| RS:The Trouble with Wilderness |
Contemporary Practices |
1022 (013) |
Spring 2026 |
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Description
Wilderness is the place where, symbolically at least, we try to withhold our power to dominate.¿ This is a quote from an essay by William Cronon, which is an inquiry into human relationships to concepts of wilderness and nature, and how they change over time. In this class we will examine the complexity of these concepts. What is our current understanding of living things within earth¿s biome and their relationships to each other? We will explore the relationship between environment, human/animal/plant life and `vibrant matter¿ (for philosopher Jane Bennett: our experience of things) through the lenses of social and environmental justice. Students will be introduced to expanded concepts of nature, ecological systems, land reparations, and regenerative practices that address anthropogenic environmental changes. Artists and writers have long worked with nature as material and as subject -- whether image, representation, a construct or an environmental reality -- at times to imagine fantastically and at times to transform. To support creative research, we will delve into works drawn from literature, poetry and many forms of art making via readings, film screenings, podcasts and field trips. Starting with Cronon¿s essay, weaving through Romanticism, Transcendentalism, the environmental movement, climate crisis, and land reparations. We will engage with many artists, designers, architects and scientists on these subjects (earthworks, Fritz Haeg, Future Farmers, Mel Chin, Clarissa Tossin, Sky Hopinka, Meredith Leich, Kelly Jazvac, Eve Mosher, Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner and Aka Niviâna, Allison Janae Hamilton + more). The media you work in will be defined by your ideas/content. An iterative process beginning with researching, brainstorming and feedback on preliminary sketches, prototypes or models, culminates in three major projects with group discussion exploring different forms for critique.
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Class Number
1196
Credits
3
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| CAPX: Internship as Prof Experience |
Career and Professional Experience |
3912 (002) |
Spring 2026 |
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Description
This course is designed to provide students an opportunity to gain experience as interns in professional arts and design environments and prepare for professional life after SAIC. During the semester, faculty provide in-depth mentorship and act as liaison with the internship site supporting students meet their learning goals as outlined for the semester. Through group meetings and online discussions, students engage with a peer cohort of students participating in a variety of internships. Students work at internships for a total of 140 hours (approx 14 hours per week) for the term. In addition to successfully completing the internship, students will conduct an informational interview with their employer, attend 4 class meetings and a meeting with the faculty and supervisor, complete an internship supervisor evaluation, revise their resume, and update their online portfolio, website, or professional profile.
Students are required to secure an internship prior to the start of the semester. Internships must be approved by the Career and Professional Experience (CAPX) office. Students are encouraged to meet with a CAPX advisor for assistance with researching and applying for internships. In order to begin the internship approval process students should go to https://bit.ly/35vmTTM. Upon approval, course registration is managed by CAPX.
Note that international students must receive CPT authorization prior to participating in an off-campus internship.
Internships may be in-person, hybrid, or virtual; however all four class meetings are virtual. Class meeting day and time are determined by the faculty.
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Class Number
2203
Credits
3
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| CAPX: Internship as Prof Experience |
Career and Professional Experience |
3912 (003) |
Summer 2026 |
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Description
This course is designed to provide students an opportunity to gain experience as interns in professional arts and design environments and prepare for professional life after SAIC. During the semester, faculty provide in-depth mentorship and act as liaison with the internship site supporting students meet their learning goals as outlined for the semester. Through group meetings and online discussions, students engage with a peer cohort of students participating in a variety of internships. Students work at internships for a total of 140 hours (approx 14 hours per week) for the term. In addition to successfully completing the internship, students will conduct an informational interview with their employer, attend 4 class meetings and a meeting with the faculty and supervisor, complete an internship supervisor evaluation, revise their resume, and update their online portfolio, website, or professional profile.
Students are required to secure an internship prior to the start of the semester. Internships must be approved by the Career and Professional Experience (CAPX) office. Students are encouraged to meet with a CAPX advisor for assistance with researching and applying for internships. In order to begin the internship approval process students should go to https://bit.ly/35vmTTM. Upon approval, course registration is managed by CAPX.
