ART 260 A: Introduction to Contemporary Art for Inderdisciplinary Practice

SPRING 2019 Mondays and Wednesdays 11:30am-2:20pm Instructor: Timea Tihanyi timea@uw.edu Office hours: before class and after 5:30pm on MW. Please email ahead of time to set up appointment. Classroom: ART 207

Introduction To Interdisciplinary Practice:

Why We Make? - Maker Culture / Maker Practices

Go to Schedule

Go to List of Research Presentation Dates + Presenters

Go to Unit #1 Sewing Resources

Go to Unit #2 Your Access to Digital Design (CAD) Programs

Go to Unit #3 Making and Unmaking

What is this course about?

This hands-on studio art course explores various interdisciplinary forms of creative practices through 2 making projects, lively class discussions, and various field-trips during which we encounter a variety of exhibition spaces and MakerSpaces, artworks and their creators: artists, designers, cultural entrepreneurs, art institutions and other creative professionals.

By retracing the story of 3 historic milestones in the contemporary art—a revolutionary art school in the early part of the 20^th century, a significant 1960-70’s social movement, and the contemporary emerging techno DIY/hacker culture—we will explore the web of connections between idea, technology, craft, design, collaboration, and will put the interdisciplinary maker-culture in the larger cultural and socio-economical context of our world.

What questions are we going to ask?

What do artist, designers, innovators make today? What ideas inspire them, traditions they build on and ethical guidelines that drive them forward?

What does interdisciplinary thinking and making mean in the real world and how can we practice it?

Is making by hand still relevant in the contemporary world? What do digital/technological innovators think about materiality? How does their work fit into art and craft traditions of making?

How can forms of making and "unmaking" become a political statement? And how DYI (Do-It-Yourself) making—by hand or by technological means—may promote change in the world?

Who is this class for?

• Interdisciplinary Visual Arts majors,
• all art and design majors,
• any student interested in art, design, architecture, the humanities, as well as in engineering, HCDE, computer science will benefit greatly from this course.

This is an introductory level art course. No art experience is required. The course is highly participatory and will include two making projects and one collaborative project, as well as one research assignment with classroom presentation.

You will learn all the skills needed for the projects and will have ample time to develop your projects in class with the help of feedback from the instructor, as well as your peers. Expect to spend an additional 6-8hours/week studio time on completing the assignments, doing the required readings and preparing for the class discussions, and doing the research assignment.  

What skills will I learn in this course? (Course objectives)

• Designing and drafting patterns for making 3dimensional forms out of soft materials.
• Various hand and machine sewing, stitching and embroidery techniques and additional fiber and soft sculpture techniques.
• Working with digital software for both 2dimensional and 3dimensional production. The following software will be introduced: Rhinoceros, Fusion360, (Adobe Illustrator). Software is available in the SOACC classroom (art215) as well as in many of the campus computing spaces. Please be sure to check ahead of time for availability if your are planning to work at a location outside of SOACC. You may also want to download free or education versions of this software or consider purchasing them at the discounted educational rate. More information about this will be covered in class. 
• Building working knowledge with laser cutter and 3D printer. For production locations, please rely on the MakerSpaces we visit as a class. Follow the instructions of the MakerSpace staff for setting up your file for cutting or printing. 
• Conceptualizing and developing interdisciplinary ideas that are informed by a variety of materials, making processes and ideas.
• Skills for conducting interdisciplinary research and for participating in a dialogue. Learning to ask the right research questions. 
• Develop and practice presentation skills.

Course Work and Grading

Participation and preparedness P+P week 1-4, P+P week 5-7, P+P week 8-F, with an emphasis on advancing your own as well as others' learning in class. An active engagement with all aspects of the course: Presenting small assignments as listed DUE on Schedule. Active engagement in group and collaborative projects. Preparation for class discussions and work classes, and a demonstration of your understanding of ideas from assigned readings -- 45%

2 making assignments, Assignment #1: Wearable soft sculpture. Symbiosis, Assignment#2: Digital Making with an emphasis on learning and practicing demonstrated skills, experimentation with these basic skills, pushing your own boundaries by exploring further possibilities -- 40%

1 research assignment and presentation, Artist Research Assignment, with an emphasis on the quality of questions raised by your research and a demonstration of a broadened understanding of ideas -- 15%

Details on discussion topics, course work, assignments and field trips

The course will sample three specific examples of art making both in their own historical context and for their relevance for our current time. These are:

1. The legacy of the Black Mountain College

   Learning about activities at the historic Black Mountain College (BMC), which operated from 1933 until 1957,  will give us an opportunity of see how this unique art school program became “the wellspring of American avant-garde” connecting the Bauhaus art and design tradition with novel ways of creative expression. BMC curriculum created boundless opportunities of spontaneity, cherished trial and error, fostered experimentation and encouraged freedom and failure as a necessary way of learning new things. While they were doing so, BMC managed to create a community of makers and innovators.

Reading: Browse the various chapters for your research in the book, Leap Before You Look by Helen Molesworth. This book is on course reserve in the Art Library. Additional books on the artists covered in this segment are also available in the library, and will be your responsibility to check out. 

Assignment: together we will co-author and perform a project in the spirit of a BMC class. In other words, we, as a class, get to make up an experimental assignment that we, as a class, will then do! This assignment also involves individual research into the life and work of a BMC or a contemporary artist (and their artwork) and an in-class visual presentation of your research. 

