ILLUS-3912 & SCI-3912

ART OF COMMUNICATING SCIENCE

Faculty: 

Course Level: Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior, 5th Year, Graduate

6 CREDITS

CONCEPTS ELECTIVE REQUIREMENT: This course fulfills the additional concepts elective requirement for Illustration majors.

This 6-credit course invites undergraduate and graduate students to improve their skills in communicating and illustrating science. They also discover that science communication is about more than delivering just the facts. It can be entertaining, surprising, and controversial. The general topic is changing biodiversity: how humans impact plants, animals, and their environment. Examples will be presented from around the world. Through a series of exercises students will practice analyzing and interpreting scientific information in order to both understand and present it visually. The science content will be delivered through lectures, readings, videos, and a visit to a nearby nature sanctuary. The course is designed to introduce students to relevant scientific concepts and challenge them to use their art to make these ideas more concrete, meaningful, visible, and accessible. In some cases, the goal may be to educate; in others, it may be to raise awareness, stimulate debate, or entertain. Students will explore the use of different media, including 2-D, 3-D, animated, and interactive modes. They will also target different audiences and venues, including general interest or editorial publications, art for public spaces such as galleries, educational and peer-to-peer science materials. Class work includes weekly reading and response questions, in-studio exercises, weekly assignments, three completed artworks, and a comprehensive final project, which includes a written paper and a public engagement piece.

The Departments of Illustration and History, Philosophy, and Social Sciences will teach the course collaboratively.

Also offered as ILLUS-3912 or IDISC-3912; Register in the course for which credit is desired.

Students must plan and register for both SCI-3912 and ILLUS-3912 or IDISC-3912 and will receive 3 studio credits and 3 liberal arts elective credits.

Capacity: 15

Registration Restriction: Major elective; restricted to Illustration juniors and seniors; open to non-majors pending seat availability and permission of instructor.  

Open to all when offered in Wintersession

Semester Offered: