The following courses are approved for the major in Media Arts and Sciences:
ARTH 225 Modern Art Since 1945
Berman
A survey of art since World War II, examining painting, sculpture, photography, performance, video, film, conceptual practices, and the mass media. Critical issues to be examined include the art market, feminist art practices, the politics of identity, and artistic freedom and censorship.
CAMS 101 Introduction to Cinema and Media Studies
Hans, Wood
CAMS 101 introduces students to the study of audio-visual media, including oral, print photographic, cinematic, broadcast and digital media forms and practices. Using a case study approach, we will explore the nature of audio-visual communication/representation in historical, cultural, disciplinary, and media-specific contexts, and examine different theoretical and critical perspectives on the role and power of media to influence our social values, political beliefs, identities, and behaviors. We'll also consider how consumers of media representations can and do contest and unsettle their embedded messages. Our emphasis will be on developing the research and analytical tools, modes of reading, and forms of critical practice that can help us to negotiate the increasingly mediated world in which we live.
ARTH 226 History of Photography: From Invention to Advertising Age
Berman
Photography is so much a part of our private and public lives, and it plays such an influential role in our environment, that we often forget to examine its aesthetics, meanings, and histories. This course provides an introduction to these analyses by examining the history of photography from the 1830s to the present. Considering fine arts and mass media practices, the class will examine the works of individual practitioners as well as the emergence of technologies, aesthetic directions, markets, and meanings. Prerequisite: None. ARTH 100 and 101 strongly recommended. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester:N/O Unit: 1.0
ARTH 291 Persuasive Images
Berman
Visual images have always been enlisted to influence individual and collective decision making, action, and identity. However, the rise of the mass media in the nineteenth century, and the multiplication of visual technologies in the twentieth century, have created unprecedented opportunities for the diffusion of persuasive images. This course examines the uses and functions of visual images in advertising and propaganda and considers, in particular, graphic arts, photography, film, and other reproductive media. It also considers the interplay between elite and popular arts. The goal of the course is to refine our critical understanding and reception of the visual world. Prerequisite: None Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester: Spring Unit: 1.0
CAMS 222 Gimme Some Truth? Documentary Film & Media
Wood
This course surveys the history, theory and practice of Documentary Film & Media. We examine the ways its forms and ethics have changed since the beginning of cinema. We the study the major modes of the Documentary including cinema verit??, direct cinema, investigative documentary, ethnographic film, agit-prop and activist media, the personal essay as well as recent forms such as the docudrama, the archival film, 'mockumentary,' and web-based forms. We will examine the 'reality effects' of these works focusing and the ways in which they create their authority. We will ask: how do these films shape notions of truth, reality and point of view? What are the ethics and politics of representation and who speaks for whom when we watch a documentary? What do documentaries make visible or conceal?
ARTS 105 Drawing I
Various professors (faculty varies by semester)
A foundational course in observational drawing with attention to the articulation of line, shape, form, gesture, perspective, and value. Studio work introduces a range of traditional drawing tools and observational methods while exploring a variety of approaches to image making and visual expression. In-class drawing exercises and weekly homework assignments address a range of subjects including the human figure. Recommended for all students and required for those majoring in studio art or architecture.
ARTS 108 Photography I
Van Beckum
This introductory course explores photography as a means of visual communication by producing and analyzing photographic images. Emphasis is on acquiring basic black-and-white technical skills with 35mm cameras and traditional darkroom practices. Class discussions and studio projects address a range of technical, compositional, and aesthetic issues fundamental to imagemaking. Strong emphasis is on the development of both a technical grasp of the tools and a critical awareness of the medium through assignments and critiques.
ARTS 109 Two-Dimensional Design
Olsen
This foundational course addresses the issue of composition in two-dimensional media. It focuses on the fundamental elements of visual design (e.g. line, shape, value, space, color) and their compositional impact. Studio projects emphasize visual problem-solving skills as a means of achieving more effective communication, with some attention to the issues of typography. Assignments explore a range of media, including digital processes.
