Undergraduate Course: Digital Technology as Art Medium (ARTX08083)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh College of Art |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | We are living in an age that is defined by digital technology: this course will explore some of the ways that digital media can be not only techniques but a primary artistic medium. You will be introduced to the photo-editing and graphic possibilities of Adobe Photoshop as well as simple animation. The work you make may remain ephemeral, only existing on-screen and as digital code, but you will also be invited to consider digital printing and projection. |
| Course description |
Digital art includes two-dimensional images, music, animation, text. It is often seen as an umbrella term that includes such diverse a range of activities that it cannot be described as a medium, or as having a single aesthetic. This notion is enhanced by the fact that many digital artworks continue to work in relation to traditional art forms, e.g. digital photographs are comparable to analogue photographs and develop the history of photography, equally digital films develop the history of film. However, digital art is transmissible: it can be displayed on countless computers all over the world and, each time, the artwork is original, not a reproduction. Moreover, the multi-media aspect of digital art is exactly what makes it so relevant to a contemporary art world that challenges medium-specificity and specialization. It is the perfect arena for students to examine broader philosophies relevant to contemporary art.
The course will be launched by a lecture about the many different uses of digital technology by contemporary artists so that students gain an immediate insight into the possibilities created by digital media for their artistic practice. Seminars will look at individual artists' practices and use of digital media such as projection and photography. Students will gain knowledge of contemporary art and how artists use technology as art forms.
These studies will support practical demonstration of photo-editing, graphic painting and simple animation techniques using Adobe Photoshop. Short projects will ask students to experiment with different ways of working independently and collaboratively as they explore the possibilities inherent to computer-generated art. Each student will then plan a personal project using the techniques most appropriate to their ideas and artistic practice. Group critiques will allow the students to see and discuss one another's work as it is developing.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | This course is only available to students on a the following programmes: Art, Fine Art, Intermedia, Painting, Photography or Sculpture |
| Additional Costs | Students are expected to pay for Art materials and equipment. Specific materials and equipment costs will vary depending on students' individual choice of method of production. |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate a range of uses of digital media and an ability to develop your subject matter through them.
- Show evidence of an ability to use digital media in ways that are appropriate for your ideas.
- Produce a body of finished work that displays your control of technique and imagery working together.
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Reading List
Transdisciplinary Digital Art, edited by: Randy Adams, Steve Gibson, Stefan Muller Arizona - online access
Digital design theory: readings from the field / edited by Helen Armstrong.
Digital art / Wolf Lieser; with contributions by Tilman Baumgärtel [and others].
Is there a digital art history? Johanna Drucker, Routledge (full text online)
Iterations : the new image / exhibition curated by Timothy Druckrey and Charles Stainback; edited by Timothy Druckrey
A Philosophy of Computer Art, Dominic McIver Lopesroutledge 2010
Context Providers, conditions of meaning in computer arts. Margot Lovejoy, Christiane Paul, Victoria Verne, University of Chicago Intellectual Press 2011
Digital Art. Christiane Paul. Thames & Hudson 2003
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Students will gain knowledge of contemporary art and how artists use digital technology and gain confidence in their own abilities to use digital media. The course demands that the students consider the possibility of a digital aesthetic, and the status of ephemeral art and art objects critically. It supports the analysis of image making, installation art and moving image through digital means. |
| Keywords | Digital,Projection,Photography,Graphics,Print,Animation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Ms Josephine Ganter
Tel: (0131 6)51 5894
Email: jo.ganter@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Hannah Morrison
Tel: (0131 6)51 5763
Email: hmorris4@ed.ac.uk |
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