Erica R. Mott

This critique course is offered for students who do not speak English as their first language. Students build competence in giving critiques, participating in class discussions, and giving presentations. Students make artwork to present to the class. They learn and practice the vocabulary of visual and design elements and use these to analyze and critique their own and their classmates' works. Students practice a variety of critique formats by using formal, social-cultural, and expressive theories of art criticism. They discuss and critique works both verbally and in writing.

During this intensive studio seminar, students will learn hands-on skills in making, animating and creating performance with masks, puppets and other sculptural objects. Students will have opportunities on-campus and at several of Chicago's great art spaces to interface with local, national and international puppetry artists and scholars, including attending live performances, building workshops, seminars and artist talks in conjunction with Chicago's International Puppetry Festival. The class begins exploring historic and contemporary mask performance, Students will learn basic performance exercises with masks and develop their own unique masks characters. Students will then explore the world of miniature objects and storytelling through toy theatre creating their own short stories. Finally, we will learn with international visiting artists to build large scale spectacle puppets and view their site specific performance. The schedule for this course will accommodate attendance at events related to the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival and will be as follows. Week 1 (Jan 2-5): 9am-3pm Week 2 (Jan 8-10): 9am-3pm NO CLASS Jan 11-15 Week 3 – Day/Times will vary as follows Jan 16: 10am-5pm Jan 17: 3pm-8pm Jan 18: 7pm-8pm Jan 19: 1:30pm-6:30pm January 20: 10am-6:30pm January 21st 10am-3pm January 22nd 4-7pm January 23rd 9-12pm

Motion Lab is a hands on learning laboratory for movement. Students will learn different choreographic improvisation and somatic strategies including Laban and Alexander Technique, Graphic/visual and poetic scoring. Students will experiment, share and stage completed movement works. Pulling from the movement strategies of Internationally recognized choreographers and physical performance practicioners such as Johnathan Burrows, Deborah Hay, The Judson Church, SITI Co/Mary Overly/Viewpoints, La Pocha Nostra and Katherine Dunham, students will view critical works, test choreographic strategies and develop their own works. All assignments and exercises are movement based leading to the development of fully realized and staged works by the end of the semester.

As we move through the world, we encounter a variety of images and forms. These images and forms cover the gamut: we experience objects with varying and diverse formal properties and social meanings; we see individuals, groups, as well as non-human beings engaging these objects and each other, and in turn enacting various processes. We organize normative actions, spaces, and processes to varying degrees of consciousness, from everyday habitual actions to overtly conscious rituals and performances. Within these moments of reflexivity, within these frames, we will consider the role of site and context in the production of culture. Through an investigation of various sites (the white cube, the domestic space, wilderness or nature, and public space) we will consider the above concepts through performative actions.