Art Studio

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale degree program and is intended for advanced level students. Enrolment is by permission of the instructor. The course analyzes the development of the photographic language, from its origins in the 19th century to recent experiences, focusing on artistic practices and those of the cultural and creative industries. Special attention is paid to exhibitions, both public and private, and their capacity to help the photographic language change its meanings and identities. Following a theoretical and historical approach, classes explore artistic poetics, creative ideas, and curatorial choices from an aesthetic point of view, reading photography as a social, political, and communicative issue. Several historical exhibitions are analyzed as case histories of the development of curatorial language and photographic display.

Students acquire the fundamental historical and theoretical knowledge that puts photography at the heart of artistic practices and of the cultural and creative industry. In particular, they develop methodological tools and interpretative skills useful to recognize the styles and poetics of the photographic display. They are also able to analyze and comment on display types with critical awareness.

This project focuses on exploring Berlin through analog hand drawing, and then using drawing and model making methods to design and construct a small building project. The course offers participants an in-depth knowledge of the design professional's important tool of hand drawing, a skill that equips them for their studies and later professional work. It begins with the basics of hand drawing to establish a foundation and then moves on to apply drawing to observe, analyze and design the environment. Students learn drawing forms such as perspective, isometry, section, pictogram, and others. The subject of analysis is the city of Berlin, the city fabric, micro urban situations, and the Design-Build project site. The Design-Build part of the project focuses on the realization of a small building project for a special community in Berlin. The students develop an idea from the design stage to the built project. An examination of the context and discussions with the clients and users form the basis for the final design. In a competitive design workshop, the best and most feasible solution(s) are selected and developed. In collaboration with the users and under the guidance of a craftsman, the design is built and inaugurated. The community is the client for this Design-Build project. They actively participate in guiding the project from the design phase to on-site construction. This project is carried out in an academic environment, engaging in interdisciplinary collaboration between students of various disciplines and the community. Through designing and building together, the students gain insights into the world that the people they are designing for are facing, with the goal of making students more sensitive to the social, cultural and ecological implications of their work. The challenge is to integrate "low-cost" and "high efficiency" requirements with considerations for sustainability, aesthetics, appropriateness, participation, and education. In order to profit from the high potential of these small-scale projects, the focus has to be the quality of the space that is created. This course primarily takes place off campus, with the drawing sessions happening throughout Berlin and the construction activities conducted on-site.

This course covers basic design theories and form construction techniques required for three-dimensional forms and functions. Topics include basic shape elements and principles that consist of form and shape, and practical methodology of creating form, function and aesthetics. Students acquire basic form-giving abilities as industrial designers by learning design materials and the characteristics of form composition. 

This is an advanced level painting course for students who have experience in painting techniques. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course includes lectures and studio time for individual projects. Students are required to attend both the theoretical part and the studio laboratory and to complete individual projects. The course involves the study of all aspects of painting from pre- to post-production and of the technical processes involved. Students develop techniques and learn to critique their own works.  Assessment takes place throughout the semester and with a final evaluation of the artworks completed. 

This is an advanced level course for students who have prior experience in drawing and illustration. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course includes lectures and studio time for individual projects. Students are required to attend both the theoretical part and the studio laboratory and to complete individual projects. This course focuses on the picture book, in which words and illustration are intrinsically linked. Students study classic and contemporary picture books. With guidance from the instructor, students develop their own works with attention to narrative structure, selection of scenes to be illustrated, technique, storyboard, etc. Book layout is completed through specific software. Final assessment involves a presentation of the projects developed during the course.

This course covers the fundamental principles of graphic design through small assignments, two big projects, critiques, readings, and lectures. Topics include the elements of form and color, understanding visual forms (points, lines, and surfaces), and visual grammar such as scale, repetition, rhythm, balance, etc.  

For practicing visual grammar, students learn graphic software such as Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop. For the projects, students develop their expressive ways to transfer meaning and values based on practicing visual grammar. 

This is an advanced level painting course for students who have experience in painting techniques. Enrolment is by permission of the instructor. The course includes lectures and a minimum of 15 hours/week of studio time for individual projects.  The course continues study of all aspects of painting from pre- to post-production, and of the technical processes involved. Students develop technique, critique their own work, and focus on defining their personal painting style. Assessment takes place throughout the semester with frequent critiques with the instructor, followed by a final oral interview including a presentation and discussion of the artworks completed.

The emphasis of this course is on 'Sagunja,' the symbolic paintings of the four traditional virtues of gentlemen. Instructions will be given on the ideal of literati painting tradition, and students are encouraged to capture the essence of the form rather than its superficial representations, and ultimately discover their own style and techniques. 

The Four Gentlemen Painting is an ink wash painting that compares the thoughts and spirit of a gentleman to plum blossoms, orchids, chrysanthemums, and bamboo. The Four Gentlemen Painting clearly displays the characteristics of literati painting, which emphasizes the divine over the formal, emphasizes the poetic sentiment and the intention of the painting, and expresses thoughts and emotions through objects. By learning the Four Gentlemen Painting, which reveals the essence of literati painting, students encounter the theoretical foundation of literati painting and traditional ink wash techniques. 

This is an advanced level art studio course for students with prior experience.  Students are required to attend both the theoretical part and the studio laboratory and to complete individual projects. The course focuses on historical and traditional techniques and methods used in contemporary works in the visual arts and in design, as well as a reconceptualization of methods using new technologies, materials, and products.  Final assessment is based on the student's artistic work, employing the techniques and methods discussed in class.

This course examines design as strategy, demonstrating how contemporary design practices have evolved, responded to, and influenced change. By developing a design project that responds to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, students will learn how design thinking complements current practice and expands career prospects.