ILLUS-3600

THE MAGIC OF BOOKS

Faculty: Judy Sue Goodwin-Sturges

Course Level: Junior, Senior, 5th Year

3 CREDIT

This course celebrates books of all kinds for readers of all ages. Selections from a wide variety of genre will be studied and discussed in class. We start by studying picture books for children and make our way through graphic novels (comics), the young adult novel, poetry, fiction for adults, etc. the last part of the semester is spent creating a book of your own choosing from one of these genres.

How often do we stop to appreciate a beautiful book jacket or a well-designed book? What are the elements that go into their making? How do images and text relate to one another and produce an object that is somehow greater than the sum of their parts? Students will experiment to find the best imagery and style to complement the text. Composition, design, media, and color will all come into play. In the second half of the semester, students will use what they have learned to create a final project: a book that epitomizes the interaction of words and images.

At the end of this course, students should have gained a heightened awareness of books and bookmaking, of the relationship of images to text, and of picture-making in general.