Professor:
Eduardo Navas (ean13@psu.edu)
Office hours: Mon and
Wed 11 to 12 PM, 206 Art Cottage
History
of Digital Art is a survey class that offers participants an opportunity to
examine the humanistic aspects of contemporary digital art. Through readings
and direct interaction with digital media and digital artists, the class will
develop an appreciation of the ways in which the interface between human beings
and technology has been historically constructed and is subject to critical
investigation. The goal of the class is to prepare each student so that she or
he may engage with digital media in a way that is ever more historically and
socially relevant.
Students
will address the ways in which digital technologies transform artistic
practices such as museum display, the writing of art criticism, the definition
of works of art, changing role of the artist and the changing space of the art
studio. More important, however, by engaging with digital works of art students
will learn to think critically about technology and its engagement with culture
at large. They will be encouraged to think about the political, economic and
social impact of digital technologies. This humanistic approach to technology
makes this course particularly useful to students of art history, philosophy,
comparative literature, art education, and the visual/plastic arts. A
significant portion of the course will be devoted to the ways in which art on
the Internet and digital art in general challenge the integrity of categories
such as race and national identity.
Class will consist of lectures and
discussions of works that are important in the history of digital art. Students will lead class discussions
each week for assigned readings that will complement in-class lectures. There
will be two major papers, the first around the middle of the term, and the
second at the end. For each paper
students will need to write concisely about works of art and topics and themes
discussed in class throughout the term. Students will be expected to post
reactions to in-class discussions on Angel forums. Forum postings will be considered part
of your class participation.
Learning
Outcomes:
A Note on Plagiarism
Plagiarism
will not be tolerated. A student who commits plagiarism will be reported to the
office of the visual arts. The studentÕs behavior will be taken very seriously
and dealt with according to the guidelines provided by Penn State
University – School of Visual Arts. To avoid plagiarism, please cite your sources when
appropriate.
Academic Integrity
Statement
University Policies and Rules Guidelines states that academic integrity is the pursuit of
scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner. Academic
integrity is a basic guiding principle for all academic activity at The
Pennsylvania State University, and all members of the University community are
expected to act in accordance with this principle. Consistent with this
expectation, the University's Code of Conduct states that all students should
act with personal integrity, respect other students' dignity, rights and
property, and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed
through the fruits of their efforts. Academic integrity includes a commitment
not to engage in or tolerate acts of falsification, misrepresentation or
deception. Such acts of dishonesty violate the fundamental ethical principles
of the University community and compromise the worth of work completed by
others.
Academic dishonesty includes but is
not limited to acts such as cheating on exams or assignments; plagiarizing the
words or ideas of another; fabricating information or citations; facilitating
acts of academic dishonesty by others; claiming authorship of work done by
another person; submitting work completed in previous classes; and/or
submitting the same work to multiple classes in which a student is enrolled
simultaneously.
Accessibility
Statement
Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities. The Office for Disability Services (ODS) Web site provides contact information for every Penn State campus: http://equity.psu.edu/ods/dcl. For further information, please visit the Office for Disability Services Web site: http://equity.psu.edu/ods.
In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled, participate in an intake interview, and provide documentation: http://equity.psu.edu/ods/guidelines. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campusÕs disability services office will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.
Safety Information
Students in the School of Visual Arts may find themselves working in the shop or in their studios or classrooms using a variety of power and hand held equipment, which may cause injury. Students should use the shop only after having received an orientation in the use of such equipment and when supervised by faculty or shop personnel. Should any injuries occur, in the shop, studios, or classrooms in the School of Visual Arts please report them to Matt Olson, Shop Supervisor, Room 108-A Visual Arts Building, Phone: 814-865-3962, email: mjo5165@psu.edu.
Available at the bookstore:
Digital
Culture by
Charlies Gere
Art
and Electronic Media, Edward A. Shanken
Recommended:
Digital
Art
by Christiane Paul
New
Media Art by Mark Tribe & Reena Jana
Available online at https://wiki.brown.edu/confluence/display/MarkTribe/New+Media+Art
Course
Requirements
Please
note that final grades are dependent upon consistent performance in all course
requirements.
Grading
Total 100%
Grade
Scale
Letter grade assignments are as
follows:
Attendance
Semester
Schedule
Check
Angel for readings aside from the assigned books as noted in the schedule
below. Also make sure to purchase
the required books when they become available at the university bookstore. There may be more readings in additions
to the basic ones below. Check Syllabus
link on Angel for updated reading materials.
Week
1:
Introduction | Brief overview of the
History of Digital Art
Wednesday,
January 10, 2018
Lecture on Modernism, Postmodernism and
New Media | Early discussion on HopkinsÕs ÒPostmodernism: Theory and Practice in
the 1980s,Ó After Modern Art: 1945
– 2000, pp. 197 – 231 (PDF).
Friday,
January 12, 2018
Assignment of Readings to lead online
discussions on Canvas
Week
2:
Monday,
January 15, 2018
Martin
Luther King Day, No Classes
Wednesday,
January 17, 2018
Read and be ready to discuss:
David Hopkins, ÒPostmodernism: Theory
and Practice in the 1980s,Ó After Modern
Art: 1945 – 2000, pp. 197 – 231 (PDF) + selected art projects.
