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Courses
ART 101/501
2-D Design: Introduction to Art Making (3)
An introduction to a variety of technical, conceptual and philosophical approaches used to make art. Students explore composition, color theory and design principles using basic drawing, painting and mixed materials. Topics such as, what art is, aesthetics and interpretations are investigated. Intellectual and contemplative ways of creating are regarded as guides to expand awareness. Materials fee.
ART 102/502
Pottery from the Earth (3)
In the ancient clay traditions, all pottery comes from our mother, the earth. This class focuses on finding wild clay, using it to make vessels and other objects and firing them with wood and dung in a hearth on the ground. Forming, burnishing and decorating vessels using gourd scrapers and handmade brushes as tools are important parts of class work. Students also study the importance of the vessels used by their own and other traditions, and how these vessels influence their lives.
ART 105
Art and Consciousness: Mixed Materials and Self-Exploration (3)
Students are challenged to listen and trust their own inner experience as the basis for the creation of authentic artwork. Through material experimentation and investigation into realms of consciousness we create art. Acrylic painting and mixed media are explored. Students discover that art relies upon its sources in the most profound levels of human consciousness for its ability to inspire and transform. Materials fee.
ART 116
Photography I (3)
A foundation in basic photographic techniques, this course introduces students to equipment, materials, processes and philosophy. Special emphasis is given to development of craft (technical aspects of the camera) and content (seeing) in relation to communication arts. Darkroom work provides an experiential approach to exploring black-and-white materials, roll film processing and enlarging. Students provide their own manual 35 mm camera. Lab and materials fee.
ART 125/505
Introduction to Drawing (3)
This studio class focuses on developing skillful use of drawing techniques, paired with an investigation of mind and perception. Drawing is presented here as a method for discovering the beauty and profundity of ordinary things. A graduated series of individual and collaborative exercises is presented for both beginning and experienced drawers.
ART 132/532
3-D Ephemeral Media (3)
This studio course explores the fundamental principles of three-dimensional design such as form, space, shape, value, balance, proportion and movement. Students examine contemplative ways of creating art and experience the symbiotic relationship that occurs when using ephemeral media (natural materials that erode or decay over time) as a primary medium.
ART 155/555
Figure Drawing I (3)
The structure of this course is established by centering concentration on the figurative motif. Class routine begins with gesture and warm-up drawing, followed by instruction and specific exercises, ending with extended poses or poses relative to a particular figurative study. Figure exercises are derived from an academic tradition to train the eye, as well as the hand.
ART 180/540
Sculpture (3)
This studio course explores the organizing principles of three-dimensional design as well as the nature of one’s creative thoughts. Students learn to use a variety of materials and techniques including clay, plaster, metals, mold making and conceptual approaches. Investigations into the history of sculptural form raise questions pertinent to contemporary art. Materials fee.
ART 181/581
Traditional Chinese Brush Stroke I (3)
Brush stroke class focuses on learning how to cultivate the inner-Qi, or energy, through the practice of brush calligraphy. The history of Oriental calligraphy and culture is studied. We focus on the process of meditation with a brush. Emphasis is placed on regular, running style and grass style, Caoshu, with some exposure to seal script and brush painting as well. Students learn how Asian paper and brushes are used, how to place a chop or red seal on Chinese calligraphy and painting. We study how the Asian brush is designed and how it differs from Western brushes. Every student has artwork at the end of this course. Workshops begin with a light qigong standing meditation every week. Materials fee.
ART 200/500
The Contemplative Artist (3)
At the very heart of the word contemplative is the activity of observing, seeing. Contemplative, originally a term of divination, meant an open space marked out for observation. Contemplation implies attentive and meditative observation. Through mindfulness meditation, studio assignments and selected readings, students explore a cosmology of art; how art arises; how seeing occurs, literally and poetically; how people navigate and appreciate the world through sense perceptions; how perceptions are affected by culture; and how these two streams of the personal and the public join in an individual’s aesthetic sense and artistic statement.
ART 215/515
Watercolor (3)
This course, open to beginners and experienced artists, is a series of exercises designed to lay the foundation for understanding this famously difficult medium. The methods presented distill the techniques practiced in the Western tradition of the past three centuries and provide the basis for a lifetime of anxious pleasure. This is a studio class with demonstrations by the instructor and a lot of painting and drawing by the students.
ART 216/516
Photography II (3)
The primary goal of this course is to deepen and expand one’s knowledge of photography as a medium of artistic expression. The student needs to have completed at least one introductory course in photography and be ready to undertake more independent explorations of particular conceptual and artistic interests. Both theoretical and practical, this course is as much about thinking as about making images. At this level the student should have strong individual aspirations with regard to printing his or her images. Technical skills are expanded so that one’s printing ability is in sync with aesthetic aspirations. Materials fee.
ART 233/533
Thangka Painting 1: Appreciation of Himalayan Buddhist Art (3)
Thangka painting, a traditional visual art form unique to the Himalayan Buddhist region, is approached in two ways: studio training in basic drawing and painting is paired with academic study within a broad context. Topics include history, styles, methods, content and relevance to historical and contemporary societies. The class format includes slide lectures, films, readings and field excursions. Students also work in a practice environment modeled after the Vajrayana nyinthang practice in two daylong sessions.
ART 245/545
Painting I (3)
A beginning-level painting class suitable for beginning painters as well as more seasoned painters. The approach stresses artistic practice both in technique and statement. What gives a painting the power to change our experience, to enrapture us, to scandalize us, to transcend time, place, culture? By painting, students practice and learn to examine what it is that takes a painting beyond what Picasso referred to as “mere painting.” Students also practice keeping a sketchbook. Open to upper-division students only. Materials fee.
