The student will be able to:

1. Describe and understand formal elements as they function in art works.
2. Demonstrate an ability to synthesize content and form in art works.
3. Use a variety of spatial and formal techniques to give structure and compositional strength to images.
4. Work with a variety of materials including, but not limited to, drawing, collage, and photographic and computer-generated media.
5. Gain knowledge about how socio/cultural and personal concerns affect art forms.
6. Gain confidence in expressing a personal point of view in image making.
7. Share through discussion in student critiques the cultural and personal differences in their artwork.

Technique, form, and content will be studied both separately and in combination.

1. Technical concerns
   1. Sketches: use of ink, pencils, charcoals, pastels, and other materials as required
   2. Collage/assemblage - assembly and alteration
   3. Student-selected media, such as photography and computer-generated art
2. Formal concerns
   1. Review of major elements: point, line, shape, value, color, texture, mass, and sequence
   2. Organizing principles: scale, balance, proportion, unity with variety, movement, directional forces, emphasis, and subordination, etc.
   3. Structural analysis of works done by artists from past and present
   4. Comparison and contrast of formal arrangement and random order in composition
3. Conceptual focus
   1. Purposes of art, perceptual and conceptual imagery, symbolism, and visual metaphor
   2. Social issues in art: the environment, ethnicity, gender concerns, censorship
   3. Aesthetics - fine art/folk art, high art/low art, and public art/private art
4. Since art projects cannot be precisely defined or measured they naturally offer wide latitude of interpretation. Some student assignments may be concerned with a diversity of personal experiences and cultural heritages and therefore bring these perspectives into a shared activity. The art classroom offers multiple opportunities to illustrate concepts by artists representing broad cultural and personal histories

1. Collage lab exercises that use the elements and principles of design. Examples include making a triangular composition, linear composition, circular composition, rectangular composition, and multiple other compositional methods.
2. Collage lab exercises that use grid systems and alternate alignment procedures to create a composition.
3. Collage lab exercise that includes the use of paper, cardboard, glue, paint, markers, pens, pencils, cutting devices, fabrics, and all other materials appropriate to college techniques.
4. Collage lab exercise that focuses on glue, brushes, sizing, primer, and mounting board. Many projects will use gesso for sizing.
5. Collage lab exercise that focuses on various papers, such as construction paper, copy paper, paper bags, tissue paper, marbled paper, painted paper, handmade paper, etc. The paper can be either soft or hard, or a mixture of both.
6. Collage lab exercise that uses photographs from magazines, newspapers, or vintage photos. Collages with photos that tell a narrative story or event.
7. Collage lab exercise that uses photos or images that express a social or political commentary or message.
8. Collage assignments that focus on found actual texture materials. Choose a style of collage. Those pieces can be made of all sorts of items, such as paper, yarn, fabric, stamps, magazine cut-outs, plastic, raffia, foil, labels, lids, matchsticks, corks, natural items (bark, leaves, seeds, eggshells, seashells, twigs, etc.), buttons, etc.

Fitness to assignment and evidence of understanding principles involved
Written quizzes, participation in class discussions, and overall contribution to the class may partially constitute methods of evaluating the student's understanding of the material
Craftsmanship: evidence of care in construction and execution of final work
Progress: evidence of individual's increased understanding and application of concepts and technique. Originality and initiative in experimenting and exploring alternatives in the work addressed
Participation in class critiques and discussions, and demonstration of interest and overall contribution to the class

Lecture presentation using the language of the principles and elements of design, and historical and contemporary collage techniques
Discussion using the language of the principles and elements of design, symbolism, personal, conceptual, and cultural collage approaches
Demonstration of using collage tools, techniques, and methods
Critique and group presentation of major college projects followed by in-class discussion and evaluation
Electronic discussion/chat about collage projects

Brommer, Gerald. Collage Techniques. 1994.

Pearce, Amanda. The Crafter's Complete Guide to Collage. 1997.

Martinez and Block. Visual Forces. 1994.

Although these texts are older than the suggested "5 years or newer" standard, they remain seminal in this area of study.

1. A summary of the project and written self-critique using appropriate terminology for each project, and submitted in a final digital portfolio.
2. Research, readings, and writings based on contemporary and historical collages that use expressiveness, social, and cultural meaning.
3. Make a computer-generated media collage outside of class.
4. Research a surrealist historical collage and make your own version.