Arts
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Saint Paul College Programs
Liberal Arts and Sciences - Arts
Overview
Art courses are designed to provide the highest quality coursework for students majoring in art as well as students who are interested in exploring their creative expression through the creation of artwork in a studio class or the study of art in a historical context. Our art coursework provides students with a richer understanding of the world and themselves. Our instructors possess the highest credentials in their field and are committed to excellence in teaching and scholarship. The fine art and humanities department offers a large variety of studio and art history coursework that transfers towards a Major in Art or Art History at a four-year institution.
Students who plan on majoring in Art at a four-year institution should include Art History, Studio Art and Humanities coursework in order to be prepared for upper division work in whatever area of art they may choose for their area of concentration.
Art and Art History classes also fulfill requirements for the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum, as well as for College and program graduation requirements.
| Course | Cr | |
|---|---|---|
| ARTS 1710 | Fundamentals of Photography 1 | 3 |
| ARTS 1711 | Fundamentals of Photography 2 | 3 |
| ARTS 1712 | Advanced Photography | 3 |
| ARTS 1720 | Art Appreciation | 3 |
| ARTS 1730 | Drawing 1 | 3 |
| ARTS 1731 | Drawing 2 | 3 |
| ARTS 1740 | Introduction to Painting | 3 |
| ARTS 1742 | Intermediate Painting | 3 |
| ARTS 1760 | World Art | 3 |
| ARTS 1770 | American Art | 3 |
| ARTS 1790 | History of Photography (traditional and online sections available) | 3 |
Course Descriptions
ARTS 1710 Fundamentals of Photography 1
This course is an introduction to the basic tools and techniques used in black and white photography, as well as the development of conceptual and aesthetic issues in the field. Technical areas include camera use, metering, aperture, shutter speed controls, film and optics. In addition, the course will address creative uses of photography in its depiction of light and shadow, elements of time, motion, space, portraiture, and personal exploration and metaphor. Students will develop a vocabulary for personal expression combining the technical and conceptual issues into a final photographic project of their own design. (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/2/1/0
ARTS 1711 Fundamentals of Photography 2
Fundamentals of Photography 2 builds on the foundational skills of photography as an art form learned in ARTS 1710 Fundamentals of Photography 1. Composition, exposure and camera fundamentals are covered. Students are introduced to darkroom techniques to further enhance the capability of personal expression available in the medium. The class explores film development, contact printing and enlarging. Students develop skills to produce high-quality black and white 8"x10" gelatin silver photographs. (Prerequisite(s): ARTS 1710 Fundamentals of Photography 1 with a grade of "C" or better) (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/2/1/0
ARTS 1712 Advanced Photography
Students in Advanced Photography will continue to explore composition, exposure, camera work and advanced darkroom techniques which will further enhance the capability of personal expression available in the medium. Ultimately, the student will recognize their own creative style and be able to set goals to achieve their photographic aspirations. We will discuss professional presentation of artwork, explore professional practices in photography, experiment with advanced darkroom techniques, and produce a portfolio of high quality black and white gelatin-silver photographs. (Prerequisite(s): ARTS 1710 and ARTS 1711 with a grade of "C" or better) (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/3/0/0
ARTS 1720 Art Appreciation
Pyramids to Picasso - a survey of great works of art of Western Civilization. This is an introductory "learning to look" course with the objective of developing students' ability to see, understand and enjoy the visual arts. Examples of painting, sculpture, architecture, many of which will already be familiar to students, will be viewed, discussed and analyzed in class. We will then go out and take a look at the real thing by taking a walking tour of downtown Saint Paul and visiting the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. (MnTC: Goal 6 & 8) 3C/3/0/0
ARTS 1730 Drawing 1
This course will focus on techniques and strategies for improving observational drawing abilities. Through hands-on drawing exercises, students will learn to depict the world around them and the human form with greater accuracy. Specifically, we will focus on the five basic skills of drawing: perception of edges, perception of spaces, perception of relationships, perception of lights and shadows, and perception of the whole, or gestalt. (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/2/1/0
ARTS 1731 Drawing 2
This course continues the development of skills and techniques learned in Drawing 1. This course emphasizes observing relationships, line and value to enhance experimental and personal expression; introduces techniques for drawing in color, incorporates figure drawing, and includes the study of influential artists throughout the history of art, concentrating on contemporary means of expression. Students design art projects and complete a portfolio. Prerequisite(s): ARTS 1730 Drawing 1 with a grade of "C" or better) (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/2/1/0
ARTS 1740 Introduction to Painting
This course will introduce students to the materials and techniques of oil painting. Assignments will be geared towards improving one's ability to paint from direct observation and depicting the natural world and the human form with greater accuracy. The course will have strong emphasis on the development of color in painting and a fair amount of time will be spent discussing "color theory" as it pertains to art. The instructor will introduce all techniques with hands-on demonstrations. (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/2/1/0
ARTS 1742 Intermediate Painting
This course will incorporate and further develop skills and techniques learned in Introduction to Painting, but will be more independent in nature. Each student will write a proposal for a cohesive body of work to be completed over the course of the semester, and will work towards developing a personal "style" of painting. Through a series of in-class group critiques, students will learn to analyze and critique works of art. (Prerequisite(s): ARTS 1740 Introduction to Painting with a grade of "C" or better.) (MNTC: Goal 6) 3C/3/0/0
ARTS 1760 World Art
What would you see if you suddenly found yourself in China, Nigeria, India or Mexico? How would the world look to you? For many of us, it would probably look very strange. One of the many ways to make our world familiar to us, whether we travel or not, is to try to understand a culture's visual expression in architecture, sculpture, painting and other media. This class will view slides of artwork in a lecture/discussion format. We will then visit the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, twice, where we will be able to immerse ourselves in the cultures studied by examining the original artworks produced by these cultures. (MnTC: Goals 6 & 8) 3C/3/0/0
ARTS 1770 American Art
Art and architecture in America reflects the visual experiences of the many groups of people who, over time, have left a rich artistic heritage. As a part of the course, students analyze works of art representing diverse perspectives and ideas within an historical framework. Among subject areas to be considered are the following: Native American art, American landscape painting, the evolution of the skyscraper, the influence of American painters on modern art and the contributions to art made by recent immigrants to the Twin Cities. Art and architecture field projects are required. (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/3/0/0
ARTS 1790 History of Photography
This survey course will focus on the art of still photography from the 19th century to the present. There is an emphasis on the work of artists, their processes, and the accompanying aesthetic movements occurring between the announcement of the Daguerreotype in 1839 and the beginning of the twenty-first century. As witnesses of popular culture, students will examine the interaction of photography among other visual art forms, sociology, documentary photography, and photojournalism. The photographic print, as a means of artistic expression, will be discussed including historic, social, and artistic movements. (MnTC: Goal 6) 3C/3/0/0
