Illustration/Animation

The purpose of the Illustration/Animation concentration is to prepare students to pursue visual narrative storytelling as an applied art creatively and professionally. Emphasis is on creative process, visual thinking, communication, authoring extended illustration and/or animation works, and understanding professional practice.

The Illustration/Animation concentration emphasizes visual problem solving, creative invention, visual storytelling, and the development of imagery for communication. In illustration courses we stress the creation of images that expand a text. “Text” is broadly defined and may include manuscripts, posters, websites, or self-authored works by the illustrator.

Illustration requires the artist’s individual creativity and intellectual inquiry be fully present and developed. At the same time, one must be willing to engage collaboratively with other communication professionals and remain mindful of the intended audience. In Animation courses the emphasis is on creative exploration while developing technical skills that allow the individual to fully realize inventive time-based products. Students are exposed to a wide variety of tools and materials with which to create work. Quality of motion, mastery of tools and techniques, and inventive storytelling are the driving forces. The growing field of animated storytelling offers newly graduated students distinct opportunities, and offering an expanded view of illustration and animation prepares our students broadly for the field.

The Concentration, as a whole, gives students a working knowledge of both traditional approaches and new technologies. Students merge personal expression with communication goals in their comprehensive professional preparation as they pursue a wide variety of projects in both analog and digital environments, including: book, editorial, institutional, and children’s illustration; 2-D and stop-motion animation; character and environment design; design for products; comics, cartoons, and graphic novels; self-promotion, and more.

BFA Degree Requirements

A minimum of 120 total degree credits are required for a BFA degree. Within the 120 total credits a minimum of 66 must be studio art credits, with 30 of the 66 credits at the 3000/4000 level.

66

Studio Art Credits

+

12

Art History Credits

+

42

General Education Requirements & Electives

Suggested Sequence of Study

Suggested Sequences of Study for BFA concentrations are only samples/suggested course schedules. Requirements are subject to change and may vary based on catalog year, curriculum changes and course availability.

First Year

Semester 1
ART1010 Studio Concepts /3cr.
ART1020 Criticism & Interpretation /3cr.
ART1030 Drawing 1 /3cr.
Art History 1000/Content Area 1 /3cr.
English 1010/1011 /4cr.
Total Credits /16

Semester 2
ART1040/Drawing 2 /3cr.
ART2310, 2410, 2510 or 2610 /3cr.
ART2110 Graphic Design Process & Thinking /3cr.
Content Area 2 /4cr.
Content Area 3 /3cr.
Total Credits /15–16

Second Year

Semester 3
ART2010 Life Drawing /3cr.
ART2310, 2410, 2510 or 2610 /3cr.
ART2310, 2410, 2510 or 2610 /3cr.
Content Area 3 (Lab) /3cr.
Content Area 4 /4cr.
Total Credits /16cr.

Semester 4
ART2310, 2410, 2510 or 2610 /3cr.
ART3010 Life Drawing /3cr.
ART2210 Illustration /3cr.
Content Area 1 /3cr.
Content Area 4 /3cr.
Total Credits /15cr.

Third Year

Semester 5
ART2011 Intro to Digital Media /3cr.
ART3210 Topics in Illustration (Must be repeated once) /3cr.
Studio Art Elective 3000/4000L /3cr.
Art History 1000/2000L or 3000/4000L /3cr.
Math/Stats Q /3cr.
Total Credits /15cr.

Semester 6
ART2220 Animation Fundamentals /3cr.
Studio Art 3000/4000L Elective /3cr.
Studio Art 3000/4000L Elective /3cr.
Art History 3000/4000L Elective /3cr.
Content Area 2 /3cr.
Total Credits /15cr.

Fourth Year

Semester 7
ART3210 Topics in Illustration /3cr.
ART3270 Going Pro /3cr.
Art History 3000/4000L /3cr.
Elective /3cr.
Elective /3cr.
Total Credits /15cr.

Semester 8
ART4901 Senior Project /3cr.
Studio Art 3000/4000L Elective /3cr.
Elective /3cr.
Elective /3cr.
Elective /3cr.
Total Credits /15cr.

Studio Art 3000/4000L Electives may include:
ART3993 Art Foreign Study (ISI Florence)

BA Degree

Students pursuing a BA in Studio Art are not required to declare a concentration, and therefore follow a more general Plan of Study.

BFA & BA Student Work in Illustration/Animation

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