Catherine Huang

Assistant Professor

Cat Huang is a cartoonist, educator and art director based in Providence. She is currently working on Nostalgia, a middle grade graphic novel set in a magical antique shop, where a nameless protagonist searches for their identity. Along with teaching at RISD—her alma mater, where she earned a BFA in Illustration—she is also a teaching artist at Artprof.org, a free, accessible and comprehensive online educational platform for visual arts. She was formerly an associate art director at Airbnb

Courses

Fall 2023 Courses

ILLUS 2012-03 - DRAWING I: VISUALIZING SPACE
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 2012-03

DRAWING I: VISUALIZING SPACE

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: T | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Illustration Studies Building, Room 205 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

The convincing depiction of form in three-dimensional space is one of the great conceptual and philosophic breakthroughs of Western art. In this class, the first half of the sophomore drawing sequence, our main focus will be the study of form in a spatial context. We will use observational and projected systems of perspective in construction of our images. Emphasis will be placed on exploration of conceptual and physical viewpoint, effective composition and convincing light and shadow to shape expression, engage the viewer and create a unified pictorial image. The class will promote acute observation of existing spatial situations, the invention of convincing imagery from imagination, and the successful integration of the two. Exposure to traditional and contemporary drawing masters and practices will provide inspiration for experimentation, personal expression and artistic growth. A series of perspectival studies will build into longer projects integrating observation and invention and concerns for figure and ground. Students will come to grasp the elegance and power of perspective as an approach to drawing, tempered with an awareness of its limitation and alternatives. Several black and white media in addition to charcoal (mixed media, collage, monoprint, caran dache, pastel, etc) and various ways of working (line weight, cross-hatching, additive, subtractive) may be explored.

Open to Sophomore Illustration Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Illustration

ILLUS 3944-01 - COMICS, MANGA & BANDES DESSINEES
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 3944-01

COMICS, MANGA & BANDES DESSINEES

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Fall 2023
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2023-09-06 to 2023-12-13
Times: F | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Illustration Studies Building, Room 412 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Closed

SECTION DESCRIPTION

Sequential art is a thriving global art form whose recent history is grounded in three artistic, linguistic and publishing traditions: Comics, Manga, and Bande Dessinee. This course offers an intensive introduction to their creative possibilities. It will present storytelling and technical approaches that will enhance your ability to work as a writer and artist in the comics industry, as well as in other narrative driven fields. Assignments will take the shape of short form comics (1-8 pages) but students will also learn about writing, developing and pitching longer works such as graphic novels. During class discussions, we will engage in comparative study, identifying unexpected connections with other arts (literature, music, film, animation) while revealing the unique expressive potential of this medium.

Open to Junior or Senior Illustration Students.

Elective

Wintersession 2024 Courses

ILLUS 3304-101 - INTRO TO DIGITAL ILLUSTRATION
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Wintersession 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 3304-101

INTRO TO DIGITAL ILLUSTRATION

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Wintersession 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2024-01-04 to 2024-02-07
Times: MTW | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM | 02/05/2024 - 02/07/2024; MT | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM | 01/29/2024 - 01/30/2024; MTW | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM | 01/22/2024 - 01/24/2024; T | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM | 01/16/2024 - 01/16/2024; MTW | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM | 01/08/2024 - 01/10/2024 Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Washington Place, Room 001 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Closed

SECTION DESCRIPTION

This course introduces digital media for Illustrators using computer applications: image drawing, painting and editing in Photoshop, and vector graphics using Illustrator. While orienting students to the technical aspects of digital media, the class also provides an essential link to the Illustration Department's drawing, painting and conceptual curriculum.

This course fulfills the Computer Literacy requirement for Illustration majors.

Elective

Spring 2024 Courses

ILLUS 2004-02 - VISUAL STRATEGIES
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 2004-02

VISUAL STRATEGIES

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2024-02-15 to 2024-05-24
Times: M | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Illustration Studies Building, Room 407 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

Building on the skills and sensibilities developed in ILLUS 2000: Visual Thinking, this course will address a range of strategic considerations important for the articulation of ideas. While emphasis will remain on methods for encouraging conceptual aptitude and innovation, there will be greater focus on specific forms of communication. Practical issues such as the nature of audience and the context for interpretation will be matters of concern, as will vehicles for communication and the handling of media. The basic aim of this course is to enable the student to discover a creative identity and develop an itinerary for upper-class study; its larger goal is to wed communicative purpose to artistic voice.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Sophomore Illustration Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Illustration

ILLUS 2016-06 - DRAWING II: THE ARTICULATE FIGURE
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 2016-06

DRAWING II: THE ARTICULATE FIGURE

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2024-02-15 to 2024-05-24
Times: W | 11:20 AM - 4:20 PM Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Illustration Studies Building, Room 205 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

The ability to articulate ideas visually is the most important skill an illustrator has. Building on knowledge of observed and invented form in space gained in fall semester, this class will explore the human figure as physical form and as a vector for narrative and expression. Anatomical study, volumetric form, foreshortening, gesture, as well as balance and counterbalance will help ground and energize the figures physically. Narrative content and sequential reading will be explored in reference to the interaction of figures in a spatial context, and in relation to an imagined viewer. Additionally the student will be asked to consider complex integration of observed, researched and imagined imagery in the creation of more advanced independent personal work. Drawing will be approached as an investigative tool, one that supports all aspects of studio practice, from more, developed works to quick research studies for paintings or other media. Narrative, expressive and conceptual issues will become increasingly consequential as students become more versed in defining , building and shaping their imagery. Various media and methods of working, including a role for limited color, will be introduced.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Sophomore Illustration Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Illustration

ILLUS 3046-01 - MYTH AND METAPHOR
Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start date
End date

ILLUS 3046-01

MYTH AND METAPHOR

Level Undergraduate
Unit Illustration
Subject Illustration
Period Spring 2024
Credits 3
Format Studio
Mode In-Person
Start and End 2024-02-15 to 2024-05-24
Times: F | 1:10 PM - 6:10 PM Instructor(s): Catherine Huang Location(s): Illustration Studies Building, Room 411 Enrolled / Capacity: 15 Status: Open

SECTION DESCRIPTION

In the words of Joseph Campbell, Myth is metaphor. Just as the world's most enduring stories and significant cultural traditions spring from collective human experience and are given compelling shape by imagination, so is art a metaphor for collective consciousness. This class brings together the study of myths, legends and folklore with the visual rhetoric of the illustrator, as we seek a variety of forms of expression and visual narrative in telling great stories from mythology, legend and folklore. Whether in the form of contemporary urban legends or ancient mythic themes shared across cultures and time, we will examine the phenomenon of myth as metaphor for the human experience and art as a vital element in its expression. This course fulfills the Illustration Concepts Requirement for Illustration majors.

Open to Junior or Senior Illustration Students.

Elective