This is an exploration of visual art forms and their cultural connections for the student with little experience in the visual arts. The course includes a brief study of art history and in depth studies of the elements, media, and methods used in creative process and thought. Visual and performing arts are part of the Humanities: academic disciplines that study the human condition and, in addition to the arts, include languages, literature, law, history and religion. This course will teach students to develop a five-step system for understanding visual art in all forms based on description, analysis, meaning, context and judgment.Login: guest_oclPassword: ocl

This course explores the world’s visual arts, focusing on the development of visual awareness, assessment, and appreciation by examining a variety of styles from various periods and cultures while emphasizing the development of a common visual language. The materials are meant to foster a broader understanding of the role of visual art in human culture and experience from the prehistoric through the contemporary. This is an Open Educational Resource (OER), an openly licensed educational material designed to replace a traditional textbook.

This course is an exploration of visual art forms and their cultural connections for the student with little experience in the visual arts. It includes a brief study of art history and in depth studies of the elements, media, and methods used in creative processes and thought. Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: interpret examples of visual art using a five-step critical process that includes description, analysis, context, meaning, and judgment; identify and describe the elements and principles of art; use analytical skills to connect formal attributes of art with their meaning and expression; explain the role and effect of the visual arts in societies, history, and other world cultures; articulate the political, social, cultural, and aesthetic themes and issues that artists examine in their work; identify the processes and materials involved in art and architectural production; utilize information to locate, evaluate, and communicate information about visual art in its various forms. Note that this course is an alternative to the Saylor FoundationĺÎĺ_ĺĚĺ_s ARTH101A and has been developed through a partnership with the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges; the Saylor Foundation has modified some WSBCTC materials. This free course may be completed online at any time. (Art History 101B)

This book aims to act as your map through the world of African art. As such, it will help you define the competencies you need to develop–visual analysis, research, noting what information is critical, asking questions, and writing down your observations–and provide opportunities for you to practice these skills until you are proficient. It will also expose you to new art forms and the worlds that produced them, enriching your understanding and appreciation.

Looking at art is not an easy, straightforward process, even though it often feels natural.

The power of art can be immediate, striking, even arresting. We are now living in what is the most media-saturated era of world history, as we are bombarded with visual images constantly, but we have very little training in how to critically interpret these images. The fundamental tools are not taught to children in school. Looking—deep, careful looking—is not as simple as it seems. It is the aim of this book to teach the skills needed to decode art, to provide you with tools you can apply to all of the visual data around you.

In this course, you will explore a wonderfully diverse array of works. They will likely strike you as beautiful or ugly, stunning or strange, funny or compelling, or any combination of these reactions at once. Art does not have to be beautiful or uplifting. Likewise, though, it does not have to be dark and serious. There are no limits on the moods and ideas art can or should convey. There are, though, tools and tricks through which artists convey these moods and ideas. These visual techniques, above all, will be the subject of this book.

Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning offers a comprehensive introduction to the world of Art. Authored by four USG faculty members with advance degrees in the arts, this textbooks offers up-to-date original scholarship. It includes over 400 high-quality images illustrating the history of art, its technical applications, and its many uses.
Combining the best elements of both a traditional textbook and a reader, it introduces such issues in art as its meaning and purpose; its meaning and purpose; its structure, material, and form; and its diverse effects on our lives. Its digital nature allows students to follow links to applicable sources and videos, expanding the students’ educational experiences beyond the textbook. Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning provides a new and free alternative to traditional textbooks, making it an invaluable resource in our modern age of technology and advancement.

This is an introductory project that addresses identifying the Elements of Art and Principles of Composition in immediate surroundings and provides these terms a real-time life application. The project is interactive and exploratory, requiring individual observation of a students' physical world. This project can be modified to include more images, changes in grid template and combined to include both Elements and Principles together; incluiding identifying other terms in art such as mediums. The project can be used in an online formatted course or a face to face environment. Including Art Appreciation, Art Orientation, Two-Dimensional Design and Three-Dimensional Design studio courses.