his or her work in a setting where others are asked to view it, however,
those viewers then have a right to evaluate the work, from their perspectives.
This course will put the role of the artist and viewer into a perspective that
is essential for the professional artist to comprehend.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS526 THE BUSINESS OF BEING AN ARTIST
(10 ECTS credits)”]
This course will familiarize students with the many avenues a professional artist can pursue, and will address the responsibilities, advantages and potential disadvantages to a number of arts related career positions. Areas explored will include fine arts, graphic and design arts, advertising, marketing and promotion, education, arts administration, and travel and tourism, among others. Preparation for careers in specific areas will be discussed, along with additional credentials that may be required, realistic salary expectations, and career path advancement trends. Other topics addressed will include entrepreneurial ventures, niche markets, gallery representation, tailored portfolios and the curriculum vitae, and agent or agency representation.

Note: the 600 level courses are studies in traditional approaches to fine arts forms. Time, tastes, innovations, discoveries and technology have altered the ways in which art is made. Some traditional forms have vanished while new ones have emerged. Other forms have been revived, but with changes in the approach. This series of courses will provide students with an opportunity to study and execute work, using the traditional methods and materials. In cases where current approaches differ from traditional ones, students will learn both approaches. Students will complete a course project, utilizing traditional materials and approaches, unless adjustments are required in the interests of safety and availability.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS601 DECORATIVE PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Tole painting and Dutch Folk Painting are the most defined foundation forms of decorative painting. These forms were followed by French Wash, antiquing approaches, stenciling, marbling, wash out approaches, and a host of other decorative painting forms. The most recent forms include approaches using an array of faux finishes and faux techniques. This course will introduce students to a variety of decorative painting forms. Traditional methods of the oldest forms will be used to explore them technically and stylistically. Students will also experiment with the more recent decorative painting forms, and will have the opportunity to perhaps develop yet another decorative painting form, technique and/or set of motifs.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS602 CASEIN – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Casein, or “cheese painting,” is a medium in which pigments are tempered with the gluey curd of cheese or milk precipitate. For handling, an emulsion of casein and lime is thinned with water. The active element of casein contains nitrogen, which forms soluble caseates of calcium in the presence of lime. It is applied in thin washes to rigid surfaces, such as cardboard, wood, and
plastered walls. Casein colours dry quickly, although lighter in tone than when first applied. Since they have more body than egg-tempera paints, they can be applied with bristle brushes to create impasto textures not unlike those of oils. Casein paints were used in ancient Rome. They are now available ready-made in tubes and have been used by such modern artists as Robert Motherwell and
Claes Oldenburg. Students will learn casein techniques in this course, working with ready made materials and hand-mixed ones.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS603 COLLAGE – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Collage was the Dada and Synthetic Cubist technique of combining labels, tickets, newspaper cuttings, wallpaper scraps, and other “found” surfaces with painted textures simulating wood graining and marbling. In this course, students will learn a variety of lyrical and inventive techniques, including frottage, cut paper applications, and gouache applications, to name a few. Emphasis will be placed on innovation in this course, and each student will be required to come up with a unique collage application.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS604 DRY PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Sand, or dry, painting is a traditional magic art of the North American Indians. It is still practiced in healing ceremonies among the Navajos of New Mexico and Arizona. Ground sandstone, natural ochres, mineral earths, and powdered charcoal are sprinkled onto a pattern marked into an area covered with yellow-white sand. In traditional application, the “patient” sits in the centre of a vivid symbolic design of coloured figurative and geometrical shapes. Following the ritual, the painting is destroyed. These “floor” pictures influenced Jackson Pollock in his horizontally spread “action paintings.” In this course, students will learn the traditional methods of this technique, and will create a smaller scale project they will be able to keep.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS606 ENCAUSTIC PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Encaustic painting (from the Greek: “burnt in”) was the ancient method, recorded by Pliny, of fixing pigments with heated wax. It was probably first practiced in Egypt about 3000 BC and is thought to have reached its peak in Classical Greece, although no examples from that period survive. Pigments, mixed with melted beeswax, were brushed onto stone or plaster, smoothed with a
metal spatula, and then blended and driven into the wall with a heated iron. The surface was later polished with a cloth. Leonardo and others attempted unsuccessfully to revive the technique. North American Indians used an encaustic method whereby pigments mixed with hot animal fat were pressed into a design engraved on smoothed buffalo hide. This course will train students in a
