A-202/Art Studio Foundations II (6775)
Prerequisite: Art Studio Foundations I (ASF I)
Class Meets: MWF /11:30 p.m. – 1:20 p.m.
Date Range: August 22 – December 12
Classroom: Ophelia Parrish-2220
Office: Ophelia Parrish-1231
Phone: 785-4457
E-mail: pingxu@truman.edu

Office Hours:
MWF: 1:20 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.
TR: 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. / 4:20-5:20 p.m.

Catalog Course Description
Continuation of Art Studio Foundations I with greater emphasis on drawing from the human figure.

Expanded Course Description

Art Studio Foundations II is essentially a figure or life drawing course, and you will be asked to continue the basic work you started in ASF I but with the emphasis on the human figure. The human figure has such a lineage in the history of art and image making that it commands a focus unlike any other subject in artistic development. In addition to its significant place in the visual arts, the human figure also presents such a range of visual problems that it suggests a nearly endless number of drawing challenges that can be translatable to many other subjects. In other words, master drawing the human figure and you are significantly prepared to draw most other subjects.

As in Art Studio Foundations I you will be asked to draw from life – from direct observation – rather than from photographs, imagination or memory. This direct observation is critical, and you will continue to work out compositional and other principles of drawing that were introduced to you in ASF I but from the basis of the human figure. This course is meant to build upon the concepts – elements and principles of drawing and two-dimensional design – that you have been working on in your foundations courses. You will continue your work to master drawing media – especially black and white media.

Primary Course Objectives

Through full participation in this course you will:

• Continue to practice basic, essential drawing skills with a variety of drawing media
• Demonstrate your skill and development in drawing the human figure from direct observation using both mechanical and intuitive means to depict the figure in ways that range from highly representational to the abstract
• Learn and demonstrate your learning of important elements and principles of drawing, especially as they apply to the human figure
• Enhance your knowledge of the work of other artists’ drawings – especially those who use the human figure in their work.
• Continue to perfect your critique skills and your ability to write about art
• Reflect on and continue to develop your sense of what it means to be a professional artist

Secondary Course Objectives

In addition to those objectives noted above, you will also:

• Continue to develop your time management skills as an artist and create an even better understanding of the time and effort needed to create art
• Demonstrate your ability to use your studio time effectively
• Develop good studio habits
• Be exposed to materials and concepts that should contribute to your further study in the arts
• Understand and demonstrate an artistically mature behavior and outlook on drawing from live, nude models

Expectations for Students

Although these expectations are noted throughout this syllabus, for clarity, my expectations of your are that you:

• Take your work and our class seriously as demonstrated by your attendance, completion of assignments and adherence to class guidelines.
• Come to class on time and prepared to work
• Work throughout the entire class studio sessions
• Participate fully in discussions and critiques
• Help to keep the studio clean and neat; especially, you should clean up after yourself
• Treat all members of class, including the instructor with civility at all times; and respect individual differences and points of view
• Be communicative with your classmates and with me throughout the semester
• Treat our models with professionalism and respect and follow all guidelines for working with nude models as communicated by the instructor

Expectations for your Instructor

If there are expectations for students, it’s only fair that there are similar expectations for me. You can expect that I will:

• Treat you as a serious art student and respect you as an individual
• Have concern for your development and welfare as a student and, with regard to our faculty/student relationship, as an individual
• Work to create an appropriate learning environment that includes challenging assignments, good discussions, and a comfortable atmosphere in which to work
• Help you learn and grow as an art student and/or artist
• Trust you and treat you accordingly, until your actions warrant otherwise
• Be as fair and unbiased toward you and your work as humanly possible

Attendance/Studio Practice

The importance of attendance and working throughout class is magnified in Drawing II because we have access to nude models which are generally unavailable to you outside of class (there are frequently open drawing sessions organized in any given semester, but you cannot count on having access to nude models outside of class). Because of the critical nature of studio work and especially in a figure drawing class, it is imperative that you be in class working throughout the semester – full attendance (being on time and working through to the end of class) of all scheduled class meetings is mandatory. You need to be in class in order to receive immediate, individual feedback on your drawing; hear new assignments and ad hoc discussion related to those assignments; and, fulfill required work expectations.