ARTS 113 Three-Dimensional Design
Mowbray
This introductory course explores the basic formal and spatial considerations when working with three-dimensional structure and form. Studio projects incorporate a range of materials and methods of visualization. Outside assignments and class discussions are aimed towards helping students enhance their creativity and spatial awareness while acquiring sensitivity for placement, process, and materials. Strongly recommended for those interested in sculpture, architecture, installation art, and/or product design.
ARTS 165 Introduction to the Moving Image
Joskowicz
This course will introduce students to the production and examination of video through a critical look at the medium as an art form. Organized around a series of assignments designed to survey a range of production strategies, the course will be a primer to the technical and conceptual aspects of video production and to its historical, critical, and technical discourse. Relationships between video and television, film, installation, and performance art are investigated emphasizing video as a critical intervention in social and visual arts contexts. Through weekly readings, screenings, discussions, and critique, students explore contemporary issues in video and develop individual aesthetic and critical skills. Practical knowledge is integrated through lighting, video/sound production and editing workshops.
ARTS 208 Photography II
Van Beckum
Building on the foundation of ARTS 108/CAMS 138, Intermediate Digital Photography continues to develop students’ conceptual photographic acumen, while introducing advanced studio and location lighting, digital retouching, inkjet printing, and basic multi-media production. Contemporary and historic theories of photography as contemporary art and the aesthetic and cultural implications of the ubiquity of digital photography will guide assignments. Emphasis is on developing project-based photography through cultivating research, planning, conceptual and production skills.
ARTS 219 Introductory Print Methods: Lithography/Screenprint
McGibbon
An exploration of the planographic methods of graphic production, i.e. stone and plate lithography, screenprint, image transfers, monotype, and digital printing. Students develop visual and creative flexibility through hands-on manipulation of image sequences, text, color layering, and multiplicity. Some projects incorporate photo-digital processes as well as book forms. Field trips, discussions with visiting artists, and a group print exchange will complement the individual assignments. Recommended for students interested in media arts and book studies. Note that ARTS 219, ARTS 220, ARTS 221, and ARTS 222 are complementary graphic arts courses and may be elected in any order.
ARTS 220 Introductory Print Methods: Intaglio/Relief
McGibbon
An introduction to intaglio and relief-print methods, including copperplate etching, collograph, and woodcut. Students develop visual and creative flexibility through hands-on work with image sequences, text, and multiples. Several projects explore color and typography as well as digital methods. Students participate in a collaborative print exchange in addition to completing individual projects. ARTS 219, ARTS 220, and ARTS 221 are complementary graphic arts courses and may be elected in any order.
ARTS 221 Digital Imaging
Olsen
Artistic production through electronic imaging, manipulation, and design. Emphasis is on expression, continuity and sequential structuring of visuals through the integration of image, type, and graphics. Handson production techniques of image capturing, lighting and processing are explored in conjunction with print and screen output methods. Lectures and screenings of historic and contemporary uses of technology provide a background and context for the coursework. Prerequisite: ARTS 108 or by permission of instructor. File application online through art department Web page before preregistration. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester:N/O Unit: 1.0
ARTS 255 Dynamic Interface Design
Olsen
Creative exploration of the expanding field of interface design for online interactive media. Emphasis will be on effective visual communication and creative content. Hands-on production will focus on design methods,multimedia web, vector-based media, and dynamic audio. Screenings and discussions on contemporary practices, and theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues. Prerequisite: ARTS 109 and CS 110; or by permission of instructor. File application online through art department Web page before preregistration. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester: Spring Unit: 1.0
ARTS 260 Moving Image Studio
Olsen
Creative exploration of the moving image as it relates to digital methods of animation, video, and motion graphics. Hands-on production of audio, image, text, and time-based media synthesis, with a conceptual emphasis on nonlinear narrative, communication design and visual expression. Screenings and lectures on historical and contemporary practices, coupled with readings and discussions of the theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues in the moving image. Prerequisite: ARTS 108 or 165 or 221 Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester:Fall Unit: 1.0 48 Art /Studio Art
