Image of people looking at photography.

Undergraduate Overview

Undergraduate Overview

As an undergraduate student in The Department of Photography at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), you will develop solid mastery over the technical and conceptual complexity that characterizes photography’s past and present while enhancing your ability to discuss your work and the work of others.

Image
Student holding up a colorful zine

Students concentrating on their Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) studies in Photography will:

  • Learn from distinguished, practicing artists with a variety of approaches to photography.
  • Collaborate with graduate students and peers to create an annual departmental catalog.
  • Participate in a 3-credit capstone spine class geared towards preparation for the senior Bachelor of Fine Arts thesis exhibition.

Undergraduate classes offer a natural progression for all students.

  • Beginning classes present basic practical skills and strategies for conceptual thinking. 
  • Intermediate classes are in-depth studies of specific conceptual issues or techniques. 
  • Advanced classes present opportunities for more self-directed projects, group seminars, and frequent private consultations with instructors.

Course titles and topics––over 30 offerings each semester––range from Intro to Photography to Lighting Fundamentals, Surrealism and Photography, Digital Light Projections, Fashion Photography, Advanced Post-Production, and more, allowing students to delve deeply into an area of interest, find synergies with departments and mediums across the school, or explore and master a wide range of techniques and equipment.

Scholarships

In addition to merit scholarships awarded at the time of admission, each year, a senior student working in the photography department is selected by the faculty for the Fred Endsley scholarship, an unrestricted one-time $1,000 cash award which can be used to create new work or prepare for the senior exhibition.

Undergraduate Admissions Requirements & Curriculum

  • To apply to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), you will need to fill out an application and submit your transcripts, artist's statement, and letters of recommendation. And most importantly, we require a portfolio of your best and most recent work—work that will give us a sense of you, your interests, and your willingness to explore, experiment, and think beyond technical art, design, and writing skills.

    In order to apply, please submit the following items:  

    Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Portfolio

    Submit 10–15 pieces of your best and most recent work. We will review your portfolio and application materials for merit scholarship once you have been admitted to SAIC.

    When compiling a portfolio, you may concentrate your work in a single discipline or show work in a breadth of media. The portfolio may include drawings, prints, photographs, paintings, film, video, audio recordings, sculpture, ceramics, fashion designs, graphic design, furniture, objects, architectural designs, websites, video games, sketchbooks, scripts, storyboards, screenplays, zines, or any combination of the above.

    Learn more about applying to SAIC's Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio, or view our portfolio preparation guide for more information.

  • Studio69
    • CP 1010 Core Studio Practice I (3)
    • CP 1011 Core Studio Practice II (3)
    • CP 1020 Research Studio I (3)
    • CP 1022 Research Studio II (3)
    • SOPHSEM 2900 (3)
    • PROFPRAC 3900 (3)
    • CAPSTONE 4900 (3)
    • Studio Electives (48)
     
    Art History15
    • ARTHI 1001 World Cultures/Civilizations: Pre-History—19th Century Art and Architecture (3)
    • Art History Elective at 1000 level (3)
    • Art History Electives (9)
     
    Liberal Arts30
    • ENGLISH 1001 First Year Seminar I (3)
    • ENGLISH 1005 First Year Seminar II (3)
    • Natural Science (6)
    • Social Science (6)
    • Humanities (6)
    • Liberal Arts Electives (6)
     
    General Electives6
    • Studio, Art History, Liberal Arts, AAP, or EIS
     
    Total Credit Hours120

    * BFA students must complete at least 6 credit hours in a class designated as "off campus study." These credits can also fulfill any of the requirements listed above and be from any of the divisions (Art History, Studio, Liberal Arts, or General Electives).

    BFA With Distinction—SAIC Scholars Program: The SAIC Scholars program is a learning community of BFA students pursuing rigorous study in both their academic coursework and their studio pathways. There are two opportunities for interested students to apply to the SAIC Scholars Program: at the time of admission to the school, and after they have completed 30 credits of study at SAIC. Students pursuing the latter option are required to formally submit an application to the Undergraduate Division. Once admitted to the SAIC Scholars Program, students are required to successfully complete a minimum of six designated scholars courses. Students who complete the program will graduate with distinction.