If you need to be absent for an important school related activity (like a research conference, organized athletic event, etc), or for an important personal event (religious observance, funeral, etc.), please talk with me in advance so that we can work out an amenable solution to the work you will miss. If you become ill or have some real emergency that prohibits you from attending class, please communicate with me as soon as possible.

Note on email communication of absences: If you become sick or have some other excusable personal emergency, you must communicate with me in advance via email. Please use the following subject line in communicating with me via email so that I can be sure to see, keep track of, and respond to your email. The subject line should read – “Absence from Drawing II on MM/DAY” You will receive a response back from me letting you know that this is an excused absence (or not). Please be sure to communicate in this way so that I can keep a good record of your attendance.

I expect you to complete all assignments and turn them in on time. I also expect that you participate fully in class critiques and discussions. This is all part of your final grade, so not attending class will result in a lower final grade commensurate with what you miss through your absence.

More than two unexcused absences will result in the lowering of your final grade by one full letter.

I want this class to be a good experience for you, so it is important to me that we develop good communication regarding your attendance. If you have questions regarding your attendance and your grade, please talk with me.

Special Note for Students with Disabilities

The University has guidelines and policies for meeting the needs of students with disabilities and Truman follows all applicable federal laws. Students who have a disability, which may impact their ability to complete the requirements of the course, must contact me personally before the second class meeting so we may discuss any necessary accommodations needed to complete the class. If you have a documented learning or other disability, you must contact the Disability ServicesOffice in the Student Health Center for support and documentation of your particular situation. Accommodations will be provided when official, written documentation is received from the Disability Services Coordinator. Contact information for Truman’s Disability Services can be found at: http://disabilityservices.truman.edu/contact_information.asp

Basis for Student Evaluation (Grades)

In order to give you as much opportunity to demonstrate that you are achieving the course objectives, I’ve tried to incorporate multiple ways that will allow you to do so. I’ll discuss the specific criteria and objectives for each assignment with you at the time the assignment is made. You will also be expected to work out of class and will receive both general and specific directions on your out of class work. This work should take approximate 6-10 hours per week beyond your class time. Your attendance, participation and studio work ethic (working throughout the class time, helping to keep the studio neat and clean, offering informed critique to your classmates, etc.) will also be factored into your grade. You will be asked to create mats for at least two pieces and you will be evaluated on the quality of your presentation. Additionally, you will have some assignments that require you to do some research either on the internet or at the library. You should be able to see from this brief description that my goal here is to offer you many opportunities to demonstrate achievement, and to do so in a variety of ways.

Each assignment and element of class will have points attributed to it. You will accumulate points throughout the semester. Your final grade will be determined based on the total number of points that you have received throughout the semester. Basically, the points-to-grade ratio will be the following:

• 90% and higher = A
• 80% and higher = B
• 70% and higher = C
• 60% and higher = D
• 59% and below = F

Academic Integrity – I, and the University, take issues of academic integrity (and, therefore, academic dishonesty) very seriously. As a learner, you should also. Your work should always be your own (or should reflect that it is a collaborative effort). Although plagiarizing is not something that comes up often in a drawing class, you should acquaint yourself with what the University considers to be behavior it deems dishonest. I expect that you will act with integrity in our course, including acting in a way that demonstrates academic integrity (refer to the Student Conduct Code and/or see “Academic Dishonesty Statement” on our Blackboard posting.) You should only present the outcome of your own work. Do not plagiarize* the work or ideas of others. Take pride in the work that you do for our class.

If you commit act(s) considered to be academically dishonest, you will receive a grade of “F” for the assignment, test, paper, etc. associate with the act(s).

Course Content

As noted above, this is a “life” or “figure” drawing class primarily. We will build upon concepts you were introduced to in your Drawing I class and you will also be introduced to the following: gesture drawing; the figure in perspective; simplifying complex shapes and forms; proportion, tic marks, plumb lines, midlines, mapping and using grids, etc.; the head as an element of measurement, measuring to determine relative size; basic anatomy; portraits.