ARTS 265 Intermediate Video Production
Joskowicz
An exploration of the techniques and styles of producing documentary videos. We will survey current issues surrounding objectivity and representation as it concerns the documentary form. Strong emphasis on storytelling. Special focus on lighting, sound recording, and editing. We will screen and analyze various styles of documentary films. Final projects will be short documentaries. Prerequisite: ARTS 165 or by permission of instructor. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester:N/O Unit: 1.0
Green
ARTS 313 Virtual Form
Olsen
Introduction to the design and production of three-dimensional objects and spaces using industry-standard modeling software. Overview of basic modeling, surface design and camera techniques. Emphasis on creative application of the media, in relation to architectural, experimental and time-based forms. Screenings and lectures on traditional and contemporary practices, coupled with readings and discussions of the theoretical, artistic, and cultural issues in the virtual world. Prerequisite: ARTS 113 or MIT 4.101 or 4.125. Permission of instructor required. File application online through the art department Web page before preregistration. Distribution: Arts, Music, Theatre, Film, Video Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0
ARTS 317 Seminar. Topics in the Visual Arts
Rivera
Topic for 2010-2011: Simulation: Illusion and Representation Simulation is a conceptually-driven studio seminar exploring the history of simulation in the visual arts and its use as a strategy for representation. Visual, theoretical, cultural and material manifestations of simulation will be fertile grounds to explore, and bind seemingly unconnected phenomena ranging from the organic to the imaginary. Simulation will be a space for negotiation throughout this course. This will allow us to bring together authors, arguments, and time periods, and incorporate notions from the spheres of post-colonial discourses, critical theory, biology, and the visual arts to the analysis and execution of art pieces. Painting, make-up, wall painting, installation, photography, video, computer arts, web art, Mimikri-Dress-Art, performance, video art, TV, and street art are going to be some of the mediums we will at and work with during the course. Prerequisite: ARTH 101, ARTS 105 and three other studio courses with at least one at the 300 level. Or, if missing the 300 level course, permission of instructor required based on presentation of portfolio. Distribution: Arts, Music, Theater, Film, Video Semester: Fall Unit 1.0
ARTS 321 Advanced New Media
Olsen
Various topics in New Media are explored through research, creative activity, and theoretical discussion. Topics address historical as well as contemporary issues that bridge art and technology. This is an advanced level New Media course giving students the opportunity to focus in on their craft and concepts as well as receive critiques from other students with similar goals. Lectures on the historic and contemporary practices of intermedia artists, designers, thinkers and scientists, coupled with readings and discussions. Collaboration will be encouraged between Studio Art, Music, CAMS, Media Arts, Theater and Computer Science. Prerequisite: Two 200-level courses in the field and permission of instructor. File application found on the department Web site before preregistration. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester: Spring Unit: 1.0
CAMS 175 Introduction to Cinema Studies
Viano
In this introductory course students will learn about cinema studies as a recently formed discipline. Starting with a reflection on the difference between film and cinema, we will question the field’s theoretical lynchpins, such as spectatorship and authorship, intertextuality and cultural production. The role played by audio-visual technology in the formation of what is called modernity’s structure of feeling will be investigated through the analysis of feature films, documentaries, animation, and various videotaped materials. Finally, students will get a sense of film history, with a special focus on silent films and cinema’s beginnings worldwide. Prerequisite: Preference given to cinema and media studies majors, first-year students and sophomores. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video
CS 110 Computer Science and the Internet
Anderson, Kakavouli, Lee, Metaxas
This course explains the basics of how the Internet works and how to build a Web site. Topics include client-server architecture, structuring Web pages with HTML, the representation of colors, images, and sound on the computer, file compression, encryption, cookies, and copyright, intellectual property issues, and critical thinking in the context of the Internet. The required project also models most phases of the standard software lifecycle. Students are introduced to programming by building an interactive Web site using JavaScript. Students are required to attend an additional discussion section each week. Students considering additional computer science courses should take 111, not 110. Students can receive Mathematical Modeling distribution credit for only one of 110, 111, and 199. Consult “Choosing an Introductory CS Course” online at http://cs.wellesley.edu/~cs/Curriculum/intro.html. Prerequisite: None. No prior background with computers is expected. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
