TA:

Amy Bench
amybench@gmail.com

•• Contents subject to change ••

Things to know

You should be self-motivated to succeed in this course. Work is cumulative. If you are not used to setting your own goals and keeping a fast pace you may have trouble participating and producing work. We are here to help you as you develop ideas, interests and questions. Be prepared to work hard, collaborate with others, stretch your boundaries, share what you learn. Students with no prior background in analog or digital arts are discouraged from taking the course, though there are always exceptions.

The course has a listserv: intermedia06@lists.cc.utexas.edu. Your e-mail address will be added to the listserv after the first week of class. Use this listserv to communicate with us, your fellow students, contribute ideas, share resources, ask technical questions.

Questions you have and develop may be resolved by practice or by other types of inquiry--theoretical, philosophical, scientific, poetic, etc. There should be times during the semester that you get stuck. You should develop the tools to unstick yourself. If you don’t know what to make, go look at what other people have made. If you don’t know what to say, go read something or watch something or listen to someone interesting. If you are still stuck, in all probability you are not making enough stuff to get yourself moving toward a question you can answer through practice or thought. A motto for the course: Make, make, make. If you show up for help, you will be asked what you are making and for evidence of your efforts and research in the direction of your inquiries.

Buy an unlined black sketchbook and making it your best friend. Carry it with you everywhere and use it to write and think; dream and play; sketch and draw; collect, insert and paste; sculpt and decorate. Do not use this book as a personal diary; it should be a record of your involvement with the course and the projects you make throughout the semester. Get in the habit of using this book during reviews and class conversations. It is important to record what you learn during critiques of your work and that of your classmates. While your work is being reviewed, it may be valuable for you to ask someone else to record the conversation in your book for you.

Your technical ability will increase in proportion to your effort. Hack and be resourceful. There are many, many online tutorials and resources for various programs. Lab facilities are limited which necessitates cooperative scheduling. You may need to use resources in several locations, and finding the right equipment at the right time will probably require initiative on your part.

Things to buy | get

Glue (RC 56 or Neutral Ph Adhesive)
Hot glue gun and hot glue sticks
Xacto knife and blades
Self-healing cutting mat
The Chopper (optional)
Metal ruler with cork underside
Scissors
Good drawing paper (should have some tooth)
Cheap drawing paper (various options)
Pad of Bristol Board, 19” x 24”
Collage materials (collect your own)
Chipboard and cardboard of various thicknesses
Graphite pencils in various weights (6B, 4B, 2B, HB, H, 2H, 4H, 6H)
Pencil sharpener
A couple of good, white erasers for drawing (Staedtler Mars Plastic, for example)
Black permanent pens, including a few thick Sharpies
Paints, inks, wet media (permanent and water-soluble)
Clear 16mm film leader (available for purchase in equipment checkout)
Clear 16mm splicing tape (available for purchase in equipment checkout)
Materials for direct film work
Needles, thread, string
Storage media (may include Mini-DV tapes, CD-RWs, DVDs)
Black book (see next page)

Helpful but not required: External firewire HD, digital camera, video camera (mini-DV or something that transfers easily to mini-DV).

Materials will vary for each project. Costs are a function of time and materials. The cost of materials can be altered somewhat by decisions you make (i.e.: resource pooling, bulk ordering, alternative methods). Be ready to spend what is required to effectively execute your work and to coordinate your efforts to lower prices.

Places to buy such stuff: Jerry’s Artarama, The University Co-op (both locations), Asel Art, Miller Blueprint, Breed and Company, Hobby Lobby. There are many online resources (use them and save money), and better art supply stores in Houston than in Austin. * Note * I’ve identified various online art/film/video supply sources on my website (http://www.rasa.net)
on the bottom of our class “resources” page.

Six Projects

# 1 Form
You will be given a xerox copy of a painting. This painting is a ground or landscape that will guide you in the construction of a physical form (24” limit in any direction.) Pay particular attention to shadows and interstitial spaces. When you complete the form, take multiple photographs from different perspectives and with more or less proximity. Bring both the form and the photographs to the project review. Materials: basswood, glue.

# 2 Figure
Your constructed form is the model for a series of 12 drawings. These drawings should be, in part, investigations of positive and negative space, shadows and interstitial spaces. All of your drawings should be the same size; their scale should reflect the nature of your investigations and allow you to find things in your form you didn’t necessarily see while making it. Materials: graphite, drawing paper.

