Concentration in Transdisciplinary Visual Arts
Students must earn a "C" or better in each course taken to fulfill a concentration requirement.
"THE AIM OF ART IS TO REPRESENT NOT THE OUTWARD APPEARANCE OF THINGS, BUT THEIR INWARD SIGNIFICANCE."
— ARISTOTLE
Program Overview – Transdisciplinary Visual Arts
The Wilkes Honors College concentration in Transdisciplinary Visual Art encourages students to examine and develop multiple forms of analysis and critique drawing from a variety of academic disciplines which cross, interact, and aid in shaping knowledge. It works significantly with other disciplines in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. Basarab Nicolescu explains these transdisciplinary interactions, as operating between the disciplines, across the different disciplines, and beyond the disciplines. Students learn basic visual vocabulary and are expected to develop their own aesthetic standards. The analysis of art, though valuable, is only a portion of the curriculum. Artistic production, along with the development of visual literacy and an understanding of its relevance to the individual's artistic practice is an indispensable part of this academic study. Here is where students’ abilities and passions intersect as a combined exploration of these areas helps students to develop problem-solving skills, differentiate arguments from opinions, and speak, write, or otherwise represent their ideas in a coherent and persuasive way in relation to art. Such inquiry is predicated on the notion that disciplines are concomitant and potentially symbiotic in ways of sharing knowledge and making meaning, and that such collaboration fruitfully informs and is informed by art. In multiple ways, such collaborative study amongst disciplines fosters and furthers the spark of creative innovation.
In the Transdisciplinary Visual Arts concentration, students can select from several areas of focus: Fine Art (Studio, Electronic Arts, Digital Imaging, Visual Studies, and Social & Cultural Agencies), Illustration (Art Illustration, Botanical Illustration, Scientific Illustration, Sequential Art Illustration, Graphic Narrative Illustration, Still & Moving Images, and Visual Narratives in Illustration), or Digital Game Development and Interactive Media. It is recommended that students work in collaboration with their concentration advisor each semester to discuss course selections. This shared advising effort assures that courses selected are appropriate to students’ pursued area of specialization. These fields include, but are not limited to, fine art studio, illustration, digital game development, interactive media, arts administration, nonprofit and for profit social and cultural agencies, plus public art community programing and engagement.
Students must earn a C or better in a course for that course to count in the concentration.
Advisory Board:
CONCENTRATION IN TRANSDISCIPLINARY VISUAL ARTS
Students may pursue one of the following areas of focus:
- Fine Art
- Illustration
- Digital Game Developement and Interactive Media
Description of Requirements: All students concentrating in Honors Transdisciplinary Visual Art must complete 2 Foundation Courses, 7 Intermediate/ Advanced courses, and 4 courses in a Relevant Field of Study. Students must spend two semesters of their senior year in consultation with their concentration advisor researching and writing an honors thesis. Those choosing to focus on Fine Art Studio Art or/and Illustration must prepare an art exhibition along with a catalog of their work and/or an honors thesis. All other art students must complete an honors thesis or form of visual documentation relating to their research.
| Summary of Requirements | Credits |
|---|---|
| Foundation Art Courses (1000 to 2000 level; 2 courses) | 6-7 |
| Intermediate/Advanced Art Courses (2000 to 4000 level; 7 courses) | 21-28 |
| Courses in a Relevant Field of Study (2000 to 4000 level; 4 courses) | 12-16 |
| Honors Thesis (Two semesters) | 6 |
| Total Credits | 45-57 |
I. Foundation Art Courses (2 courses)
| Course Number | Course Name | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ART 1014C | Honors Elements of Visual Thinking | 3 |
| ART 1202C | Honors Design and Color Phenomena | 4 |
| ART 1300C |
Honors Drawing, I | 3 |
| ART 1602C | Honors Photoshop | 3 |
| ART 1661C | Honors Digital Art Photgraphy | 3 |
| ART 3841C | Honors Artist & Community | 3 |
| ARH 2000 | Honors Art Appreciation | 3 |
| ARH 2050 | Honors History of the Arts I | 3 |
II. Intermediate/Advanced Art Courses (7 courses, including at least 5 courses at the 3000 or 4000 level)
| Course # | Course Name | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ART 2330C | Honors Drawing II | 4 |
| ART 2376C | Honors Structural Drawing | 4 |
|
ART 2500C |
Honors Painting, I | 4 |
| ART 2501C | Honors Painting, II | 4 |
| ART 2540C | Honors Watercolor | 4 |
| ART 2663C | Honors Multimedia Narratives | 3 |
| ART 2812C | Honors Installation Art | 3 |
| ART 2824C | Honors Painting as Narrative | 3 |
| ART 3255C | Honors Introduction to Illustration | 3 |
| ART 3275C | Honors Scientific Illustration, l | 4 |
| ART 3277C | Honors Botanical Illustration | 3 |
| ART 3338C | Honors Anatomy for the Artist and Illustrator | 4 |
| ART 3542C | Honors Advanced Waterbased Media | 3 |
| ART 3618C | Honors Digital E-magination | 3 |
| ART 3646C | Honors Animating the Graphic Novel | 3 |
| ART 3654C | Honors Intro to Programming for Visual Arts | 4 |
| ART 3840C | Honors Environmental Art | 4 |
| ART 4256 | Honors Scientific Illustration, II | 4 |
| ART 4640 | Honors Game Studies | 4 |
| ART 4645C | Honors Electronics and Electronic Objects for Art | 4 |
| ART 4651C | Honors 2D Computer Game Development | 4 |
| ART 4653C | Honors 3D Computer Game Development | 4 |
| ART 4681C | Honors Art and Digital Imagery | 4 |
| ART 4816C | Honors Artists and the Art World in Perspective | 4 |
| ART 4837C | Honors Contemporary Art, Gender & Technology | 4 |
| ART 4841C | Honors The Body in Art | 4 |
| ART 4915 | Honors Directed Intensive Research (DIR) | 1-3 |
| ART 4930C | Honors Understanding Art of the 21st Century | 4 |
| ART 4934C | Honors Business of Art | 3 |
| ART 4934C | Honors Special Topics in Art | 4 |
| ARH 2701 | Honors Still and Moving Images | 3 |
| ARH 4802C | Honors Contemporary Art, Ideas & Practice | 3 |
| IDS 2127C | Honors Graphic Narrative | 3 |
The following courses are regularly offered at [FAU] Boca campus: ART 1201C, ART 2330C, ART 2500C, ART 2428C, ART 3383C, ARH 2050, and ARH 2051. These courses may be counted.