    BFA in Studio with Thesis Option (Liberal Arts or Visual Critical Studies): BFA students may complete a nine-credit, research-based academic thesis as part of their studies within the 126 credits for the BFA in Studio degree. BFA with Thesis course sequences are offered over 3 semesters through the departments of Liberal Arts or Visual and Critical Studies (VCS). Students who are interested in one of the thesis options should follow the steps outlined below in the beginning of the junior year.

    Requirements for the BFA: Studio Art with Liberal Arts Thesis

    Step One: Students are required to meet with the Chair of the Liberal Arts department in the beginning of their junior year. 

    Step Two: With the Department Chair's approval, the student enrolls in the following courses beginning in the spring term of their junior year:

    • SOCSCI or HUMANITY 3900 Academic Research and Writing (3 credits)
    • LIBARTS 4800 Undergraduate Thesis: Research/Writing I (3 credits)
    • CAPSTONE 4900 Liberal Arts Undergraduate Thesis: Research/Writing II (3 credits)
       

    Step Three: The completed thesis must be approved by both the Thesis II instructor and the Chair of Liberal Arts. Students must make a formal presentation and participate in the Undergraduate Thesis Symposium in their senior year. 

    Requirements for the BFA: Studio Art with Visual and Critical Studies (VCS) Thesis

    Step One: Students are required to meet with the Visual and Critical Studies Undergraduate Coordinator in or by the beginning of their junior year.

    Step Two: With the VCS Coordinator's approval, the student enrolls in the first of the three-course sequence beginning in the spring term of their junior year:

    • VCS 3010 Tutorial in Visual & Critical Studies (3 credits)
    • VCS 4800 Undergraduate Thesis Seminar: Research & Writing I (3 credits)
    • CAPSTONE 4900 VCS Undergraduate Thesis Seminar: Research & Writing II (3 credits)
       

    Step Three: Completion of thesis must be approved by both the Thesis II instructor and the VCS Undergraduate Coordinator. Students must make a formal presentation and participate in the Undergraduate VCS Thesis Symposium in the senior year.

    Total credits required for minimum residency60
    Minimum Studio credit42

Course Listing

Title Catalog Instructor Schedule

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1586

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1569

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1570

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1571

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1572

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1573

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1589

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 106

Description

This basic class, required for entry into all other photo classes, introduces contemporary technologies for producing photographic images. This course also introduces seeing, thinking and creating with a critical mind and eye to provide greater understanding of the construction and manipulation of photographic form and meaning. Approaching the medium in its current complex and pluralistic state, students explore a variety of photographic concepts and techniques. While various physical cameras are still in use today the fundamentals of using digital cameras, including manual exposure and lighting are stressed. Eclectic forms of output are explored in order to discover methods of presentation most suited to a particular idea.

'Knowledge of photography is just as important as that of the alphabet. The illiterate of the future will be a person ignorant of the use of the camera as well as the pen.' Laszlo Moholy-Nagy (1895-1946). This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments will provide technical skills to use cameras, compose images and print digital photographs. Readings, screenings and discussions will provide a framework for critically analyzing the photographs we encounter every day, as well as our own photographs.

Class Number

1591

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 207

Description

This course is designed for students who have a basic knowledge of photography and its materials and an interest in the use of the photo image as part of a broad vocabulary of image-making processes. Students explore cyanotype, van dyke brown, gum bichromate printing, collage, reproduction, and transfer techniques, and are given a basic working knowledge of the graphic arts films and print films. Also covered: Polaroid materials, copy machines, computer graphics, and applied color. Ideas related to text, installation, and performance may also be explored. Each student is encouraged to experiment in both silver and non-silver processes and to conduct research independently.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1574

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 206

Description

'The Anthropocene' is the name of the new geological epoch, first proposed by atmospheric chemist Paul Crutzen and marine biologist Eugene F. Stroemer in 2000, with the proposal that human species has become the single prominent agent of change affecting the earths geology and ecosystems. Since then, the conversations on the Anthropocene, climate change, sustainability and the planetary ecological crisis have proven that the extremely complex problems the Earth is facing can only be addressed by new forms of collaboration and innovative knowledge production.
Photography plays in this context a pivotal role and goal of this class is to promote empirical and forensic work on landscapes of the Anthropocene, the degraded and damaged ecologies of the planet Earth. Collaborative work and access to different material forms, laboratories, analog and digital photographic media as well as scholarship and first-person testimony on health, race, politics and aesthetics, will help generate diverse perspectives on the entangled realities of the world and the complex human-natural systems.
Questions of environmental justice and environmental ethics will take center stage in this class.

