ART 150

Introduction to New Media Arts

Schedule: M / W 9-11:40am
Professor: Sabrina Raaf, sraaf1 (at) uic.edu
Office hours are by appointment only

New Media Lab Specialist: Alejandro Acierto, acierto (at) uic.edu

SYLLABUS

This schedule is subject to change! Activities are subject to change based on the progression of the class. No due dates / readings / homework will be changed without prior notification.

DESCRIPTION

Introduction to New Media Arts is a studio based course which provides an overview of the theories and practices of New Media Arts. Students will learn fundamental practices of electronic arts and interaction design including but not limited to circuit design, basic to intermediate electronics, and programming for interactivity. Through hands on exercises, students will explore basic electronic techniques and use of programmable microcontrollers (arduino) to control interactive art, sound, light, and environments. Students will also be introduced to various professional new media artists and their work through survey lectures rooted in the history, theory, and current practices of responsive and new media art.

There are no prerequisites for this course.

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES AND REQUIREMENTS

This course is designed to draw inspiration from the history of artists and designers who explore ideas and applications of interactivity to gain a practical experience with basic electronics, coding, and other techniques of digital art production. This course also encourages the development of experimental art, interactive objects, and responsive environment project based on conceptual assignments. Students should also be inclined to research digital and experimental artworks and trends that they find personally interesting or compelling. This studio course is structured around a series of tutorials in the realm of programming and physical computing, culminating in a final project. Emphasis will be given to the creative development of the project, through a complete iterative design process, pursued individually or collaboratively. Tutorials and workshops are aimed to support and inform this creative process, providing modules of skill-sets and technologies. Throughout the duration of the course, participants are asked to utilize the class blog to collect and share resources and praxes. To investigate creative works in the realm of calm technologies and information arts, each participant will select a research topic, shared with the class during as an in-class research report presentation. Students will present work-in-progress during class critiques to receive qualitative feedback from the instructor and the class.

COURSE GOALS

In sum, students will:

Draw inspiration from the history of artists and designers who explore ideas and applications of interactivity
Gain practical experience with basic electronics, coding, and other techniques of digital art production
Develop experimental art, interactive objects, and responsive environment projects based on conceptual assignments
Research digital and experimental art works and trends

PROJECT LAB ORIENTATION

This is a “hands-on” orientation that takes place at the beginning of each semester in the School's Woodshop (4th floor). This orientation offers an overview of the woodshop's tools and how to properly use them to aid in the construction and completion of your projects. Regardless of whether you think you will be using the woodshop, you must complete the orientation. We will set up a group orientation for all students in the class.

ASSIGNMENTS

This class focuses on the imaginative use of electronic tools in artmaking as well as surveying the recent history of new media and responsive arts. A series of assignments will be announced over the course of the semester that will support this focus. Please visit the homework & assignments page of the class website for more information and updates throughout the semester.

READING MATERIALS

Various articles and excerpts from journals, conferences, and books covering topics such as critical theory, experimental new media art, and computer graphics will be handed out in class as reading assignments.
Suggested readings and supplemental materials can be found under the resources section of this site.
Suggested Reading:

Make: Electronics (Learning by Discovery) by Charles Platt: Amazon | Google e-book
Getting Started with Arduino by Massimo Banzi: Amazon | Google e-book

EVALUATION

Comprehension of concepts and integration of artistic goals, acquired technical skills, and imaginative ingenuity will be considered. More importantly, participation in class discussions, lab sessions, and the amount of effort put into each class and outside work will be evaluated as will the ability to apply the techniques introduced in class in an innovated and inventive mater for creative assignments. Personal initiative and artistic development over the length of the semester will also be considered. Assignments are invitations to invent and experiment. Creative and ambitious experiments will be evaluated high, while obvious and easily attained solutions are evaluated low. Participants are encouraged to capitalize on their individual backgrounds, artistic and applied, but are expected to excel in the chosen context. The complexity of the workshops will increase as the semester progresses. Active contribution during class is required. You are expected to be resourceful to your peer students and seek help when needed. All exercises must be completed to pass the course.

GRADING

Participation is worth 10% of your grade. Class participation includes lab time, workshops, critiques, discussions, and an overall active engagement in class.
The conceptual art project assignments are weighted at approximately 40% of the total grade.These assignments will be discussed in class and will be posted on the course website with adequate time for completion.
There will be practical homework assignments to help you gain technical skill and broaden your understanding of electronic arts media. They are worth 10% cumulatively.
The final project is worth 30% of your grade.The final project will consist of an artistic work or installation of your choosing utilizing the skills obtained in lab exercises and inspired by course content. Please see the homework and assignments section for my details.
Blog assignments count towards 10% of your total grade and are graded upon the insight in your writing and your overall understanding and resourcefulness of the information given. Each week we will look at several new media artists and projects and you will be asked to submit a short one paragraph response about a specific topic (TBD weekly by instructor) to the class blog. Feel free to use the blog for things other than just required weekly responses. The blog is a place meant for you to share your ideas about class topics, resources, collaborative ideas, and interesting projects that you might come across. I will email you a link to join the class blog, be sure to accept the invitation so you can post your weekly responses, if you have any problems please let me know. Blog posts are due the Monday following each class by 5:00pm

Assignments submitted after the due date will be penalized one letter grade. No assignments will be accepted for credit later than one week beyond the the due date. However, you should still hand them in.
Extra credit may be given in the case where the work done goes well beyond the parameters of the assignment.

ATTENDANCE

Attendance is manditory. Lectures cannot be made up outside of class. The instructor will not be available to personally re-teach a class to a student who has been absent.
Be considerate of other classmates and show up on time for class! Late arrivals are disruptive for everyone. Being late to class two times will be considered as one unexcused absence.
Even though the instructor keeps attendence records, it is the student's responsibility to also keep track of their absences and late arrivals. The instructor may - but is not obligated to - notify the student if their total number of absences is nearing critical.
Students are expected to utilize work time during class productively. If a student leaves class early without approval from the instructor, they will be marked as absent or tardy - even if it is a "work in class" day or the instructor's lecture is completed before the class period ends.

one absence	=	no penalty except for loss of instruction
two absences	=	grade lowered 1/2 letter grade
three absences	=	grade lowered one letter grade. In addition, a 20 minute presentation to the class on a topic not already covered in class and one that is pre-approed by the instructor will be required
four absences	=	whether the absences were cleared in advance or not, four absences will result in an automatic failure

LAB POLICIES

There is a required laboratory fee for this course which is used for course materials and supplies that you can keep.
Eating or drinking must be kept clear of the work spaces.
Never eat or drink while soldering!
Clean up after yourself! This includes empty drinks, all small pieces of plastic, and misc. clippings.

LAB HOURS

LAB HOURS WILL BE POSTED ON THE New Media Lab FRONT DOOR

DISCLAIMER

Projects created in this course may be used by the Department for purposes of promotion for students, the Department, or the University in general. The Department may also use these materials for instructional purposes in future courses. The Instructor may also use your projects as examples of work completed in the class.