III. Courses in a Relevant Field of Study (4 courses)
To become truly transdisciplinary, students study a related field in addition to visual arts. Students complete courses within areas of humanities, social, and/or natural sciences. This selection includes, though is not limited to academic fields, such as, Anthropology, Biology, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Economics, Environmental Science, Environmental Studies, English Literature, Ethics, Film, Interdisciplinary Theory and Knowledge (CIS/IDS), Music, Theatre, Law and Society, Marine Biology, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Physics, Plant Biology, Psychology, Spanish Literature, Women’s Studies, Writing, Oceanography, or/and Zoology. As students broaden their outlook, they learn new & different ways of constructing knowledge. Ultimately, these courses are integral to the development of a mature, articulate, well-rounded individual who understands the academic and professional fields housed within the Creative Industries.
| Course # | Course Name | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AFS 2250 | Honors Introduction to African Studies | 3 |
| AMS 3003 | Honors Colloquium in American Studies | 3 |
| ANT 2000 | Honors Introduction to Anthropology | 3 |
| ANT 2410 | Honors Culture and Society | 3 |
| ANT 2511/L | Honors Biological Anthropology with Lab | 4 |
| ANT 3212 | Honors People Around the World | 3 |
| ANT 3332 | Honors Peoples of Latin America | 3 |
| ANT 4244 | Honors Ritual and Symbol | 3 |
| ANT 4331 | Honors Anthropology of the Andes | 3 |
| ANT 4930 | Honors Visual Ethnography | 3 |
| ASN 3006 | Honors Introduction to Asian Studies | 3 |
| BOT 3501, 3501L |
Honors Introduction to Plant Biology & Lab | 3 |
| BSC 1005, 1005L |
Honors Life Science and Lab | 3 |
| BSC 1010, 1010L |
Honors Biological Principles and Lab | 3 |
| BSC 1011 | Honors Biodiversity | 3 |
| BSC 1933 | Honors Ecology of Atlantic Shores | 3 |
| BSC 2084, 2084L |
Honors Human Anatomy and Physiology | 3 |
| BSC 4930 | Honors Marine Science | 3 |
| COP 2000 | Honors Foundations of Computer Programming | 3 |
| COP 3014 | Honors Foundations of Computer Science | 3 |
| COP 3530 | Honors Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis | 3 |
| COP 3540 | Honors Introduction to Database Structures | 3 |
| CRW 3010 | Honors Creative Writing | 3 |
| ENC 3362 | Honors Environmental Writing and Rhetoric | 3 |
| ENG 4114 | Honors Literature and Film | 3 |
| EVR 1933 | Honors Seminar Environmental Studies | 3 |
| EVR 2001 | Honors Introduction to Environmental Science | 3 |
| EVR 2017 | Honors Environment and Society | 3 |
| EVR 4420 | Honors Marine Conservation | 3 |
| GEO 3402 | Honors Human Geography | 3 |
| HUM 2932 | Honors Writing in the Humanities | 3 |
| ISC 2932 | Honors Scientific Writing I | 3 |
| IDS 2931 | Honors Representation: Ideas & Art | 4 |
| IDS 2931 | Honors Interdisciplinary Critical Inquiry Seminar | 3 |
| LIT 2010 | Honors Interpretation of Fiction | 3 |
| LIT 2040 | Honors Interpretation of Drama | 3 |
| LIT 3306 | Honors Travel Literature | 3 |
| LIT 3432 | Honors Magic, Art and Alchemy | 3 |
| LIT 3361 | Honors Postmodern Literature | 3 |
| MUS 1933 | Honors Music and Gender | 3 |
| MUS 2670 | Honors Music and Society | 3 |
| OCB 3012, 3012L |
Honors Marine Biology & Oceanography with Lab |
3 |
| OCE 2001 | Honors Introduction to Oceanography | 3 |
| POS 3691 | Honors Law and American Society | 3 |
| PCB 3411 | Honors Animal Behavior | 3 |
| PCB 3351, 3351L |
Honors Tropical Rainforest and Lab | 3 |
| PCB 3352 | Honors Issues in Human Ecology | 3 |
| PCB 4414 | Honors Behavioral Ecology | 3 |
| PCB 4673 | Honors Evolution | 3 |
| PHI 2361 | Honors Ways of Knowing | 3 |
| PHI 2642 | Honors Ethics of Social Diversity | 3 |
| PHI 3682 | Honors Environmental Philosophy | 3 |
| PHI 3692 | Honors AI Ethics | 3 |
| PSC 2512C | Honors Energy and Environment | 3 |
| PSY 2012 | Honors General Psychology | 3 |
| SPT 2530 | Honors Hispanic Culture and Civilization | 3 |
| SYD 4792 | Honors Race, Gender, Class, Sexuality and Science | 3 |