simplified encaustic technique, which uses a spatula to apply wax mixed with solvent and pigment to wood or canvas, producing a ridged, impasto surface.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS607 FAN PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Rigid fans are depicted in the paintings and reliefs of ancient Egypt, Assyria, Greece, and Rome, but the oldest surviving specimens are the round and folding fans from Japan and China. These were painted in India ink and colour on paper, card, and silk, the ground often sprinkled with gold dust or laid with gold or silver leaf. Spread freely across the mount, a calligraphic design depicted
seasonal landscapes, genre scenes, and bird, flower, and animal motifs, with accompanying poems and commentaries. Leading Oriental painters produced much of their finest work in this form. In Europe, however, where fan painting had been rarely practiced until the 17th century, it was considered a minor art, and designs were often based on frescoes and easel paintings. This course will
introduce students to an array of styles and techniques for fan painting. Students will learn a variety of fan painting techniques, and each student will complete a fan, based upon individual interests.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS608 FRENCH PASTELS – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
French pastels, with the sharpened lumps of pigment used by Ice Age artists, are the purest and most direct painting materials. Pastel pigments are mixed only with sufficient gum to bind them for drying into stick molds. Generally, they are used on raw strawboard or on coarse-grained tinted paper, although vellum, wood, and canvas have been also employed. The colours will not fade or darken, but, since they are not absorbed by the surface of the support, they lie as pigment powder and are easily smudged. Unfortunately, pastel colours lose their luminosity and tonality if fixed with a varnish and so are best preserved in deep mounts behind glass. Degas often overcame the fragile nature of true pastel painting by the unorthodox method of working on turpentine-soaked paper,
which absorbed the powdery pigment. This course will train students in the use of French pastels, and special emphasis will be paid to several preservation
options.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS609 FRESCO – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Fresco (Italian: “fresh”) is the traditional medium for painting directly onto a wall or ceiling. It is the oldest known painting medium, surviving in the prehistoric cave mural decorations and perfected in 16th-century Italy in the buon’ fresco method. This course will train students to work in this art form, on hand built panels designed to be an appropriate surface for fresco
painting. The panels will be coordinated, and combined to represent a single fresco painting.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS610 GLASS PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Glass paintings are executed with oil and hard resin or with watercolour and gum on glass sheets. These have been a folk art tradition in Europe and North America and, from the 15th to the 18th century, were regarded as a fine art in northern Europe. Students will learn how to apply colours from the back in reverse order, and will learn options for creating the kind of illusionary, bizarre spatial relationships between the viewer and picture space sought by the modern artist Michelangelo Pistoletto.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS611 IVORY PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Ivory painting was practiced in the 18th and 19th centuries in Europe and America for portrait miniatures. These were generally oval-shaped and designed as keepsakes, lockets, and mantle pictures. They were painted under a magnifying glass in fairly dry watercolour or tempera stippling, with sable-or marten-hair brushes on thin, semi-translucent ivory pieces. Corrections were made with a needle, and the velvet quality of the colours was enhanced, on thinner ivories, by the glow produced by a gold leaf or tinted backing. Students will learn the techniques of ivory painting in the course, and will acquire a history of the tradition.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS612 LACQUER – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Lacquer has been a traditional Chinese medium for more than 2,000 years. It combines painting with intaglio relief. Linen-covered wood panels are coated with chalk or clay, followed by many thin layers of black or red lacquer-tree resin. The surface is polished and a design is engraved, which is then coloured and gilded or inset with mother-of-pearl. Layers of compressed paper or molded papier-mâché have also provided supports. In China and Japan, lacquer has been used principally for decorating shrine panels, screens, caskets, panniers (large baskets), and musical instruments. In this course, students will have the option of selecting their own objects on which to learn this artistic tradition dating back two millennia.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS613 CHINESE PAINTING TECHNIQUES– TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Folding screens and screen doors originated in China and Japan, probably during the 12th century AD, and continued as a traditional form into the 20^th century. They are in ink or gouache on plain or gilded paper and silk. Students will learn fundamental skills of this vivid and traditional fine arts form, through a process of creating their own screen and fan paintings.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS614 MINIATURE PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Miniature painting is a term applied both to Western portrait miniatures and to Indian and Islamic forms of manuscript painting. Portrait miniatures were originally painted in watercolour with body colour on vellum and card. They were often worn in jeweled, enameled lockets. Sixteenth-century miniaturists, such as Hans Holbein, Jean Clouet, Nicholas Hilliard, and Isaac Oliver, painted them in the tradition of medieval illuminators. Their flat designs, richly textured and minutely detailed, often incorporated allegorical and gilded heraldic motifs. In 17th- and 18th-century Western portrait miniatures, the two-dimensional pattern of rich colours was developed by atmospheric tonal modeling into more naturalistic representations; these were sometimes in pastel and pencil or painted in oils on a metal base. This course will train students in this high-precision art form, which was eventually superseded by the small, hand-tinted photograph.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS615 MIXED MEDIUMS – TRADITIONAL FORMS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Some pictures are first painted in one medium and corrected or enriched with colour and texture in another. Examples of this kind of mixed mediums are the Renaissance tempera-oil technique, William Blake’s relief etchings colour-printed in glue tempera and hand-finished in watercolour, and Degas’ over-painted monotypes and his combinations of pastel, gouache, and oil. More
