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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "AS 109"
COURSE NAME: "Color Theory and Studio Practice"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Fall 2024
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Michele Tocca
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: T12:30 PM 3:15 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: This class requires a materials fee of €75/$85 to cover all basic art supplies.
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The course is a practical study of one of the fundamental elements of visual art and design: color. Artists use color as a compositional tool in developing pictorial form and space. Color transmits meaning and emotion, and is everywhere in our daily lives. Focused exercises help students both to understand the perceptual aspects of color and to manipulate color using specific techniques. The course begins with the perception and control of gradations of light and dark, treats the practical issues of physically mixing pigments, explores the alteration of color caused by the placement of adjacent colors, and arrives at expressive, poetical uses of color in compositions. Students learn the correct terminology needed to analyze color effects both in their own creations and in historical masterworks, and demonstrate their growing confidence and mastery of color in a portfolio of creative work.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Structured around a combination of lectures, practical workshops and independent sessions, this introductory course is an immersion in the studio experience of colour. The thematic focus is ‘colour as matter’ and the conceptual framework is the use of colour in art theory and practice. Differently from its understanding in science, communication, technology, information…, colour will be considered as a physical entity, as an organism in constant transformation.

Emphasis will be put on such major topics as alchemy and the metamorphic quality of colour; properties including hue, value, and chroma; the history of pigments and colours; the composition and interaction of colours; the psychology and symbolism of colour and its expressive potential; oil pigments components and use.

Major theories from Goethe to Bauhaus will be presented and discussed so that students will learn key terminology and will investigate a number of historical and recent references in order to leave the course with the necessary tools to undertake further studies in painting and in other artistic fields.

Throughout the semester, students will develop a body of works demonstrating their engagement with the aesthetic theories and practices presented and they will be challenged to pursue a critical awareness of the aesthetic, historical and psychological implications of colour.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
 

·      To learn the basics of major colour theories, the history of colours and pigments with its aesthetic, scientific, psychological implications;

·      To develop an ability to recognise, study and control the major properties of colours and pigments.

·      To gain the skills to identify, study and mix colours from real life objects and images.

·      To use colour to express moods, atmospheres and various psychological states.

·      To initiate an actual studio practice, familiarizing with major tools and facilities.

 
TEXTBOOK:
NONE
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberComments
The Interaction of Color: 50th Anniversary EditionJosef AlbersYale University Press9780300179354  

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Midterm Project and ReviewMoving from the chromatic studies of such figures as Johannes Itten and Josef Albers, the project will involve the creation of monochrome paintings to evaluate the students’ initial ability to understand and manipulate colour.25%
Psychological PortraitsUsing paint, students will explore the possibilities of colour to express mood and psychological atmosphere via such elements as temperature, degrees of saturation et al. They are then prompted to create a series of studies in which they express different psychological states.10
Final Project (Imagination Test)Inspired by Goethe’s poetic descriptions of colours, students will be evaluated on their ability to visually envisage and translate his words.10%
Final Project (Technical Colour Study)Students will be evaluated on their ability to understand, study and reproduce colours from real life objects.10%
Final PortfolioSubmitted at the end of the semester, the students’ portfolio will gather the entire body of works made since the beginning of the course, demonstrating their overall knowledge of colour theory, experimentation, resourcefulness, inventiveness, expressiveness, acuity of observation, improvement, awareness of processes, and other aspects of technical skill. 30%
Attendance, participation and initiativeDemonstrated engagement with attendance, punctuality, course activities, peer reviews, preparedness, and studio stewardship.15%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality shows excellent mastery of the course content along with exceptional levels of technical skill, artistic awareness, originality, resourcefulness, commitment, quantity of work and improvement. There has been excellent collaboration and leadership in group projects, and there have been no attendance problems.
BA highly competent level of performance with work that directly addresses the content of the course, with a good quantity of work produced.
CAn acceptable level of performance: the work shows awareness of the course content, but is very limited in quantity, quality, commitment and skill.
DThe student lacks a coherent grasp of the course material and has failed to produce much work.
FNegligent in attendance, academic honesty, engagement with the course content, or production of work.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Instructor Policy:

Students are expected to arrive at class on time and ready to work.  This means having all your materials and homework assignments.  It is critical that you make the most of in-class work periods – not having your materials is not a good excuse.

 

Regular and punctual class attendance is required; participation and improvement are evaluated (15%).  Please note that Attendance includes arriving punctually and staying for the duration of the class. 

 

Participation is heavily weighted in this course.  Students are evaluated on their contributions to class discussions and demonstration that they are integrating technical information with principals and concepts.  Absences are not allowed, with the only exception being illness, which must be validated with a medical certificate.  Travel and visiting friends or family are not excusable absences.  Each unexcused absence results in a 5% drop in the student’s overall participation grade (which is 15% of the final grade).
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
SCHEDULE

Week 1 - Course Introduction – Aims, Expectations, Rules, Grading

.Lecture 1: Colour Theory – The Basics and History

.Early exercises with the Colour Wheel

Week 2 – Colour Qualities: Hue, tonality, saturation, relativity... 

.Lecture 2: Josef Albers, Wassily Kandinsky and Johannes Itten

.extracts from:

Johannes Itten, The Art of Colour

Joseph Albers, The Interaction of Colour

Wassily Kandinsky, The Spiritual in Art 

.exercises with colour and shape

Reading: James Elkins, "What is Color?", in How to Use Your Eye (New York: Routledge, 2009, 202 ff.)

Week 3 – The life of Colours

.Lecture 3: Colour as Matter

.Colour study: Blues, Yellows, Reds et al (history, names of pigments and properties)

.Reading: James Elkins, "Painting as Alchemy", inWhat Painting Is (New York: Routledge, 1998, 168 ff.)

 

Week 4 – The Palette

.Colour as Matter: Study of the Palette

.Colour study: Types and Role of Browns

Week 5 -  Colours, Mediums and Surfaces

.Study of interactions among colours and colour and surfaces

.Reading: James Elkins, "The studio as Psychosis", in What Painting Is (New York: Routledge, 1998, 168 ff.)

 

Week 6 - Midterm Project: Monochromatic Painting

.Colour study: Approaches to painting, Paint Applications and Handling, the Brushstroke

.Reading: Bridget Riley, Colour for the Painter

Week 7 – Midterm Test and Review

Week 8 – Colour-mixing

.Midterm Project Feedback

Week 9 – The Psychology and Symbolism of Colour

.Lecture 4: What can colour mean?

.Reading: excerpts from

.Johan W. Goethe, Theory of Colour

.Betty Edwards, "Chapter XII", Color, (New York: Penguin, 2004, 157-168).

.Painting session

Week 10 – Colour Extraction

.Colour studies from photos and paintings

Week 11 – Colour and the Physical World 

.Colour studies from life

Week 12 – Studio Session and one-to-one tutorials

.Issue of Individual Readings and Concepts for Finals 

Week 13 – Technical Test (Finals)

Week 14 – Imagination Test (Finals)

Week 15 - Final Peer Review