FFD-122: HISTORY OF ART AND DESIGN 2, SPRING 2016
Ali ASLANKAN, Tuğyan AYTAÇ-DURAL, Xander VAN ECK, Thomas KEOGH,SedaÖZEN TANYILDIZI
Coordinator: / Xander van EckClass Hours: /
TuesdaY 14-18
Office Hours: /Wednesday, 13-15h.
Homepage: /Office No. / Tel. / E-mail: / 534 / 4117810 /
The Course:
This is the second semester of a two-semester course (FFD-121 and FFD-122) that presents, by the help of selected examples, a comparative analysis of the art and design of Eastern and Western civilizations from pre-history to the present. While FFD-121 was mainly concerned with the visual analysis of works of art and design, the goal of FFD-122 is to show how these works come into being: the external factors that influence the forms that are produced.
Paintings, sculptures, buildings, interiors, products, graphics, and clothing do not just magically “pop up” out of their designer’s brains – a lot of skill and effort is required to make them. In addition, their making cannot be separated from the cultural environment in which they are designed, the ideas about how works of art and design should be made, and the requirements of the people who commission and use them.
In order to reach such an understanding, FFD-122 is organized into “Five Contexts of Art and Design,” which are:
MAKING
STYLE
IDEOLOGY
USE
MEANING
Each context consists of 4 one-hour-long lectures on sub-topics relating to that subject matter that, together with the talent, inspiration and creativity of the artist / designer can be considered to be the main factors that determine the outcome of the artistic / design process.
At the end of FFD-122, students are expected to have a fair impression of the main problems in the field of art and design, having learnt to think critically about the relationship between art and design and acquiring many ideas about how to excavate the history of art and design for examples and inspiration.
Textbook / Readings:
There is no one single textbook for the course. Instead, students are responsible for the readings that are listed on the following pages, and for being prepared for discussions and critical questions on the material. Ninereadings will be posted in pdf format on the FFD-122 webpage (see address above); a tenth reading will be distributed in class.
Grading / Assessment:
Student assessment will be through one midterm examination, one final examination, one research paper, and an oral presentation, in the following ratio:
Mid-Term Examination : 30%
Final Examination : 30%
Oralpresentation 10%
Research Paper Proposal : 5%
Research Paper :25%
T O T A L 100%
The mid-term examination will be held during class in Week #7 during class hours,the final examination will take place during the period specified by the University. The oral presentations will take place in weeks 6 and 15.
Oral Presentatıon
The students are expected to prepare a presentation of a documentary/movie on art/artist or design/designer of their own choice. The presentation will be short (max. 5 mins.) and mustbe accompanied by 3 slides (Powerpoint). Each slide has an image + max.10 words. The presentation must reflect the main idea or the theme of the documentary/movie as well as some of the the topics (making, style etc.)examined during the course.Students may not use paper or cards with notes. The presentations will take place in week 6 and week 15. A proposal for a documentary/movie will be due during week 4 (first half of class) or week 12 (second half of class).
Research Paper
One of the aims of History of Art and Design is to develop a historical and critical sensibility about artistic and cultural production. To test this ability, students will prepare a research paper about an object of art or design of their choice, based on the “Five Contexts of Art and Design” theme of this semester.
This example CAN NOT be from an artist or an example that has been discussed in class. More information and formatting for this term paper will be given separately.
A proposal for a research topic will be due during Week 10; the Research Paper will be due during the class of Week 15
Administrative Notes:
a) According to Izmir University of Economics regulations, students must attend at least 70% of this lecture course in order to receive a grade. Those students absent for more than 30% of the sessions will receive an “NA” as a final grade. Also according to Izmir University of Economics regulations, medical doctor reports are not valid for excusing students from attending a course, they are only valid for excusing them from examinations and submissions.
b) Students who are absent during mid-term and final examinations and do not submit an official medical doctor report within one week of the absence will not be allowed to take a make-up exam.
c) Any work found guilty or suspected of plagiarism (the uncredited quotation of someone else’s text, image or design ideas) will not be acceptedand given zero points. Please refer to the following website for information about proper academic research and writing:
d) No vocabulary will be explained during the exams. Turkish-English dictionaries, however, will be allowed.
e) Mobile telephones should be turned off (not just put into silent mode) at all times during the class.
