Design Course Descriptions

DES 310 Introduction to Design:

A rigorous class that introduces three fundamental interrelated questions:

1. What is the relationship between visual form and meaning?
2. How do theory and method contribute to a definition of design?
3. What are possible roles, both economic and cultural, that a designer can assume?

DES 311J Design Technologies I:

Introduces students to design technologies, with a focus on basic tools and photographic processes. Projects are intended to encourage students to question how technology affects design methods. Projects are sequenced to prepare students to apply their learning to laboratory assignments from Introduction to Design.

DES 311K Design Technologies II:

Introduces students to the role of microcomputers in the design environment. Its specific purpose is twofold:

1. to introduce the computer as an integrator of visual information in the design process
2. to explore design applications of organizational systems enabled by computer technology. A series of studio projects encourages students to question how digital technology affects design methods in a diverse group of applied problems.

DES 312 Visual Syntax in Communication:

This course stresses fundamental issues of visual elements and their organization, including hierarchy and structure (visual and logical) in two, three, and four dimensions, frame, pictorial space, color.

DES 313 Design History Laboratory:

A workshop/seminar class that continues to develop historical issues surveyed in Introduction to Design. Lectures emphasize the dynamic relationship between the modern movement and the development of contemporary design. Lecture themes are reinforced by a series of visual and written studio projects that are sequenced to allow students to apply their knowledge from Visual Syntax in Communication and Design Technologies II.

DES 320 Design Theory and Method:

Introduces several of the most important design methodologies and critiques the theories from which they were derived. This analysis is applied to studio projects that emphasize the role of context, space, and human scale in applied design problems.

DES 321 Images in Communication:

Integration of media processes is an important aspect of how a designer creates coherent statements with images. This course focuses on fundamental conceptual questions regarding multimedia image construction.

DES 322 Design and the Social Environment:

Any method of inquiry must be adapted to the context in which it is applied. This class explores several methods of design problem solving that are exercised through studio projects in complex social and cultural contexts.

DES 340 Design Systems:

Students consider how to create an integrated visual system that organizes the relationship between a primary unit and its cognate parts. The student's investigation will involve planning, establishing hierarchies, and creating design structures with application in 2D, 3D, and 4D environments.

DES 341 Advanced Issues in Visual Syntax:

Studio projects explore the linguistic relationship between contrast and meaning in the construction of visual messages in 2D, 3D, and 4D environments.

DES 342 Design and Persuasion:

Studio projects will exercise the designer's ability to convince and persuade. Topics will include historical models, the role of words, context and audience, and the effect of medium.

DES 350 Special Design Topics:

A course that is responsive to faculty interests, student needs, or topics proposed by visiting faculty.

DES 351 Design Perspectives:

The course will familiarize students with the work of visiting designers and prepare them to perform effectively in pending workshops. In many instances the visiting critic would ask that students complete a body of preliminary work before his/her arrival, which would then be critiqued and refined during the workshop. In addition, the course will focus on the preparation of the student for their Degree Project investigation, to be completed in the spring of the senior year.

DES 370 Senior Project in Design:

Provides a context for advisement and administration of individual degree projects. Students are encouraged to internalize their previous coursework and apply their knowledge to independently defined design problems. The senior project requires students to define a topic of suitable scope, plan its execution, locate the necessary resources inside and outside of the University, and produce a final product of high quality. Final degree projects will be presented in a senior exhibition.

DES 371 Design Practicum:

Bridges the students' University environment with the workplace. The class has three goals: to provide a forum for students to share their experiences during a one semester design internship in a local design environment, to present lectures on business ethics and professional responsibilities, and to provide students with portfolio criticism in a group setting.