Class Number

1595

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Economic Inequality & Class, Digital Imaging, Art and Science

Location

280 Building Rm 216

Description

This course will explore the methods, history and potential of medium format film photography. Students will learn to use a wide variety of medium format cameras including the Mamiya 7, Mamiya RZ 67, Mamiya 645, Pentax 67, Holga and various Hasselblad systems. Using a wide variety of black and white and color medium format films, students will become familiar with several film development techniques, and both analog and digital printing methods to create traditional and experimental photographic work.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 3 credits of PHOTO 1000 level courses.

Class Number

1590

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging

Location

280 Building Rm 207

Description

Color Concepts introduces complex ideas and processes associated with the various applications of color in photography. Emphasis is on conceptual, theoretical, cultural, and perceptual aspects of color related to both vision and photographic image-making. The class explores all aspects of color photography. It traces the roots of analog three-color photographic processes first theorized in 1855, less than 30 years after the advent of black and white photography, and explores the successes and the limitations of color film (for example, the racial bias of color film.) Lastly, the class examines contemporary color dominant popularity amongst artists since the 1970s, through the context of a color constructed digital future.

Through a variety of exercises and assignments students will develop a keen eye to seeing color in the world and on the screen, use peer discussion and collaboration to advance critique skills, and build aptitude for visual literacy. Technical skills learned, include image capture, color correction, qualities of light, color corrected printing on varying scales and media, digital camera and medium format film camera authorizations, strategies of presentation while expanding on digital skills introduced in PHOTO 1001.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1575

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

Color Concepts introduces complex ideas and processes associated with the various applications of color in photography. Emphasis is on conceptual, theoretical, cultural, and perceptual aspects of color related to both vision and photographic image-making. The class explores all aspects of color photography. It traces the roots of analog three-color photographic processes first theorized in 1855, less than 30 years after the advent of black and white photography, and explores the successes and the limitations of color film (for example, the racial bias of color film.) Lastly, the class examines contemporary color dominant popularity amongst artists since the 1970s, through the context of a color constructed digital future.

Through a variety of exercises and assignments students will develop a keen eye to seeing color in the world and on the screen, use peer discussion and collaboration to advance critique skills, and build aptitude for visual literacy. Technical skills learned, include image capture, color correction, qualities of light, color corrected printing on varying scales and media, digital camera and medium format film camera authorizations, strategies of presentation while expanding on digital skills introduced in PHOTO 1001.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1576

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 216

Description

This course introduces black-and-white printing techniques including darkroom and inkjet printing, contrast control through development, the zone system, scale of images, graphic arts film, studio lighting, different darkroom techniques, alternative cameras, and different papers and films.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1577

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 206

Description

This course introduces black-and-white printing techniques including darkroom and inkjet printing, contrast control through development, the zone system, scale of images, graphic arts film, studio lighting, different darkroom techniques, alternative cameras, and different papers and films.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1578

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 206

Description

This course introduces black-and-white printing techniques including darkroom and inkjet printing, contrast control through development, the zone system, scale of images, graphic arts film, studio lighting, different darkroom techniques, alternative cameras, and different papers and films.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1587

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 207

Description

Students are introduced to using light as a means for creative control. By studying the light around us, we are able to better serve our work through specific choices with regard to existing or ambient light and light augmented by other sources of illumination. Students learn the rudiments of metering, mixing light sources, including the use of on-camera or hand-held electronic flash within existing lighting conditions. This is a practical course that enables students to better control and use light and lighting in their work.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1579