SCHEDULE:
WEEK 1: Introduction
WEEK 2: Making I
WEEK 3: Making II
WEEK 4: Style I
WEEK 5: Style II
WEEK 6: Oral Presentations (first half of class)
WEEK 7: Midterm ex.
WEEK 8: Ideology I
WEEK 9: Ideology II
WEEK 10: Term Paper Preparation; Term paper proposal due
WEEK 11: Use I
WEEK 12: Use II
WEEK 13: Meaning
WEEK 14: Film Screening
WEEK 15: Oral Presentations (second half of class) and Term Paper due
PROGRAM:
WEEK #1: 16-20 FEBRUARY 2016: INTRODUCTION
THE 5 CONTEXTS OF ART & DESIGN
MAKING
Making is “the essence” of art and design: artists and designers decide or want to come up with a product - be it a painting, an installation, an everyday product or a building - and they design their works first in their minds, then usually on paper, and in the end generate a final product. That is, works of art and design take time and effort to make.
STYLE
Style concerns the formal characteristics of a work of art and design. It is a set of rules, conventions and traditions that belong to a certain time period, an artist/designer, a school, or a geographical area that influences the forms that are eventually produced.
IDEOLOGY
Ideologies are the ideas that are operational in a certain culture about “what art/design should be.” These ideas, in turn, influence the production of works of art and design by limiting the form(s) to only those that “fit with” the prevailing ideas.
USE
How a product of art or design will be “used,” who provides the financial support to make it, who will use the product after making and where the product will be located also influence the form that it takes.
MEANING
The meaning of a work of art or design is the message that it communicates or attempts to communicate. These messages are always embedded in a particular culture and can not be separated from that culture.
EXAMPLE:
Leonardo da Vinci, “The Last Supper” (1495), in terms of “The Five Contexts”
WEEK #2:22 – 26 FEB 2016: MAKING 1
FIRST HOUR: MATERIALS
The materials that an artist/designer uses have endless varieties: stone, glass, metal, plastic, fabric, and paper – just to name a few. The choice of materials made by the artist or designer extensively influences the form of an end product.
SECOND HOUR: TOOLS and TECHNIQUES
Like materials, the tools and techniques that an artist/designer uses also has endless varieties, mostly bound to their choice of materials, which again extensively influence the form of an end product.
READING:
“In the Cause of Architecture: The Meaning of Materials – Glass,” by Frank Lloyd Wright, ARCHITECTURAL RECORD, June 1928, pp. 197-202.
WEEK #3: 29 FEB - 4 MARCH 2016: MAKING 2
FIRST HOUR: PROCESS
The creation process of a work of art or design changes as to the medium, materials, technological tools and methods that an artist/designer uses. By looking at the design process, things can be learnt that cannot be understood through the end product itself. In addition, the work can be better appreciated.
SECOND HOUR: EDUCATION
The way that an artist or designer is educated is important because it affects how they make their artworks/designs. The teaching and learning methods that an artist or designer is exposed to have a direct influence on the forms those they later make.
READING: TBA
WEEK #4: 7-11 MARCH 2016: STYLE 1
FIRST HOUR: TIME PERIOD
The set of formal rules that influence the creation of a work of art and design is very often related to the time period of when it was designed and produced. This time period can be as little as years or decades and as much as centuries or millennia.
SECOND HOUR: COMPETITION and CHANGE
The change from one dominant style to another dominant style is interesting to research because it highlights the point that style is both merely a choice of the artist/designer and also something that restricts the artist/designer at the same time.
READING:
E. Gombrich, The Story of Art, London/New York 1995 (16th. Ed., orig. ed. London 1950), pp. 58-65
WEEK #5: 14-18 MARCH 2016: STYLE 2
FIRST HOUR: INDIVIDUAL STYLE
Some artists or designers develop a personal style that is so powerful it is directly recognizable and is followed by other people. These artists or designers may even dominate a whole field for their entire lifetime (and beyond).
SECOND HOUR: GEOGRAPHICAL STYLE
Especially in the applied arts, there is the phenomenon of certain cities, countries or regions having a reputation for a specific kind of fabric, earthenware, etc. People who design in such a tradition have very little freedom because the style, to a large extent is already prescribed.