CS 111 Computer Programming and Problem Solving
Turbak, Tjaden, Lee
An introduction to problem solving through computer programming. Using the Java programming language, students learn how to read, modify, design, debug, and test algorithms that solve problems. Programming concepts include control structures, data structures, abstraction, recursion, modularity, and object-oriented design. Students explore these concepts in the context of interactive programs involving graphics and user interfaces. Students are required to attend an additional two-hour laboratory section each week. Required for students who wish to major or minor in computer science or elect more advanced courses in the field. Students can receive Mathematical Modeling distribution credit for only one of 110, 111, and 199. Consult “Choosing an Introductory CS Course” online at http://cs.wellesley.edu/~cs/Curriculum/intro.html. Prerequisite: None. No prior background with computers is expected. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling. Does not satisfy the laboratory requirement. Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
CS/MAS 115 Computing for the Socio-Techno Web
Shaer
Technologies and services made available from Computer Science, such as online environments Facebook, Twitter, and Wikipedia, are integral in today's world. Many problems exist in our real world that transfer to and get amplified in the virtual world created by highly interconnected and ubiquitous computing. What are the basic technologies that enable all this innovation? How do these new environments affect our lives? This course aims to answer these questions through investigation of the socio-techno web. On the technical side we study three languages: HTML5, CSS, and basic JavaScript. We interweave the technical with the social aspects by examining issues introduced by the use of the Social Web. In the process we learn how computers work. Prerequisite: None Distribution: Mathematical Modeling Semester:Spring Unit: 1.0
CS 220 Human-Computer Interaction
Shaer
Human-Computer Interaction is one of the areas that have transformed the way we use computers in the last 30 years. Topics include methodology for designing and testing user interfaces, interaction styles (command line, menus, graphical user interfaces, virtual reality, tangible user interfaces), interaction techniques (including use of voice, gesture, eye movements), design guidelines, and user interface software tools. Students will design a user interface, program a prototype, and test the results for usability. Students are required to attend an additional 70-minute discussion section each week. Prerequisite: One of: 110, 11, 112, 114 Distribution:Mathematical Modeling Semester: Spring. Unit: 1.0
CS 230 Data Structures
Hildreth, Turbak
An introduction to techniques and building blocks for organizing large programs. Topics include: modules, abstract data types, recursion, algorithmic efficiency, and the use and implementation of standard data structures and algorithms such as lists, trees, graphs, stacks, queues, priority queues, tables, sorting, and searching. Students become familiar with these concepts through weekly programming assignments using the Java programming language. Prerequisite: 111 or permission of the instructor. Students who received a grade of C+ or lower in 111 must contact the instructor before enrolling. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
CS 231 Fundamental Algorithms
Tjaden
An introduction to the design and analysis of fundamental algorithms. General techniques covered: divide-and-conquer algorithms, dynamic programming, greediness, probabilistic algorithms. Topics include: sorting, searching, graph algorithms, compression, cryptography, computational geometry, and NP-completeness. Prerequisite: 230 and either MATH 225 or permission of the instructor. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
CS 242 Computer Networks
Turbak
A systems-oriented approach to data networks, including a theoretical discussion of common networking problems and an examination of modern networks and protocols. Topics include point-to-point links, packet switching, internetworking, end-to-end protocols, congestion control, and security. Projects may include client-server applications and network measurement tools. Alternate year course. Prerequisite: 230 or permission of the instructor. Not open to students who have taken this course as 249 in Fall 2003. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling. Semester: N/O. Unit: 1.0
CS 304 Databases with Web Interfaces
Anderson
