ILLUS-3712

THE SILKSCREENED POSTER

Faculty: Susan Doyle

Course Level: Junior, Senior, 5th Year

3 CREDITS

For centuries, broadsides- the earliest posters, have attracted attention and sparked the imagination of viewers throughout the western world. The best posters are both visually striking and communicative. Designs may incorporate image and text; but are often effective with either text or image alone. In this class we will learn the essentials of silkscreen printing ias well as studying a bit of the history of poster designs created by artists such as Toulouse- Lautrec and Alphonse Mucha, to contemporary illustrators like Saul Bass, Seymour Chwast and Shepard Fairey.

This course is an introduction to water-based screen-printing, poster illustration and design. Students will learn and practice the art of serigraphy –silkscreen printing –and will develop designs through a variety of techniques, from simple handmade stencils to the use of photochemical and digital processes in solving creative and visual problems. We will examine elements of two-dimensional form, typography, color, and communication of concepts. Assignments include topics such as political and social causes, and communication for theatre, music, and the arts. No printmaking or digital experience required.

The lab fee provides for most of the materials necessary for production during the course; student will need to purchase idiosyncratic inks, paper or other printable materials.