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 207

Description

Students are introduced to using light as a means for creative control. By studying the light around us, we are able to better serve our work through specific choices with regard to existing or ambient light and light augmented by other sources of illumination. Students learn the rudiments of metering, mixing light sources, including the use of on-camera or hand-held electronic flash within existing lighting conditions. This is a practical course that enables students to better control and use light and lighting in their work.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1580

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 214

Description

This course provides the conceptual scaffolding for developing a critical documentary practice, including questioning the efficacy and ethics that are tied up in the medium. The course is based in photography, and addresses both historical debates central to the medium, such as its claim on truth and relationship to proof, as well as more contemporary issues of identity and representation, such as who tells what stories and for whom?

Weekly readings will provide differing positions on these questions, and be drawn from photo theory, sociology and popular media outlets. Through weekly assignments and one longer projects students will provide students a forum for reconciling theory and practice relating to issues in their own practice.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 3 credits of PHOTO 1000 level courses.

Class Number

2169

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Theory

Location

280 Building Rm 214

Description

Large Format Photography introduces students to the ideas and aesthetics associated with a large-format view camera. Students will learn pre-visualization, camera movements, perspective control, large-format optics, and how to handle large format sheet film. Assignments focus on portraiture, landscape, studio, and architecture. Students are encouraged to develop a personal style via flexible assignments. Technical skills acquired include view camera setup and control, experience with sheet film, the zone system, large format scanning, and analog and digital printing. All enrolled students are assigned a 4x5 studio camera and will have access to an 8x10 and 4x5 field cameras, along with a variety of optics and accessories.

A variety of technical readings from multiple sources will help students understand perspective control, camera setup, lens choice, bellows extension, available film choices, exposure, and reciprocity compensation associated with large format photography. Additional readings and screenings will provide examples of historical and contemporary work created utilizing large format photography, and highlight the cameras meditative qualities and excellent resolution and control.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 3 credits of PHOTO 2000 level courses.

Class Number

1581

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 206

Description

Every idea has a medium most suited to its execution, but often not the one in which the artist is working. This class considers new ways of translating ideas into other media to develop a sense of possibilities beyond the straight photograph. Conceptual art has given us an understanding of the triggers that might provoke an investigation of layers of meaning within the simplest of ideas. Assignment encourage students to think beyond the usual way they work and include the use of collaboration, installation, audio, video, live feed, the internet, performance, and performative uses of photography.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 3 credits of PHOTO 2000 level courses.

Class Number

1588

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

Topics courses cover a wide range of aesthetic concerns and change according to the semester and faculty, allowing a more in-depth examination of specific topics within photography. The courses provide students access to the specific topics driving faculty research and practice, as well as allowing the department to nimbly address issues pressing to our current context and time. Additionally, these courses are used to address the interests of students not already covered in our curriculum. The format ranges in each section, but these six hour studio courses are meant to engage students in both research and making, developing their own artistic trajectory. The format is often experimental, modeling the artistic practice of the instructor and generously expanding the photographic medium.

Close-reading and discussion are essential; looking at and discussing art; creating new work and exchanging feedback. Recent topics have included: Decolonizing the Gaze, Desire, Representation and the Self, Screen Capture, Creative Production and Portfolio, Observing Power, Rich and Poor, The Archive, and Constructing the Rural. Readings are subject to individual course topics and not exemplified here.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1585

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 207

Description

Topics courses cover a wide range of aesthetic concerns and change according to the semester and faculty, allowing a more in-depth examination of specific topics within photography. The courses provide students access to the specific topics driving faculty research and practice, as well as allowing the department to nimbly address issues pressing to our current context and time. Additionally, these courses are used to address the interests of students not already covered in our curriculum. The format ranges in each section, but these six hour studio courses are meant to engage students in both research and making, developing their own artistic trajectory. The format is often experimental, modeling the artistic practice of the instructor and generously expanding the photographic medium.

Close-reading and discussion are essential; looking at and discussing art; creating new work and exchanging feedback. Recent topics have included: Decolonizing the Gaze, Desire, Representation and the Self, Screen Capture, Creative Production and Portfolio, Observing Power, Rich and Poor, The Archive, and Constructing the Rural. Readings are subject to individual course topics and not exemplified here.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 6 credits of PHOTO 2000-level courses or PHOTO 3008 or by instructor consent.