ART 260/520
Calligraphy and Book Arts (3)
An alphabet in its historical and contemporary form is studied. The study of the letter forms with the broad-edged pen, brush and other tools is complemented by design exercises to explore color, texture and rhythm. Class exercises include traditional practice of forms as well as more expressive techniques conducive to the creative process. A hand-bound book form is also introduced in this class. May be repeated twice for credit. Materials fee.
ART 281/582; 381/583
Traditional Chinese Brush Stroke II, III (3)
Based on skills learned in Traditional Chinese Brush Stroke I, students continue their exploration of the history, origin and construction of the Chinese characters. Students delve further into the five calligraphy-writing styles as a method to enhance their Chinese writing skills. To gain a better understanding of the aesthetic standard, oriental philosophy and oriental painting, students examine ways Chinese poetic artistry, i.e. poetry, calligraphy and painting, are interrelated in the Asian traditions. We look at modern Chinese and Japanese brush art work and the interaction between the West and the East. Workshops begin with a light qigong standing meditation every week. Materials fee.
ART 301/551
Visual Arts Prehistory through the 18th Century (3)
Themes permeating art from around the world from prehistory through the eighteenth century are explored. Emphasizing Western art, this course considers major cultural and theoretical trends in a global context. The curriculum is structured to develop writing skills in order to build a verbal, visual and critical vocabulary.
ART 306
Photography III (3)
This advanced photography course undertakes an independent exploration of the student’s particular conceptual and artistic interests. Students concentrate on more independent projects while being exposed to further theoretical and practical aspects of studio work. Students are likewise encouraged to think beyond the single photo to more expanded notions of photography such as series-related work, alternative processes and installation work. Prerequisites: ART 116 and 216 or equivalent. Materials fee.
ART 311/511
Mixed Media (3)
Students engage in the creation of art made out of mixing materials and media. Investigations include formal, technical, philosophical and experiential aspects of art making. Sources of artistic imagery, from contemporary to traditional art, and the dynamics of aesthetic experience are examined. Students develop insights through the integration of witnessing many forms of art, critical intent and personal creative experience. Emphasis is placed on making art, artistic evaluation and the dynamics of group critique. Materials fee.
ART 325/525
Advanced Drawing (3)
Open to anyone with previous drawing experience. Beginning with an emphasis on precise observational drawing, the class proceeds through an array of exercises designed to deepen each student’s native way of drawing. The working basis for this is the One Hundred Drawings project, a semester-long exploration of an individually chosen theme.
ART 333/543
Thangka Painting II (3)
A continuation of ART 233/533. Students learn to stretch and prime cloth for painting. Each student begins by painting the eight auspicious symbols then advances to composing a complete thangka painting. Skills focused on include dry-technique shading, color mixing and application and making gold paint. Detailed study of classic thangkas, both past and contemporary, complement the skills practiced. Prerequisite: ART 233/533.
ART 345/565
Painting II (3)
Painting II begins as a guided exploration of the medium of acrylic paint, of color and of the dynamic of pictorial space. Study includes studio assignments in painting, looking at and studying historical and contemporary paintings, and reading historical, critical and biographical writings on painting and painters. For the final project, The Commission, students initiate a self-directed painting project that results in a body of work. This class is suitable for seasoned painters and daring beginners. Materials fee.
ART 351/552
Visual Arts 19th, 20th and 21st Centuries (3)
Theoretical, critical and social issues in modernism beginning in the nineteenth century and ending with contemporary art are explored. Other themes based on gender, race and politics are also a focus. This course is structured to develop writing skills in order to build a verbal, visual and critical vocabulary.
ART 380
The Cinema of Exile and Diaspora (3)
An examination of the filmmaking of postcolonial, Third World and other displaced subjects living in the West. We explore many of the shared themes, metaphors and symbols of these films, among those: alienation, displacement, journeying, nomadism, borders, migrancy, homelessness, nostalgia and home-seeking. We also examine and discuss certain styles that characterize these films, many of them demonstrating fragmented, multilingual, epistolary, interstitial and self-reflexive characteristics. In most of these films, identity is not fixed but is represented as a process of becoming and transformation.
ART 431/531
Advanced Studio Practice (3)
Students define and manifest their own artistic voice, incorporating the media and technique of their choice. Motivated students build a body of cohesive art work, with emphasis on technical, formal and conceptual development. Art and thought processes are supported by research, engaged inquiry and a highly focused studio practice. Viewing art from contemporary and traditional cultures encourages students to realize a global understanding of what art is. Prerequisites: two studio courses. Visual Arts majors only.
ART 433/553
Thangka Painting III (3)
For advanced students of thangka painting. Students continue to work on their compositions begun in Thangka Painting II. Further development of painting technique coincides with study and refinement of design both linear and tonal. The sewing of brocades for mounting finished paintings is also demonstrated. Prerequisite: ART 333/543.
ART 443/563
Thangka Painting IV (3)
For advanced students of thangka painting. Prerequisite: ART 433/553.
ART 480
Portfolio and Gallery Presentation (Senior Project) (1)
This course prepares students for the presentation of their senior projects in the Naropa Gallery. The course covers practical elements of designing and assembling a portfolio, marketing, copyrights, presentation of artwork and installation of exhibitions. BA Visual Arts seniors only. Others by permission of Visual Arts Department chair.
ART 490/690
Special Topics in Visual Arts (3)
Special Topics Seminar investigates the applications of theories and methods of Visual Arts specific to historical, critical and theoretical contexts. Specific topics are announced the semester this course is offered. The seminar is open to advanced undergraduate and graduate students.
ART 499
Independent Study (1–3)
An opportunity for students to engage in in-depth, concentrated study with a particular faculty member for a semester. The design of study and course work is decided upon by the student and faculty member.
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