Note that international students must receive CPT authorization prior to participating in an off-campus internship.
Internships may be in-person, hybrid, or virtual; however all four class meetings are virtual. Class meeting day and time are determined by the faculty.
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Class Number
1398
Credits
3
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| CAPX Internship |
Career and Professional Experience |
4001 (002) |
Spring 2026 |
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Description
This course is designed to provide students an opportunity to gain experience as interns in professional arts and design environments and prepare for professional life after SAIC. During the semester, faculty provide in-depth mentorship and act as liaison with the internship site supporting students meet their learning goals as outlined for the semester. Through group meetings and online discussions, students engage with a peer cohort of students participating in a variety of internships. Students work on-site at internships for a total of 140 hours (approx 14 hours per week) for the term. In addition to successfully completing the internship, students will conduct an informational interview with their employer, attend 4 class meetings and an onsite meeting with the faculty and supervisor, complete an internship supervisor evaluation, revise their resume, and update their online portfolio, website, or professional profile.
Students are required to secure an internship prior to the start of the semester. Internships must be approved by the Career and Professional Experience (CAPX) office. Students are encouraged to meet with a CAPX advisor for assistance with researching and applying for internships. In order to begin the internship approval process students should go to https://bit.ly/35vmTTM. Upon approval, course registration is managed by CAPX.
Note that international students must receive CPT authorization prior to participating in an off-campus internship.
Internships may be in-person, hybrid, or virtual; however all four class meetings are virtual. Class meeting day and time are determined by the faculty.
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Class Number
1165
Credits
1.5 - 3
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| CAPX Internship |
Career and Professional Experience |
4001 (003) |
Summer 2026 |
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Description
This course is designed to provide students an opportunity to gain experience as interns in professional arts and design environments and prepare for professional life after SAIC. During the semester, faculty provide in-depth mentorship and act as liaison with the internship site supporting students meet their learning goals as outlined for the semester. Through group meetings and online discussions, students engage with a peer cohort of students participating in a variety of internships. Students work on-site at internships for a total of 140 hours (approx 14 hours per week) for the term. In addition to successfully completing the internship, students will conduct an informational interview with their employer, attend 4 class meetings and an onsite meeting with the faculty and supervisor, complete an internship supervisor evaluation, revise their resume, and update their online portfolio, website, or professional profile.
Students are required to secure an internship prior to the start of the semester. Internships must be approved by the Career and Professional Experience (CAPX) office. Students are encouraged to meet with a CAPX advisor for assistance with researching and applying for internships. In order to begin the internship approval process students should go to https://bit.ly/35vmTTM. Upon approval, course registration is managed by CAPX.
Note that international students must receive CPT authorization prior to participating in an off-campus internship.
Internships may be in-person, hybrid, or virtual; however all four class meetings are virtual. Class meeting day and time are determined by the faculty.
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Class Number
1154
Credits
1.5 - 3
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| UGRD: Senior Critique Seminar |
Undergraduate Studies |
4920 (002) |
Spring 2026 |
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Description
This interdisciplinary critique seminar is designed to help students recognize patterns of inquiry within their studio work while proceeding toward an outward-facing practice beyond graduation. An assessment of previous projects will be the starting point for an ongoing critical examination of your creative practice, through which you will be asked to contextualize and position your work in the art-worlds of the 21st Century. This course is a forum for in-depth individual and group critiques with technical and conceptual discussions tailored to your practice and research. In addition to various readings, screenings, and field trips, class visits by local artists and curators will provide the opportunity for conversation about the lived experience of sustaining a creative practice. With an emphasis on faculty mentorship, class meetings will support the development of a focused, self-initiated Senior Project, a strong portfolio, and the tools for maintaining an independent studio practice.
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Class Number
1157
Credits
3
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