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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "AS 102"
COURSE NAME: "Foundations of 2D Art and Design"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2025
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Valerio Di Lucente
EMAIL: [email protected]
 HOURS: T6:30 PM 9:15 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS:
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This foundational course provides students with the knowledge and skills to explore and demonstrate a range of basic principles, research methods, observational interpretation, and self- expression relevant to introductory study in Art and Design. An emphasis is placed on the fundamental principles and elements of 2D Art and Design related to concepts, techniques, and material practices. Issues related to composition, layout, color, texture, and pattern are explored through a diverse range of briefs which will scaffold students’ ability to generate, develop, and resolve ideas visually. Students will engage with a range of traditional and contemporary methods of visualization, mark-making and design development.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Through in-class demonstrations students will gain familiarity with a variety of art-making techniques, both hands-on and digital. Lectures will develop a broader understanding of art and design, its historical importance, and contemporary concerns. Projects will address figure/ground relationships, perspective, value, color, scale, proportional transformation, and spatial illusion. Both digital and traditional methods of constructing compositions will be addressed. In addition to learning formal design strategies, students will also explore the historical and cultural context in which works of art and design are produced.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
— Demonstrate a range of both primary and secondary research strategies and effectively apply them in response to a specific brief or problem related to 2D principles
— Demonstrate the ability to engage with a variety of development processes and strategies related to composition.
— Demonstrate a clear uncerstanding of the creative process; research, idea generation, development and resolution.
— Demonstrate technical proficiency in the knowledge of techniques and material and evidence an ability to use them creatively.
— Demonstrate an ability to analyze and evaluate both the individual creative process and importantly the work and practice of other professional artists and designers.
TEXTBOOK:
NONE
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Visual Assignments 50%
Written Assignments 10%
Midterm 10%
Final 10%
Participation 20%

-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:
All scheduled classes are mandatory.
Announcements, presentations, tutorials, etc. are given at the start of each session.
Absence and late arrival affect the final grade.
Missing or incomplete assignments and/or assignments sent after the established deadline lower the grade.
Students are responsible for catching up with any course material they miss.
Make-up work is not offered, except in exceptional circumstances and after consultation with the Dean of Academic Affairs.
Students cannot make-up a major exam (Midterm or Final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family, or other situations of similar gravity. Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused.
Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam.
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 + 2

What is 2 Dimensional Design?

 

• Introduction to 2D design principles, techniques, and applications.

• Introduction to blog format Line

• Types of lines 

• Line direction, movement, and emotiveness 

• Psychological/emotional impact of different lines 

• Introduction to Adobe Illustrator: line art and flat graphics. 

• Assignment: Visual Journal Emotional Line Project (visual) + Line analysis of famous artwork (written).

 

WEEK 3

Balance & Unity

• Analyzing compositional harmony

• Review different compositional strategies

• Introduction to Adobe Photoshop: exploring the interface,

image acquisition and resolution, creating files, file types, cropping and transformation, generating layers, making selections.

• Assignment: Balance and Unity Project

 

WEEK 4

Shape & Volume

• Review types of shapes: organic, geometric, positive, and negative, etc.

• Photoshop skills – Layering and collage.

• Assignment: Shape and Volume project

 

WEEK 5

Creating Space

• Types of perspective and viewpoint

• Depth of field, distance, and overlapping.

• Illusionistic space

• Photoshop skills: Tonal scale, non-destructive editing

• Assignment: Personal Geographies Project

 

WEEK 6

Rhythm and Multiples

• Discussion of movement within 2D images

• Strategies for creating rhythm and movement

• Introduction of basic printmaking concepts

• Xerox transfer technique

• Photoshop skills: Repetition and cloning.

• Assignment: Rhythm and Multiples Project

 

WEEK 7

Text/Image

• Introduction to typography

• The shape of letters

• Adobe Indesign: Type on the grid, adjusting type settings,

creating type on a path.

• Assignment: Midterm Project

 

WEEK 8 – 9

Value

• Grayscale and gradients

• Understanding value and space

• Adobe Illustrator / Indesign / Photoshop skills: Tonal Scale, creating tints and shades. 

• Assignment: Value Project

 

WEEK 10

The Properties of Color

• Review color wheel: primary, secondary, and tertiary colors.

• Introduce central color terms: saturation, hue, shades, and tints.

• Illustrator skills: Color theory and basic shapes Assignment: Properties of Color Project

 

WEEK 11

The Relativity of Color

• Introduce Josef Albers’ system for understanding color relationships.

• In-class color exercises

• Illustrator skills: RGB and CMYK color palletes

• Photoshop skills: Hue and saturation, working with color

• Assignment: The Relativity of Color

 

WEEK 12

Perception of Color

• Color Schemes

• Anomalies

• Psychological and emotional impact of color

• In-class Project: Collaborative optical portrait.

Assignment: Psychological portrait + Impact of color (written)

 

WEEK 13

Texture

• Exploration of different textures: tactile and visual textures

• Texture through pattern

• Photoshop and Illustrator skills: combining digital and hands-

on applications. Assignment: Texture project

 

WEEK 14

Scale and Proportion + Final Project Intro

• Exploration of different scales of space

• Enlarging and shrinking images for psychological effect

• Introduce xylo-fold format

• Final Project discussion

• InDesign skills: Multiple pages: Unity

• Assignment: Xylo-fold maquette

 

WEEK 15

Final Critique

 

OVERVIEW OF KEY BIBLIOGRAPHIC WORKS FOR THE COURSE

Design as Art, Bruno Munari, Penguin, 2008

Art and Design Fundamentals: 2D and Color, Steven Bleicher, 2023

Design Basics, 2nd edition, by David A. Lauer, Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, New York, 1985. Design Elements: Color Fundamentals, Aaris Sherin, Rockport Publishers, Beverly, Mass., 2012. Foundations of Art and Design, Lois Fichner-Rathus, 2014.

Launching the Imagination, A Comprehensive Guide to Basic Design, Mary Stewart, 2011.