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“Great pho­tog­ra­phy is al­ways on the edge of fail­ure.” — Garry Wino­grand An in­tro­duc­tion to pho­tog­ra­phy as a fine art and com­mu­ni­ca­tions medium, from the pub­li­ca­tion of its in­ven­tion in 1839 to the pre­sent, among West­ern prac­ti­tion­ers. Il­lus­trated lec­tures and dis­cus­sions ap­praise di­verse over­lap­ping func­tions of pho­tographs and view cam­era work within the his­tory of art and cul­ture. Chang­ing styles, pur­poses and tech­niques are out­lined chrono­log­i­cally. Ad­di­tional De­scrip­tion for this sec­tion: We will ex­am­ine the use of pho­tog­ra­phy for aes­thetic, doc­u­men­tary, and “sci­en­tific” pur­poses, styl­is­tic shifts in pho­tog­ra­phy re­lated to aes­thetic con­cerns, and vary­ing in­ter­pre­ta­tions of sub­ject mat­ter based on so­cial and cul­tural con­cerns at spe­cific mo­ments in his­tory. We will also con­sider the re­la­tion­ship be­tween pho­tog­ra­phy and the vi­sual arts in gen­eral, which cul­mi­nates with the pri­macy of pho­tog­ra­phy as a medium by the late twen­ti­eth cen­tury.

“Great photography is always on the edge of failure.” — Garry Winogrand An introduction to photography as a fine art and communications medium, from the publication of its invention in 1839 to the present, among Western practitioners. Illustrated lectures and discussions appraise diverse overlapping functions of photographs and view camera work within the history of art and culture. Changing styles, purposes and techniques are outlined chronologically. Additional Description for this section: We will examine the use of photography for aesthetic, documentary, and “scientific” purposes, stylistic shifts in photography related to aesthetic concerns, and varying interpretations of subject matter based on social and cultural concerns at specific moments in history. We will also consider the relationship between photography and the visual arts in general, which culminates with the primacy of photography as a medium by the late twentieth century.

This spe­cial top­ics course of­fers an in­ter­dis­ci­pli­nary ap­proach to in­ves­ti­gat­ing our built en­vi­ron­ment using a case study fo­cused on a spe­cific place each se­mes­ter. This course com­bines phys­i­cal ex­am­i­na­tion with in­for­ma­tion re­search and data col­lec­tion using method­olo­gies de­vel­oped in mul­ti­ple dis­ci­plines. Stu­dents from a va­ri­ety of de­part­ments en­gage in on-site ex­plo­ration and in-depth re­search of a lo­ca­tion in New York City.

This special topics course offers an interdisciplinary approach to investigating our built environment using a case study focused on a specific place each semester. This course combines physical examination with information research and data collection using methodologies developed in multiple disciplines. Students from a variety of departments engage in on-site exploration and in-depth research of a location in New York City.

In­tern­ship in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion De­sign (Asyn­chro­nous) As­sign­ment to field work/study sit­u­a­tions of ap­prox­i­mately eight to 20 plus hours per week at a graphic arts-re­lated in­tern­ship site ap­proved by the de­part­ment in­tern­ship di­rec­tor. Sites may be in areas such as ad­ver­tis­ing, print­ing, cor­po­rate com­mu­ni­ca­tions or pub­lish­ing. Stu­dents keep a log/jour­nal to be shared in group sem­i­nars/dis­cus­sions. Su­per­vi­sion is by fac­ulty and by the job su­per­vi­sor. Stu­dents will be re­quired to keep a learn­ing jour­nal of their in­tern­ship in the form of a blog using Open Lab.

Internship in Communication Design (Asynchronous) Assignment to field work/study situations of approximately eight to 20 plus hours per week at a graphic arts-related internship site approved by the department internship director. Sites may be in areas such as advertising, printing, corporate communications or publishing. Students keep a log/journal to be shared in group seminars/discussions. Supervision is by faculty and by the job supervisor. Students will be required to keep a learning journal of their internship in the form of a blog using Open Lab.

In this class, the em­pha­sis will be on cre­ative prob­lem solv­ing with pho­tog­ra­phy for the Com­mu­ni­ca­tion De­sign eld. The em­pha­sis will be on using style to trans­form sub­ject mat­ter in order to com­mu­ni­cate ideas. In ad­di­tion, each stu­dent will cre­ate a co­her­ent body of work on a topic of his or her choice. Stu­dents will be ex­posed to a wide range of con­tem­po­rary pho­tog­ra­phers from a range of gen­res. Ad­vanced dig­i­tal dark­room, color cor­rec­tion, and color man­age­ment pro­ce­dures will be cov­ered in ad­di­tion to fa­cil­i­tate stu­dents’ pro­fes­sional-level port­fo­lio de­vel­op­ment.

In this class, the emphasis will be on creative problem solving with photography for the Communication Design eld. The emphasis will be on using style to transform subject matter in order to communicate ideas. In addition, each student will create a coherent body of work on a topic of his or her choice. Students will be exposed to a wide range of contemporary photographers from a range of genres. Advanced digital darkroom, color correction, and color management procedures will be covered in addition to facilitate students’ professional-level portfolio development.

This course will ex­plore stu­dio pho­tog­ra­phy as a means to com­mu­ni­cate ideas. Stu­dents will learn to use light­ing to trans­form sub­ject mat­ter into metaphor, mood and mean­ing as well as how to de­velop vi­sual co­her­ence within a group of im­ages. Stu­dents will de­velop port­fo­lio level pro­jects that dis­play con­cep­tual think­ing and mas­tery of the craft of pho­tog­ra­phy. Avatar photo by Sean Mc­Sh­erry. Header photo by Justin Jack­son.

This course will explore studio photography as a means to communicate ideas. Students will learn to use lighting to transform subject matter into metaphor, mood and meaning as well as how to develop visual coherence within a group of images. Students will develop portfolio level projects that display conceptual thinking and mastery of the craft of photography. Avatar photo by Sean McSherry. Header photo by Justin Jackson.