Class Number

1596

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 216

Description

Topics courses cover a wide range of aesthetic concerns and change according to the semester and faculty, allowing a more in-depth examination of specific topics within photography. The courses provide students access to the specific topics driving faculty research and practice, as well as allowing the department to nimbly address issues pressing to our current context and time. Additionally, these courses are used to address the interests of students not already covered in our curriculum. The format ranges in each section, but these six hour studio courses are meant to engage students in both research and making, developing their own artistic trajectory. The format is often experimental, modeling the artistic practice of the instructor and generously expanding the photographic medium.

Close-reading and discussion are essential; looking at and discussing art; creating new work and exchanging feedback. Recent topics have included: Decolonizing the Gaze, Desire, Representation and the Self, Screen Capture, Creative Production and Portfolio, Observing Power, Rich and Poor, The Archive, and Constructing the Rural. Readings are subject to individual course topics and not exemplified here.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 6 credits of PHOTO 2000-level courses or PHOTO 3008 or by instructor consent.

Class Number

2168

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 214, 280 Building Rm 012

Description

Advanced Post-Production and Fine Arts Printing refines and expands the digital imaging skills learned in previous classes. Emphasis is placed on all stages of production that occur after image acquisition and streamlining digital workflow and mastering advanced editing skills in preparation for creating exhibition-quality prints. Workflow techniques include advanced image correction, color management, and advanced masking methods. Photo manipulation approaches focus on using Photoshop and other photo editing software addons and programs as creative tools for exploring the conceptual applications of retouching, image compositing, color grading, and other post-production methodologies.

This course utilizes a variety of technical assignments designed to build and reinforce digital skill-building. Students will progress through the technical material via structured assignments and the completion of self-conceived creative projects. Readings and discussions address contemporary theoretical issues surrounding digital imaging and the constant shift and development of new capabilities associated with digital output technologies. Since the toolsets related to color science, photographic manipulation and digital asset management software are in constant flux, assignments will also incorporate research methodologies and problem-solving specific to students? workflow and output needs. Students will gain new perspectives on current toolsets, and the skill to evaluate and stay current as toolsets associated with post-production continue to evolve.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001 and PHOTO 2010.

Class Number

1584

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

Photography is everywhere. Sequences and series are the ubiquitous ways we most often see photographic images. Photographic meanings are pliable in shifting contexts from published sequences online and in print, to images in photobooks, exhibitions and installations. This class critically examines how series of images are structured and the significance those structures hold.

?That photography resists being shaped by any single set of imperatives or standards ? as it literally permeates our public and private and our rational and fantasy lives ? renders it, by its very nature unruly and hard to define.? Marvin Heiferman. This course will address the complex and continual shifting nature of photography; what influences our understanding of how a photograph functions while exploring a diverse array of photographic genres and applications.

Assignments develop skillful use and understanding of serial imagery by engaging narrative and non-narrative strategies in a variety of sequences, books, zines, portfolios, web-based projects, installations, videos, and projected presentations.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: 3 credits of PHOTO 2000 level courses.

Class Number

1582

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Comics and Graphic Novels, Books and Publishing

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

Capturing Time explores the relationship between cinematic and photographic images through historical, theoretical, and artistic practices. Students will investigate the elusive concept of time and its presence across disciplines, forming the foundation for creating and experiencing time-based art.

Weekly readings, screenings, and research will examine time, temporality, and the boundaries of still and moving images. Historical and contemporary resources will inform studio work, including visual exercises and a final project, culminating in a substantial body of work in each student¿s chosen medium.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: PHOTO 1001.