A study of the design of file systems and databases, including file organization and access methods, concepts of database management, and database querying using SQL. We will look at the entity-relationship model as a way of structuring data, and we will use relational algebra and relational calculus as a formal system for operating on data. We will investigate how databases are represented, including B+ trees and hash indexes. We will briefly discuss sorting methods for databases. Finally, we will create dynamic Web documents driven by database entries. Alternate year course. Prerequisite: 230. Not open to students who have taken this course as 349 in Spring 2003. Distribution:Mathematical Modeling Semester: Spring Unit: 1.0
CS 307 Computer Graphics
Anderson
A survey of topics in computer graphics with an emphasis on fundamental techniques. Topics include: graphics hardware, fundamentals of three-dimensional graphics including projection, coordinate transformation, synthetic camera specification, color, shading, hidden surface removal, animation, and texture-mapping. We also cover the mathematical representation and programming specification of lines, planes, curves, and surfaces. Prerequisite: 230 Distribution: Mathematical Modeling Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0
CS 320 Tangible User Interfaces
Shaer
Tangible user interfaces emerge as a novel humancomputer interaction style that interlinks the physical and digital worlds. Extending beyond the limitations of the computer mouse, keyboard and monitor, tangible user interfaces allow users to take advantage of their natural spatial skills while supporting collaborative work. Students will be introduced to conceptual frameworks, the latest research, and a variety of techniques for designing and building these interfaces. Developing tangible interfaces requires creativity as well as an interdisciplinary perspective. Hence, students will work in teams to design, prototype and physically build tangible user interfaces. Prerequisite: 220 or 215 or 230, or permission from instructor. Not open to students who have taken this course as a topic of 349. Distribution: Mathematical Modeling Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0
EXP 240 Papyrus to Print to Pixel
Rogers (Library) and Ruffin (Library)
The electronic revolution wasn’t the first: written communication changed radically from the hand-written papyrus rolls of the ancient Greeks and Romans to the codex-form manuscripts of the Middle Ages, again with the invention of printing from moveable type, again with the development of industrial, mass-market, low cost printing and the paperback, and again with the development of electronic texts. Lectures, discussions, and weekly hands-on labs will examine how previous and contemporary revolutions in the technology of written communication have affected society, from religion to economics to politics. Assignments will include making papyrus sheets, producing a manuscript, making paper, setting type and printing letterpress, designing Web sites, and creating a hypertext version of a rare book. Prerequisite: By application. Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video or Historical Studies Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0
MAS 250 Research or Individual Study Prerequisite: Open to all students by permission. Distribution: None Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
MAS 350 Research or Individual Study Prerequisites: Open to Juniors and Seniors by permission Distribution: None Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
MAS 360 Senior Thesis Research Prerequisites: By permission of department. See Academic Distinctions Distribution: None Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
MAS 370 Senior Thesis Prerequisites: 360 Distribution: None Semester: Fall, Spring Unit: 1.0
MUS 275 Computer Music: Synthesis Techniques and Compositional Practice
Johnson
An overview of the fundamental concepts, techniques, and literature of electronic and computer music. Topics include the technology of acoustic and digital musical instruments, MIDI programming, sound synthesis techniques (frequency modulation, sampling, linear synthesis, waveshaping, etc.), and the history of electronic music. Students will undertake brief compositional exercises, and learn basic programming and related technical skills. Prerequisite: None Distribution: Arts,Music, Theatre, Film,Video Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0
SOC 216 Sociology of Mass Media and Communications
Staff
Analysis of the interplay between social forces, media, and communication processes in contemporary society. Significance of historical changes from oral to written communication, development and structure of modern forms of mass media such as radio, television, and film; political economy of the mass media, rise of advertising and development of consumer culture; mass media in the formation of cultural representations of other societies and cultures, role of the media in the process of identity formation, and in the democratic process. Discussions of the rise and social implications of the Internet. Students will use computer technologies to analyze mass media. Prerequisite: One 100-level unit or permission of instructor. Distribution: Social and Behavioral Analysis Semester: Fall Unit: 1.0