Field Trip: Jake Gallery, SOA+AH+D spaces and galleries

Further Online resources: Black Mountain College – 'A School Like No Other' | TateShots

https://thedailyhatch.org/2015/06/26/the-artists-poets-and-professors-of-black-mountain-college-the-college-featured-in-the-film-the-longest-ride-part-11-artist-josef-albers/

2. Feminist Movements

   The Second Wave Feminist Movement during the 1970’ sharpened focus on identity politics. This focus has also promoted a revision of history of craft (more specifically of "women’s work") by redefining fiber and textile art, including soft sculpture, as a “revolutionary” new category of art. Singling out hand-making, sewing, stitching, weaving, etc. as the metaphor for the meticulous and often under-appreciated labor of maintenance and mending, this art created a potential to speak about both universal and unique human experiences.

Reading: Excerpts from Fray: Art and Textile Politics by Julia Byan-Wilson are available in course Files. Self-guided reading from WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution by Cornelia Buttler, available on reserve in the Art Library.

Making Assignment: Symbiotic sculpture. We are going to learn various sewing and fabric construction techniques and you will design and execute a wearable piece of soft sculpture that tells a story.

Field Trip: Seattle Art Museum, Henry Art Gallery and Henry Research Study Center

Further Online Resources: Fierce Women of Art 2 | The Art Assignment | PBS Digital Studios

Female Artists Fierce Women of Art | The Art Assignment | PBS Digital Studios

Judy Chicago Judy Chicago – ‘I’m an Artist and a Troublemaker' | TateShots

Judy Chicago Judy Chicago on feminist art

Nick Cave Soundsuits https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndvl8L_a72A

3. The machine that makes itself

   The new millennium brought about the rise of the DYI culture, open-source hacks, and MakerSpaces (shared collaborative studios for making with technology, such as 3D printers, laser cutters, VR). We will consider how these technologies and new paradigms of making contribute to our everyday creativity and to the visual arts and how DIY-making fits into our lives in the age of mass-production. How are artists and designers use DIY principles? Does the machine make the work instead of the human? What can and cannot be made by digital technology? And how does this digital technology fit into the history of crafts and craftsmanship? 

Reading: Find in the course Files: The Digital Craftsman and His Tools by Dries Verbruggen. Excerpts from Digital Artisans by Jonathan Openshaw, ed. On course reserve in the Art Library: Printing Things by Claire Warnier and Dries Verbruggen.

Making Assignment: Digital design (CAD) and Production (CAM) of a functional sculptural object.

You will need to download Fusion360 ahead of this assignment: https://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360/free-trial

(choose 30 day free trial)

Tutorials: http://f360ap.autodesk.com/courses/getting-started-in-fusion-360 (you will need to have an Autodesk account for this)

Field Trip: CoMotion, The MILL, SOA+AH+D digital studio

Further Online Resources:

Chuck Hull - Inventor, Innovator, Icon - The Story of How 3D Printing Came to Be.

https://www.ted.com/talks/lisa_harouni_a_primer_on_3d_printing

http://unfold.be/pages/l-artisan-electronique

Important:

• Missed assignments, critiques and any peer or class activities will result in no credit for that assignment.
• Absences from class prevent participation and thus will result in lost participation credits for the day, negatively affecting the final grade.
• If sudden illness, emergency or random act of nature should prevent you from attending class, you are responsible for following up with a classmate for class notes, reviewing missed concepts and techniques, checking assignment guidelines, and completing required work ON TIME.
• If you are sick and contagious, stay at home and get better. If you must miss a class due to illness, let your instructor know immediately and develop a timeline for keeping up with the assignment.

BEST PRACTICES

• Have a sketchbook and collect ideas, research notes and reading summaries, and technical notes in it.
• Check Canvas regularly, at least twice a week and the day before class, for updates.
• Participate! Add relevant content to the topical discussions and group activities. Ask questions and interact with the instructor, guest speakers, and your peers. 
• Electronics (laptops, tablets, phones and other smart devices) are only allowed when the instructor calls for their use. Outside of these times, turn off and put these away.
• No headphones, earbuds in during class.
• Class begins and ends at the appointed time. We will take breaks as appropriate. Arrive on time and plan to stay for the entire duration of class. Tardy attendance will result in the loss of participation points. 

More about Grading and Absence:

Assignments will receive verbal feedback during critiques and a letter grade.

Revision of completed assignments for a higher grade is available until the final class meeting but requires advanced approval of revision timeline and plans by the instructor. 

Absences are highly discouraged as they will interfere with your timely progress in class and take away your ability to participate. 

If you must miss a class, let me know via email (timea@uw.edu) in advance or as soon as possible and also provide me with a plan for making up for lost work and information. In general, you must consult Canvas first, follow up on new techniques from a classmate or online source, then, if need additional help, contact me. 

Make up of missed preparation/assignments:

There is no make up for participation, including participation in critiques. Assignments are due during in-class critique as stated on course schedule. If an unforeseen emergency prevents you from attending a critique, you must send me an email with clear images of the finished work before class and be ready to present the assignment in person at the next class. This should be a very last option reserved to special cases of unforeseen emergency and cannot be used to cover for unfinished assignments. In it is your interest to participate in the critique with work finished to the best of your skills and ability. 

Late assignments have the penalty of -10% with each additional day, up to 5 days (at which point the assignment receives a failing grade). 

If you have any questions or concerns about the course, please email me for appointment to discuss them. 

Also see School of Art + AH + D Policies: Policies 2019.pdf

Interpretation of Grading Scale:

List of Artists for Research:

Annie Albers

Joseph Albers

Jacob Lawrence

El Anatsui

Merce Cunningham

John Cage

Cy Twombly

Ruth Asawa

Buckminster Fuller

Nick Cave

Oliver Herring

Robert Rauchenberg

Tracey Emin

Lynda Benglis

Louise Bourgeois

Do Ho Suh

Judy Chicago

Ann Hamilton

Unfold Studio

Olivier Van Herpt

Nervous System

Iris Van Herpen