| SYP 4803 | Honors Gender and Technology | 3 |
| WST 3015 | Honors Introduction to Women's Studies | 3 |
| WST 4504 | Honors Feminist Theory | 3 |
| WST 4563 | Honors Representation of Female Bodies | 3 |
| ZOO 2303, 2303L |
Honors Vertebrate Zoology and Lab | 3 |
Note: Students may count these courses toward a minor in an area other than art.
V. Honors Thesis (6 credits)
Senior Thesis in Art is the culmination of a student’s training in transdisciplinary visual arts. Such study reflects the student's confidence, artistic maturity, and ability to both visually produce and contextually critique images and objects. Therefore, the senior thesis or capstone will be compromised of a student exhibition or curated exhibition, a written document of 20 to 25 pages (combining text and images), a public presentation (Symposium), and defense of his/her research. Students must spend two semesters year in consultation with their concentration advisor researching and writing an honors thesis.
| Course # | Course Name | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| IDS 4970 | Honors Thesis | 6 (Two semesters) |
VII. Minor in Digital Game Development
Minor Concentration in Digital Game Development 16-20 credits
Digital Game Development encompasses the entire process of digital game creation. In the context of this minor, Digital Game Development is closely linked to software creation. Students will learn to create and program digital games but also study technology, games, gamers, and digital cultures. Students pursuing this minor are expected to be invested in art, computer programming, and the humanities. Students who enter the minor without a background in art are encouraged to take an additional studio course in the Transdisciplinary Visual Arts Concentration at the Honors College or at the School of Communication and Multimedia Studies. This course should focus on image creation (multimedia, drawing, painting, photography, etc.). At least 12 of the credits counting towards the minor must be taken within the Honors College. Please contact Prof. Ruest for advising before declaring this minor. Examples of student work can be found in this YouTube playlist of game playthroughs.
Advisory Board
Prof. Annina Ruest, aruest@fau.edu, 561.320.7853.
Art Elective 1-4 credits (optional)
1-4 cr. Any Honors Transdisciplinary Visual Arts or School of Communication and Multimedia Studies studio course focusing on image creation.
Programming Elective 3-4 credits
4 cr. ART3654C Honors Introduction to Programming for Visual Art
3 cr. COP2000 Honors Foundations of Computer Programming
3 cr. IDS 3932 Honors Beginner’s Programming for Biologists
3 cr. COP 2220 Introduction to Programming in C
3 cr. COP 3014 Foundations of Computer Science
3 cr. COP 3076 Honors Introduction to Data Science
Technology Studies Elective 3-4 credits
4 cr. ART 4640 Honors Game Studies
3 cr. DIG 4713 Video Game Studies
3 cr. SYP 4803 Honors Gender and Technology
3 cr. ANT 4930 Honors Digital Ethnography
Required Studio Courses: 8 credits
4 cr. ART 4651C Honors 2D Computer Game Development
4 cr. ART 4653C Honors 3D Computer Game Development
4 cr. DIG 3725C 3D Video Game Design
Feasibility Analysis
Students will be able to complete this minor within two years.
Frequency: ART3654C, ART 4640, ART 4651C, ART 4653C are taught every other year. COP 2000 is offered on a regular basis at the Wilkes Honors College and ART 4640 is taught every two years.
Schedule:
Fall: ART 3654C or ART 4651C
Spring: ART 4653C or ART 4640.
ANT 4930 and COP 2000 are offered on a regular basis at the Honors College.
COP2220 and 3014 are offered regularly on the Boca Campus and online.
VI. Minor in Transdisciplinary Visual Art
The minor in Transdisciplinary Visual Art requires two courses (6-8 credits) from the list of foundation-level classes as
noted in the Transdisciplinary Visual Art Concentration and four courses (12-16 credits) from the list of
intermediate/advanced courses as noted in the Transdisciplinary Visual Art Concentration. At least 75% of the credits
must be taken at FAU, and 50% of credits must be from the Wilkes Honors College.