Class Number

1594

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging

Location

Online

Description

In this course, we'll delve into the intriguing intersection of photography and printmaking, acquiring light and pressure-based printing skills and conceptually integrating them into an art practice that approaches print as a site-responsive medium, sensitive to light, pressure, and context. The introductory section explores the material sensitivity of embossing and frottage, treating them as akin to documentary photography. The second section introduces light sensitivity through cyanotype and gelatin silver processes, engaging directly with objects and surfaces. The final segment employs digital fabrication to create laser-engraved linoleum blocks and printed photogravure plates, enabling relief and intaglio inking techniques and printing processes.
The course will introduce pivotal artists associated with taught printing techniques and their historical context. We'll explore the works of artists such as Anna Atkins and Albrecht Durer, who played significant roles in the development of their respective techniques. We'll also examine figures like Alfred Stieglitz and Robert Overby, who influenced the trajectory of their media, and contemporary artists like William Kentridge and Do Ho Suh, who have reshaped our perception of print. Additionally, we'll read and screen 'Contact: Art and the Pull of Print' by Jennifer Roberts from Harvard, and invite her for an online discussion with our students.
The coursework will adhere to a media and technique-based structure, with the creation of six bodies of work with separate critiques.

Class Number

1597

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging, Art and Science

Location

280 Building Rm 203

Description

This course embraces the concept of projection as a broad field of art practice. Starting with the magic lantern, the course investigates the history of projection related practices that shape the parameters of visual perception and communication. Deconstructing the concept of the screen, the course focuses on projection in sculptural and installation contexts.

Microcontrollers and Adobe software is used in unorthodox ways to shape visual elements for digital light projection. History of visual, technical and conceptual use of light is accessed to investigate the interactions of projections with objects and space.

Class Number

1592

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Public Space, Site, Landscape

Location

MacLean 414

Description

This six-hour seminar is a professional practice class for life after graduation, focusing on how each student can build a sustainable practice based on their own strengths and working style. Students create a website, CVs, write grant proposals, artist statements, and statements of purpose, learning the different content and uses of each. Readings on contemporary artists and 'best practices' for editing, exhibition, and installation of artwork will support class work. This course embraces the understanding that developing a sustainable practice outside of school includes building creative community, developing an independent research practice and other activities related to each individual¿s work. As such, the highlight of this course will be bi-weekly visits and workshops from a diverse range of working artists, curators, residency staff and others to speak about these opportunities, as well as how to build a fruitful creative life. For example, we will develop strategies for talking about your work that fit your own personal style with a Chicago curator, and present grant materials to a mock panel to get productive feedback. The Junior Seminar is one of four required classes intended to function as a 'spine,' providing guidance and structure for SAIC's open and interdisciplinary curriculum.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: Sophomore seminar course

Class Number

1628

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Digital Imaging

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

This interdisciplinary capstone, with an emphasis on contemporary photography and visual culture, is structured as an intensive critique and mentoring class focused on the development and presentation of culminating work at the end of the BFA and the continued progression of studio work beyond the BFA exhibition. The course supports the production of self-initiated work, a successful BFA show and a road map for a sustainable art practice after graduation. Preparations for the BFA exhibition include workshopping project proposals, budgets, production schedules, the development of new work and an array of possible final presentation forms.

Readings, screenings and discussions will examine useful models of participation in cultural production and a critical framework for analyzing a range of platforms to share work online, in print and exhibition. Studio visits will provide insight into the day-to-day life of artists at various stages in their career ranging from current SAIC grad students to working professionals.

Online and printed portfolios utilizing an ever-evolving archive of work will be refined along with professional supporting materials such as statements, CVs and artist talks necessary for a professional practice beyond graduation.

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: Professional practice course

