Courses (Design 085)

21:085:102 Design Fundamentals (3) Basic studio course to develop visual literacy and skill; basic vocabulary of art and experience in manipulating this vocabulary through actual projects; principles of composition, color theory, and concepts of space; training in use of pencil, pen, paint, and collage techniques. Open to nonmajors. No previous art experience needed.

21:085:103 3-D Design Fundamentals (3) Basic course to develop an awareness of three-dimensional space through plane, volume, form, light, and rhythm; variety of tools and procedures used to manipulate space; analysis of a problem through materials, processes, and concepts; basic skills involved in structuring space. Open to nonmajors. No previous art experience required.

21:085:109 Introduction to 3-D Modeling and Printing This course introduces the student to some of the basic tools and working methodologies used in 3-dimesional digital design. Students will problem solve by employing additive and subtractive processes in the execution of works that range from functional to nonfunctional.

21:085:231 Graphic Design I (3) Fundamental design problems emphasizing the use of typography while exploring problem solving in a variety of visual forms, conceptual and analytical approaches, and technical processes. The use of pictographic image-making, symbol design, semantics, visual sequencing, and transformation in developing a visual language. One research paper. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisites: 21:085:102, 21:080:121, and sophomore standing or permission of instructor. Corequisite: 21:085:370.

21:085:232 Graphic Design II (3) Further practice and exploration of typography and typographic processes. Emphasis on various historical and contemporary typographic models. The use of the grid system to explore verbal and visual relationships, typographic hierarchies, and semiotics in expressive compositions. Introduction of type specification, typesetting, copyfitting, and graphic production procedures from traditional methods to digital technology. One research paper. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:231 or permission of instructor.    

21:085:236 Illustration I (3) Basic media and techniques with emphasis placed on conceptual and analytical thinking; projects include using the concept of transformation to develop solutions derived from real-life information; the purpose and history of illustration. One research paper; field trips. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisites: 21:085:102, 21:080:121, or permission of instructor.

21:085:305 Problems in Graphic Design I (3) This course will provide students with a professional experience where they can apply their skills, and invest in and serve the Newark community in order to foster meaningful connections and long-lasting relations between our school and Newark's residents. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

21:085:306 Problems in Graphic Design II (3) This course will provide students with a professional experience where they can apply their skills, and invest in and serve the Newark community in order to foster meaningful connections and long-lasting relations between our school and Newark's residents. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

21:085:331 Graphic Design III (3) Advanced design problems emphasizing visual communication as a basis for experimental work. Further study of various typographic grid systems in single page, multiple page, and dimensional formats to include booklets, folders, posters, cover design, and packaging. Various design strategies and processes are applied in organizing complex verbal and pictorial information. One research paper. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:232 or permission of instructor.

21:085:332 Graphic Design IV (3) Projects investigate the integration of design into a broad scope of communication formats and printing material and the formulation of a variety of information systems applied to environmental, institutional, and industrial communication problems. Projects include promotional and multidimensional design, public service, visual systems, corporate identity, editorial, and advertising. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:331 or permission of instructor.

21:085:333 Motion Design (3) Focuses on the exploration of the principles of motion as they apply to typography and other graphic design elements. The emphasis is on the conceptual, visual, and technical aspects of "imaging language" in reference to time-based media. Students will develop a working knowledge of Adobe After Effects appropriate to introductory level. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:370 or permission of instructor.

21:085:334 Interactive Design (3) An introduction to basic concepts, methods, and procedures on managing information complexity toward accessibility and understanding by targeted audience. The course addresses the methods and media of the visualization of information. Through assignment, lecture, and discussion, this course will explore the aspects of selecting, editing, organizing, and visually representing complex information in the context of static, temporal, and interactive media. Students will gain experience in content planning, design, and basic prototyping using web authoring tools. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:370 or permission of instructor.

21:085:335 Motion Design II (3) This advanced class provides students with the opportunity to further refine and explore the role of structures and sequencing in leading an audience through both narrative and nonnarrative time-based projects. By the end of this course, students will be adept at developing ideas from storyboards to finished motion design pieces with type, imagery, audio, and video components. Students will gain fluency with Adobe After Effects. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:333 or permission of instructor.