READING: TBA
WEEK #6: 21-25 MARCH 2016: ORAL PRESENTATIONS ON LITERATURE
MAKING 1: Frank Lloyd Wright, “The Meaning of Materials – Glass”
MAKING 2: TBA
STYLE 1: E. Gombrich, The Story of Art, pp. 58-65
STYLE 2: TBA
WEEK #7: 28 MARCH - 1 APRIL2016: MID-TERM EXAM
MAKING 1: MATERIALS and TOOLS & TECHNIQUES
MAKING 2: PROCESS and WORKSHOP
STYLE 1: TIME PERIOD and COMPETITION & CHANGE
STYLE 2: INDIVIDUAL STYLE and GEOGRAPHICAL STYLE
plus all corresponding readıngs!
WEEK #8: 4-8 APRIL 2016: IDEOLOGY 1
FIRST HOUR: CLASSICAL WESTERN IDEOLOGY
The aim of this presentation is to give a short account of some characteristics of the “Classical” ideology in Western art and design, focusing on the fields of architecture, sculpture and painting.
SECOND HOUR: NON-WESTERN IDEOLOGY
The aim of this presentation is to provide some other perspectives than the Western one, in terms of representative ideologies or philosophies. The ideologies of Chinese Art and Islamic Art will be examined in order to make connections and comparisons with classical Western ideology.
READING:
“Alberti and Fifteenth-Century Painting,” from Frames of Reference: Art, History and the World, by Janet Marquardt and Stephen Eskilson, 2005, pp. 143-147.
WEEK #9: 11-15APRIL 2016:IDEOLOGY 2
FIRST HOUR: MODERN IDEOLOGY
This presentation will provide some key points of Modernist ideology, referring to some “avant-garde” manifestos and design schools of the modern era such as Futurism, Art Nouveau, The Bauhaus, and De Stijl, giving an account of how these groups tended to cope with the social political cultural and economical changes that happened in the first two decades of the 20th century.
SECOND HOUR: QUESTIONING MODERN IDEOLOGY
This presentation will provide a brief account of our contemporary situation in the field of art and design by focusing on the pluralism of ideologies that exists today in photography, Pop Art and installation art, and how it is reflected and/or has the potential to give birth to different artistic expressions or criticisms.
READING:
“Futurist Architecture (1914)” and “De Stijl Manifesto I” from Programs and Manifestoes on 20th-Century Architecture, edited by Ulrich Conrads, 1970, pp. 34-40.
WEEK #10: PREPARATION FOR TERM PAPER (RESEARCH PROPOSAL DUE DURING CLASS HOURS)
WEEK #11: 25-29 APRIL 2016: USE 1
FIRST HOUR: PATRON / CLIENT
An object of art or design always has a sponsor – financial and/or spiritual – who provides support and inspiration to create. Even when an artist/designer produces without the backing of a sponsor, there is still the artist/designer who provides financial and spiritual support for themselves.
SECOND HOUR: USER
“The User” is the person who makes use of a product of art or design after it has been produced and offered for sale or distribution. This person can also be the patron, but frequently is not. “The User” can be both known and unknown to the artist/designer while designing. Designs for an anonymous user are frequently less individual and more generic than those for known users.
READING: TBA
WEEK #12: 2-6 MAY2016: USE 2 (Thursday: Use 1)
FIRST HOUR: FUNCTION
The function of an object of art or design is the way that it is intended to be used after production and/or distribution. This presentation endeavors to explore the meaning and outcome of the phrase “form follows function.”
SECOND HOUR: LOCATION
The location of an object of art and design is the place where it will be seen, displayed, and/or used, whether that be part of everyday life (paintings in people’s homes, silverware used at dining tables, sculptures as landmarks in the city, etc.) or within the institutions of art and design (museums, galleries, books, etc.)
READING:
Excerpt from “What is Design?” in Design for the Real World, Victor Papanek, 1972, pp. 17 and 23-24; C. Wilson, Izmir University of Economics New Faculty of Arts and Design, Izmir 2010
WEEK #13: 9-13MAY 2016: MEANING
According to art historian Erwin Panofsky, the message that a work of art or design contains functions on three levels: Pre-Iconographic (subject matter), Iconographic (usage of cultural knowledge), and Iconological (answering the question: “what does this all mean?).
READING: TBA
WEEK #14: 16-20 MAY 2016: MOVIE SCREENING (no class on 19 may)
WEEK 15: 23 MAY –27 MAY 2016: ORAL PRESENTATIONS
RESEARCH PAPER DUE DURING CLASS HOURS.
LATE SUBMISSIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED
FINAL EXAMS 30 MAY TO 10 JUNE 2016
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