Visual Art

Art is basic to human communication. From the evidence of our earliest world cultures to the language development of children, art plays an integral and essential role. How exciting, then, it is for Culver students to continue to participate in the process of art; to allow themselves to ponder singular questions with multiple correct solutions, to maintain the vital link to our cultural legacy, and participate in the fundamental need  for personal expression that is the hallmark of artistic practice. The Visual Art curriculum is designed to address the needs of both the entry and advanced level student. Classes, with the exception of the generalist Studio Arts course, are taught in a discipline-based model with emphasis on the skillful use and application media. Opportunities for artistic practice outside the curriculum are fostered through student involvement in two Visual Arts organizations: Artworks and Photoworks.

Curriculum

Drawing (662)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Drawing students learn to employ line and value to arrive at an image while using a variety of media including pencil, inks, charcoal, oil crayon, etc. The course is designed to give experience in drawing, from simple descriptions of objects to spatial relationships. The study of lives of artists, their use of drawing, and an introduction to aesthetic critical methods will complement this study. This one-term course meets daily.

Studio Art Foundation (664)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Studio Art Foundation students have the opportunity to explore the wide range of visual art expression from the practice of art through the study of art history and art criticism. The lives and works of artists, the foundation of visual criticism, and explorations in two and three-dimensional media: painting, drawing, printmaking, and sculpture will be covered in an integrated comprehensive study. This one-term course meets daily.

Painting (667)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Painting, from preparatory drawing to finished canvas, enables the student to investigate various paint media while furthering the development of visualization, composition, and hand/eye control. The study of painters’ lives, historical innovations, and an introduction to aesthetic critical methods will complement this study. This one- term course meets daily.

Ceramics Foundation, (672)

Ceramic Form I stresses the creative use of clay through the hand building of both functional and purely aesthetic forms. Three-dimensional design through the medium is the foundation of the class. The historical study of cultures, the lives and works of artists who have advanced significant work in ceramic media and an introduction to aesthetic critical methods will complement this study. This single term course meets daily.

Art History I (668)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Art History I surveys Western Art from the Paleolithic evidence through to the early Renaissance. Media studies, significant individuals, movements, and aesthetic critical methods will be covered. This one-term course meets daily.

Art History II (673)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Art History II surveys Western Art from the Renaissance through to the Post-Modern art of our time. Media studies, significant individuals, movements, and aesthetic critical methods will be covered. This one-term course meets daily.

Advanced Visual Art (669)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Advanced Visual Art allows the student considering further study in the visual arts to
concentrate on an in-depth exploration of one or two visual art media in a studio environment. Drawing will be the common connection between the students in this course. An individual plan of study will be developed for each student, who may emphasize painting, sculpture, printmaking or any other media available from their study at Culver. Portfolio building and exhibition presentation is an expectation of this class. This one- term course meets daily. Prerequisite, any two of the following: 662, 664, 668, 673, 676, 667, 670

Ceramic Form (670)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Ceramic Form stresses the creative use of clay through the hand building of both functional and purely aesthetic forms. Three-dimensional design through the medium is the foundation of the class. The historical study of cultures, the lives of artists who have advanced significant work in ceramic media and an introduction to aesthetic critical methods will complement this study. This one-term course meets daily.

Basic Black & White Photography (676)

1 term, solid, 1/2 credit

Basic Black and White Photography introduces the student to camera and darkroom techniques from film to final print. Photographic composition, film development, and basic black and white processing are the foundation of the course. The lives of photographers, significant historical developments in the medium, and an introduction
to aesthetic critical methods will complement this study. This one- term course meets daily.