21:085:336 Interactive Design II (3) This advanced class challenges students to become more sensitive to the relationship of form and content in complex and dynamic systems of information. Students will gain the conceptual knowledge and production skills necessary to prototype screen-based interactions. Students will further explore content planning, site map and wireframe design, and usability testing. Students will gain intermediate-level knowledge on Adobe web authoring tools. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisite: 21:085:334 or permission of instructor.

21:085:370 Computers in Graphic Design (3) Advanced typographic workshop using Macintosh computers. Stresses design and typographic principles while exploring the language of signs in compositional exercises. Typesetting, image-making, scanning software, electronic page makeup, prepress, and printing production procedures. Open to nonmajors. Prerequisites: 21:085:102, 21:080:121, and sophomore standing or permission of instructor. Corequisite: 21:085:231.

21:085:391,392 Individual Study in Design (3,3) Special problems in original creative work. Independent studio work in any of the disciplines offered. Prerequisites: Permission of department chair and instructor.

21:085:393,394 Internship in Design (3,3) Opportunity to explore career experience in art and design; limited to students with highly developed skills. Placements, designed to ensure maximum benefit to the student, may be in graphic design studios, as apprentices to artists, or in arts management positions. Under departmental supervision. Prerequisite: Permission of department chair or adviser.

21:085:395 Visual Means (3) Visual Means is an advanced course in which faculty and students work within a design-studio model/structure to collaborate with local and global researchers with a focus on publicly engaged work in which research is analyzed and visualized through communication design. The premise: once research is visualized it has a greater potential to impact a wider audience, and therefore, greater transformative power. This course exposes students to professional working processes and experiences toward applying their design thinking and creative skills to make complex information accessible through data representation and visualization. This class offers a different interdisciplinary data-intensive research experience every semester, since content and themes are built upon the research partner's field. Students may take the course two consecutive semesters as the class will present new content and will not function as a sequence. Prerequisite: 21:085:231 or permission of instructor.  

21:085:396 Visual Means (3) Visual Means  is an advanced course in which faculty and students work within a design-studio model/structure to collaborate with local and global researchers with a focus on publicly engaged work in which research is analyzed and visualized through communication design. The premise: once research is visualized it has a greater potential to impact a wider audience, and therefore, greater transformative power. This course exposes students to professional working processes and experiences toward applying their design thinking and creative skills to make complex information accessible through data representation and visualization. This class offers a different interdisciplinary data-intensive research experience every semester, since content and themes are built upon the research partner's field. Students may take the course two consecutive semesters as the class will present new content and will not function as a sequence. Prerequisite: 21:085:231 or permission of instructor. 

21:085:398 The Design Consortium II (3) The Design Consortium is an advanced course that offers a seemingly-professional working experience in which design faculty and students work along community organizations, educational institutions and local activists, to understand use partners' needs, develop appropriate strategies, and to deliver and implement real design solutions. The course identifies potential partners through community outreach and a call for proposals. The goal is to provide Arts, Culture, and Media students with a professional experience in which they can apply their skills, and to learn how design can serve and empower the Newark community. The class offers a different interdisciplinary design experience every semester, since content and themes are built upon the partner's field. Students may take the course two consecutive semesters as the class will present new content and will not function as a sequence. Prerequisites: 21:085:231 and 21:085:370.

21:085:399 Seminar in Contemporary Design (3) Prerequisite: 21:082:202.

21:085:496 Cross-Media Design Studio (3) This advanced senior-level course focuses on an investigation of the role of medium in the design of visual narratives. Whether for a brand identity, book, time-based piece, or website, building stories is at the core of our work as graphic designers. Through a series of projects, students will explore how the choice of medium itself is an integral part of a design solution, and how to utilize each medium's inherent strengths. Prerequisites: 21:085:332, 21:085:334, 21:085:333, 21:085:336, or permission of instructor.

21:085:497 Senior Studio Seminar I (3) Focuses on the completion of a portfolio in area of graphic design specialization. Conducted under the direction of individual advisers. Open only to majors. Prerequisite: 21:085:332 or permission of instructor.

21:085:498 Senior Studio Seminar II (3) Under the supervision of advisers, students produce, for an exhibition, a body of work in their individual areas of specialization. One research paper and slide documentation of work required. Open only to majors. Prerequisite: 21:085:497 or permission of instructor.