recent examples are Richard Hamilton’s photographs over-painted in oil colour, Dubuffet’s patchwork assemblages of painted canvas and paper, and Klee’s alchemy in mixing ingredients such as oil and distemper on chalk over jute and watercolour and wax on muslin stuck on wood.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS616 PAPER PORTRAITURE – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
From the end of the 18th century, profiles and full-length group portraits were cut in black paper, mounted on white card, and often highlighted in gold or white de”) might be first outlined from the sitter’s cast shadow with the aid of a physionotrace. In this course, students will learn the traditional approach to this art form, and will serve as models for one another.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS618 SCREEN PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Folding screens and screen doors originated in China and Japan, probably during the 12th century, and continued as a traditional form into the 20th. They are produced in ink or gouache on plain or gilded paper and silk, and often include vivid rendering of animals, birds, and flowers and their atmospheric landscapes, bringing nature indoors. In some screens each panel was designed as
an individual painting, whie in others a continuous pattern flowed freely across the divisions. This course will train students in the art of screen painting, and each student will complete a screen for their own use.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS619 SCROLL PAINTING – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Hand scrolls, traditional to China and Japan, are ink paintings on continuous lengths of paper or silk. They are unrolled at arm’s length and viewed from right to left. Scrolls, which date back to the 4^th century AD, are remarkable for their vitality, the lyrical representation of atmospheric space, and for the rising and dipping viewpoints that anticipate the zooming motion-picture camera. Students will learn techniques of scroll painting and design, while acquiring information about this ancient art form.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS620 SGRAFFITO – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Sgraffito (Italian graffiare, “to scratch”) is a form of fresco painting for exterior walls. A rough plaster undercoat is followed by thin plaster layers, each stained with a different lime-fast colour. These coats are covered by a fine-grain mortar finishing surface. The plaster is then engraved with knives and gouges at different levels to reveal the various coloured layers beneath. The sintered-lime process binds the colours. The surface of modern sgraffito frescoes is often enriched with textures made by impressing nails and machine parts, combined with mosaics of stone, glass, plastic, and metal tesserae. This course will provide training in sgraffito techniques. Students will work together to create an “exterior wall” for exhibition purposes.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS621 PAINTING IN INK – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Ink is the traditional painting medium of China and Japan, where it has been used for centuries with long-haired brushes of wolf, goat, or badger on silk or absorbent paper. Oriental black ink is a gum-bound carbon stick that is ground on rough stone and mixed with varying amounts of water to create a wide range of modulated tones or applied almost dry, with lightly brushed strokes, to
produce coarser textures. This course will provide training in the numerous and necessarily precise techniques of traditional ink painting.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS622 TRADITIONAL TEMPERA – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
A tempera medium is dry pigment tempered with an emulsion and thinned with water. It is a very ancient medium, having been in constant use in most world cultures, until in Europe it was gradually superseded, during the Renaissance, by oil paints. Tempera was the original mural medium in the ancient dynasties of Egypt, Babylonia, Mycenean Greece, and China and was used to decorate the early Christian catacombs. It was employed on a variety of supports, from the stone stelae (or commemorative pillars), mummy cases, and papyrus rolls of ancient Egypt to the wood panels of Byzantine icons and altarpieces and the vellum leaves of medieval illuminated manuscripts . True tempera is made by mixture with the yolk of fresh eggs, although manuscript illuminators often used egg white and some easel painters added the whole egg. Other emulsions have been used, such as casein glue with linseed oil, egg yolk with gum and linseed oil,
and egg white with linseed or poppy oil. Individual painters have experimented with other recipes, but few of these have proved successful. All but William
Blake’s later tempera paintings on copper sheets have darkened and decayed, and it is thought that he mixed his pigment with carpenter’s glue. This course will explore traditional tempera methods (as well as some experimental ones) inefforts to duplicate some of the qualities of great tempera works. This course will provide training in a number of tempera related techniques, on a variety
of surfaces, and will also test theories put forth by artists from centuries ago (such as Cennini and Alberti).