Friday,
January 19, 2018
Discussion takes place on Canvas from
Friday, January 19 to Sunday, January 21, 2018.
Week
3:
Monday,
January 22, 2018
Read and be ready to discuss:
Charlie Gere, Digital Culture, ÒPrefaceÓ and ÒIntroduction,Ó 7 – 20 + selected
art projects.
Wednesday,
January 24, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒPrefaceÓ and
ÒIntroductionÓ
Friday,
January 26, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
January 26 to Sunday, January 28, 2018
Week
4:
Read and be ready to discuss:
Charlie Gere, ÒChapter 1: The Beginnings
of Digital Culture,Ó Digital Culture,
21 – 50 + selected art projects.
Wednesday,
January 31, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒThe
Beginnings of Digital Culture.Ó
Friday,
February 2, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
February 2 to Sunday, February 4, 2018
Week
5:
Read and be ready to discuss:
Gere, ÒChapter 2: The Cybernetic EraÓ Digital Culture, 51 – 78 + selected
art projects.
Wednesday,
February 7, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒThe
Cybernetic Era.Ó
Friday,
February 9, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
February 9 to Sunday, February 11, 2018
Week
6:
Monday,
February 12, 2018
Read and be ready to discuss:
Gere, ÒChapter 3: The Digital Avant-Garde,Ó Digital Culture, 79 - 115 + selected art projects.
Wednesday,
February 14, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒThe Digital
Avant-Garde.Ó
Friday,
February 16, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
February 16, to Sunday, February 18, 2018.
Week
7:
Monday,
February 19, 2018
Midterm
Essay Released
Read and be ready to discuss:
Gere, ÒChapter 4: The Digital Counter Culture,Ó Digital Culture, 116 – 153 + selected art projects.
Wednesday,
February 21, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒThe Digital
Counter Culture.Ó
Friday,
February 23, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
February 23, to Sunday, February 25, 2018.
Week
8:
Monday,
February 26, 2018
Midterm
Essay Due
Gere, ÒChapter 5: Digital Resistances,Ó Digital Culture, 154 – 200 + selected
art projects.
Wednesday,
February 28, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒThe Digital
Resistances.Ó
Friday,
March 2, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
March 2, to Sunday, March 4, 2018.
Week
9:
March
5 - 9, 2018
Spring
Break
Week
10:
Read and be ready to discuss:
Gere, ÒChapter 6: Digital NatureÓ and
ÒChapter 7: Digital Culture in the Twenty-first Century,Ó Digital Culture, 201 – 224 + selected art projects.
Wednesday,
March 14, 2018
Continue Lecture on Gere, ÒDigital
NatureÓ and ÒDigital Culture in the Twenty-first Century.Ó
Friday,
March 16, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
March 16, to Sunday, March 18, 2018.
Week
11:
Monday,
March 19, 2016
Read and be ready to discuss:
Edward Shanken, ÒSurvey: Introduction +
Coded and Electronic Production,Ó 12 – 27 + selected art projects from
the section ÒWorks,Ó Art and Electronic Media.
Wednesday,
March 21, 2018
Continue Lecture on Shanken, ÒSurvey:
Introduction + Coded and Electronic Production.Ó
Friday,
March 23, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
March 23, to Sunday, March 25, 2018.
Week
12:
Read and be ready to discuss:
Shanken, ÒSurvey: Charged
Environments,Ó 27 – 32 + selected art projects from the section ÒWorks,Ó
Art and Electronic Media.
Wednesday,
March 28, 2018
Continue Lecture on Shanken, ÒCharged
Environments.Ó
Friday,
March 30, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
March 30, to Sunday, April 1, 2018.
Week
13:
Monday,
April 2, 2018
Final
Essay Guidelines Released (two parts)
Read and be ready to discuss:
Shanken, ÒSurvey: Networks, Surveillance,
Culture Jamming,Ó 32 – 38 + selected art projects from the section ÒWorks,Ó
Art and Electronic Media.
Wednesday,
April 4, 2018
Continue Lecture on Shanken, ÒNetworks,
Surveillance, Culture Jamming.Ó
Friday,
April 6, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
April 6, to Sunday, April 8, 2018.
Week
14:
Monday,
April 9, 2018
Read and be ready to discuss:
Shanken, ÒSurvey: Bodies, Surrogates
and Emergent Systems,Ó 38 – 42 + selected art projects from the section
ÒWorks,Ó Art and Electronic Media.
Wednesday,
April 11, 2018
Continue Lecture on Shanken, ÒSurvey:
Bodies, Surrogates and Emergent Systems.Ó
Friday,
April 13, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
April 13, to Sunday, April 15, 2018.
Week
15:
Read and be ready to discuss:
Shanken, ÒSimulations and Simulacra,Ó
42 – 47 + selected art projects from the section ÒWorks,Ó Art and
Electronic Media.
Wednesday,
April 18, 2018
Continue Lecture on Shanken,
ÒSimulations and Simulacra.Ó
Friday,
April 20, 2018
Discussion takes place from Friday,
April 20, to Sunday, April 22, 2018.
Week
16
Monday,
April 23, 2018
Review of Materials for Final Project
Wednesday,
April 25, 2018
Writing time for final essay
Friday,
April 27, 2018
Final Essay Due
Week
17:
Friday,
May 4, 2018
Revision of Final essay