Class Number

1167

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Area of Study

Books and Publishing, Social Media and the Web

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

Photographic Imaging Technical Seminar is a graduate-level class that provides students with an in-depth exploration of the technical and conceptual aspects of the photography department. Students will gain certification to use the equipment and facilities of the department while also learning about the department¿s acquisition, workflow, and photographic output capabilities. Examples drawn from contemporary art and current theoretical materials will be analyzed and discussed to enhance students' understanding of the subject matter. Additionally, students will present works in progress and begin producing new work at the outset of the semester. In addition to advanced certification in photographic equipment, the course allows students to develop their skills in individual project development while practicing and researching tools for production while focusing on developing students' familiarity with older, current, and developing technical processes. Students will also develop their ability to troubleshoot and resolve technical challenges encountered while producing finished work for critique.
In light of the simplified and automated photographic tools available today, students with diverse educational backgrounds are enrolling in SAIC's graduate program. This graduate-level technical seminar is designed for students with diverse technical backgrounds, including those with little traditional photographic experience. The course assumes that all students are proficient image makers and aims to level up their technical skills by providing a pathway to reinforce or introduce advanced photographic processes and control methodologies. Throughout the course, students will gain certifications and introductions to analog and digital cameras, darkroom techniques, facilities, studios, scanning, computing, and analog, digital, and alternative processes output facilities. To determine weekly exercises, the class will proactively survey students' technical needs and coordinate with the 5006 Photo Graduate Seminar. Additionally, students will work each week collaboratively to address technical issues and troubleshooting that arise during active image production. The technical exercises will help students build fluency and comprehension with various cameras, refine their personal workflow, and cover core lighting and advanced printing techniques. Technical lectures will build upon and reinforce these learned skills.
In light of the simplified and automated photographic tools available today, students with diverse educational backgrounds are enrolling in SAIC's graduate program. This graduate-level technical seminar is designed for students with diverse technical backgrounds, including those with little traditional photographic experience. The course assumes that all students are proficient image makers and aims to level up their technical skills by providing a pathway to reinforce or introduce advanced photographic processes and control methodologies. Throughout the course, students will gain certifications and introductions to analog and digital cameras, darkroom techniques, facilities, studios, scanning, computing, and analog, digital, and alternative processes output facilities. To determine weekly exercises, the class will proactively survey students' technical needs and coordinate with the 5006 Photo Graduate Seminar. Additionally, students will work each week collaboratively to address technical issues and troubleshooting that arise during active image production. The technical exercises will help students build fluency and comprehension with various cameras, refine their personal workflow, and cover core lighting and advanced printing techniques. Technical lectures will build upon and reinforce these learned skills.
Technical readings for the course may include:
Schewe, Jeff. The Digital Negative. Berkeley, CA: Peachpit Press, 2012
Davis, Phil. Beyond the Zone System. Boston: Focal Press, 1996.
Additional suggested readings might include:
Barthes, Roland. Camera Lucida: Reflections on Photography. New York: Hill and Wang, 1981.
Solomon-Godeau, Abigail. Photography after Photography. New York: Duke University Press, 2017.
Fusco, Coco, and Brian Wallis (eds.). Only Skin Deep: Changing Visions of the American Self. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 2003.
Ritchin, Fred. 'Toward a Hyperphotography, After Photography.' Aperture, no. 124 (1991): 16-25.
These texts can provide students with further insight into photography's conceptual and historical aspects, and offer critical perspectives that can enrich their understanding of the medium.

Class Number

2117

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 215

Description

This graduate level studio seminar course is a hybrid of reading, discussion, making and critique, designed to pursue positions in historical and contemporary philosophy, critical analysis, and current thought relevant to photography and visual literacy. Throughout the semester, the course aims to explore the past and future of visual media and to look at its discourse in relation to life as an artist in the greater realm of culture, society and politics. Course programming includes critical readings, short and informal writing assignments, work and research presentations.

Class Number

2004

Credits

3

Department

Photography

Location

280 Building Rm 214

Description

Taken every semester, the Graduate Projects courses allow students to focus in private sessions on the development of their work. Students register for 6 hours of Graduate Project credit in each semester of study.

Prerequisites

Open to MFA, MFAW and MAVCS students only

Class Number

2345

Credits

3 - 6

Department

Photography

Location

Description

Taken every semester, the Graduate Projects courses allow students to focus in private sessions on the development of their work. Students register for 6 hours of Graduate Project credit in each semester of study.

Prerequisites

Open to MFA, MFAW and MAVCS students only

Class Number

2346

Credits

3 - 6

Department

Photography

Location

Description

Taken every semester, the Graduate Projects courses allow students to focus in private sessions on the development of their work. Students register for 6 hours of Graduate Project credit in each semester of study.

Prerequisites

Open to MFA, MFAW and MAVCS students only

Class Number

2347

Credits

3 - 6

Department

Photography

Location

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