# 3 Re-form | Re-figure
Scan your drawings at whatever scale you like. Crop each drawing so you end up with an 8” square. Print the images (good quality please). Arrange the images in a sequence. Remove six of the images. Create collages in the empty spaces, maintaining the original sequence. Materials: open but carefully chosen and intentionally limited. Be specific in terms of material choice, texture and color.
#4 Sound | Sight

Choose a 3-5 minute piece by a composer listed on the handout you are given the first day of class. Listen and draw to it. Draw loosely until you can see and represent imagery that that relates to the music and becomes recognizable. Based on this imagery, create an alphabet of 26 distinct “characters” that map the evolution of the piece. Your final alphabet may include images, textures and objects—limit your characters to approximately 4” in any direction.

#5 Celluloid
Write a narrative onto one-half roll of clear 16mm film leader. Draw from and extend the vocabulary of your first four projects as you go, interpreting from 2D, 3D and 4D alike. Use whatever materials, colors and techniques seem appropriate.

#6 Kinetics
When you have finished your leader work, transfer the film to mini-DV and then dump it to Final Cut Pro. Create a final video that incorporates this imagery and the musical composition you chose for Project #4. Your final video should be carefully conceived and edited in terms of content, color, mood, rhythm and spatial quality. 5 minute limit.

Equipment

There is some (unfortunately limited) equipment available to you for this class. You may take it out once you have filled out the necessary paperwork and paid a nominal fee. The equipment reserved for us is as follows:
The equipment reserved for us is listed online and can be reserved by students here:

http://mrm.communication.utexas.edu/mrm6/default.aspx?db=mrm&mylocation=Default-Start

Hints from the equipment manager:

• Make sure you have an appointment time. Call first to get appointment times for checkout and checkin.
• To make a reservation you must use a PC and Internet Explorer 5.5 or greater (not Firefox or Safari)

Readings

This is a production course, and its emphasis is on making rather than reading. We will ask you to read a handout or two during the semester that will help you in your work (see Course Calendar.) There is a reserve list of books related to the course; you may wish to purchase some of them since many are wonderful.

To see the reserve list for this course online, go to: http://reserves.lib.utexas.edu/courseindex.asp or to the "current courses" link under the teaching section of my website, http://www.rasa.net

Grading

Projects (physical and online) and Presentation 70%
Participation and Documentation (critiques and completed website) 30%

A high grade will be assigned to those students who work hard, participate extensively and continuously, demonstrate a clear understanding of the readings and course concepts, and produce work that shows evolution in terms of sensibility, process, craft, scope and final composition / work. A failing grade will be assigned to any student who does not complete all of the projects, the presentation and the website, misses more than three class sessions, and | or who is absent on a project due date. Documentation and presentation are both large parts of your participation in the course—invest in them.

As in any creative class, grading criteria are necessarily subjective. You may not agree with our personal evaluation, but decisions are final and no post-grading negotiation will be permitted. I discourage incompletes.

At the end of the semester you will turn in:
• A CD-ROM with your website and its dependent files
• A copy of Project #6 on mini-DV tape

Other Important Details

Pay close attention to the Course Calendar and the list of Projects…both are very detailed and will help you stay organized. There should be no reason you should ever come to class unprepared as each class day has a topic and a list of things to bring or prepare where necessary.

On either November 9 or November 16, each of you will present the work of one of the film | video makers | artists on the list handed out the first day of class. Information about how to prepare and present your subject and his or her work is provided on that list. Your research should be available to other students on your website the day of your presentation.

Throughout the semester you will develop a website that documents your work in the course. This site should be designed in such a way that it evokes the character of the work you pursue and complete. You will be given a personal directory on a server where you can store your files. Post-dates for online project representation are the same as project due dates. This website will be a permanent record of your work – you will not be able to change it once it is complete. When you design your site, do so with the knowledge that it will be out there for a while.

You will be asked often to discuss readings, ideas and the progress of your work with the class and /or visitors. Be prepared for these discussions, and participate in them fully. Your attendance is mandatory at the Final review scheduled on the last day of class. Failure to participate in the review will result in an F for the course.

University Speak

Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonesty damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.

About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.

About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.