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS623 MANUSCRIPT ILLUMINATION – TRADITIONAL METHODS (12 ECTS credits)”]
Among the earliest surviving forms of manuscript painting are the papyrus rolls of the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, the scrolls of Classical Greece and Rome, Aztec pictorial maps, and Mayan and Chinese codices, or manuscript books. European illuminated manuscripts were painted in egg-white tempera on vellum and card. Their subjects included religious, historical, mythological, and
allegorical narratives, medical treatises, Psalters, and calendars depicting seasonal occupations. In contrast to the formalized imagery of Byzantine and early Gothic manuscript painters, Celtic illuminators developed a unique, abstract style of elaborate decoration, the written text being overwhelmed by intricate latticework borders, with full-page initial letters embraced by
interlacing scrolls. In this course, students will have the opportunity to select an illumination style of interest to them and create a finished. illuminated manuscript.

Note: the 700 level courses are essentially independent studies, designed by students and approved by the instructor and Warnborough College. The instructor will be available to assist students with project development, when needed. Grades will be based wholly upon the final projects submitted.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS701 ADVANCED PROJECT IN NATURE AND WILDLIFE – A SERIES (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a series of nature and wildlife projects, in their preferred fine arts form(s) and medium(s). The projects do not need to be related to one another, although a theme oriented series is acceptable. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the individual works.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS702 ADVANCED PROJECT IN THE HUMAN FIGURE – A SERIES (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a series of renderings of the human figure, in their preferred fine arts form(s) and medium(s). The projects do not need to be related to one another, although a theme oriented series is acceptable. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the individual works.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS703 ADVANCED PROJECT IN THE LANDSCAPE – LARGE FORMAT (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a large format painting or drawing, in their preferred medium. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the work.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS704 ADVANCED PROJECT IN THE STILL LIFE – A SERIES (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students
will create a still-life series, in their preferred fine arts form(s) and medium(s), in two-dimensional format. The projects do not need to be related to one another, although a theme oriented series is acceptable. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the individual works.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS705 ADVANCED PROJECT IN MARINE ART – A SERIES (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a series of marine works, in their preferred fine arts form(s) and medium(s), in two-dimensional format. The projects do not need to be related to one another, although a theme oriented series is acceptable. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the individual works. Students may substitute the series with a large format work, if desired.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS706 ADVANCED PROJECT IN MIXED MEDIA – LARGE FORMAT (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a large format mixed media work, on the subject matter of their choice, in two dimensional format. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the work submitted.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS707 ADVANCED ASSEMBLAGE – LARGE FORMAT (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students
will create an assemblage work, in large format and on a subject matter selected by the student. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of work submitted.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS708 ADVANCED THREE-DIMENSIONAL DESIGN OR SCULPTURE – LARGE FORMAT – (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a sculpture or three-dimensional design, in large format, on a subject matter selected by the student, and in whatever medium the student prefers. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the work submitted.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS709 ADVANCED PAINTING – ALL MEDIA – LARGE FORMAT (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a sculpture or three-dimensional design, in large format, on a subject matter selected by the student, and in whatever medium the student prefers. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of work submitted.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS710 ADVANCED PROJECT IN ALTERNATIVE MEDIA – LARGE FORMAT (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students
will create a large format project, utilizing alternative media, on a subject matter selected by the student, and in whatever form and medium the student prefers. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the work submitted. Students may substitute the large format project with a series of
smaller project, if desired.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS711 ADVANCED PROJECT IN THE MINOR ARTS – A SERIES (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a series of projects, in the minor arts, in whatever form(s) and/or medium(s) the student prefers. The projects do not have to relate to one another, although a theme oriented series is acceptable. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the individual works.
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[accordion_item parent_id=”fine-art-history” title=”ARTS712 ADVANCED ON-SITE PROJECT – LARGE FORMAT – (12 ECTS credits)”]
Students will create a large format painting or drawing, developed on-site. Media preferences are up to the student. The site must be related to the subject matter of the work submitted. Students will be required to submit a written statement with their final project, which discusses the formal and aesthetic properties of the work.
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