We frequently hear about animal (and plant) species that become common nuisances in urban areas, and we hear about how natural habitat loss leads to the disappearance of other species-not to mention the emergence of new diseases. This course will approach the area of urban ecology from a natural science perspective. We will learn about a broad variety of North American organisms (vertebrate, invertebrate, plant and pathogen), from diverse habitat types, and their ecological patterns and processes with regard to urbanization. We will also conduct field experiments to evaluate certain patterns in our greater Providence landscape for ourselves. Ultimately, how do urban wildlife patterns affect the lives of our species, Homo sapiens? Coursework will include frequent readings, outdoor field trips, observational chronicling and group discussions.

Elective

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

This is a comprehensive course designed to test the student's ability to create, complete, and document a Degree Project of his or her choosing. The Degree Project should be a distinct, carefully conceived, exhibition-ready body of work which reflects the issues and objectives of your art. The Senior Degree Project is distinct from your Woods-Gerry Gallery exhibition, although its work can overlap with that exhibition.

Major Requirement | BFA Painting

The Beginning Poetry Workshop is an elective course introducing students to the art of poetry writing. The course sequentially addresses major commitments of poetry including form/content, sound, line, voice, image, language(s), tradition/convention, experiment, audience, revision, performance, collection, publication, and distribution. Workshop is the heart of the course, animating the practice, discourse, critique, audience, community, and mentorship vital to poets. Every class will also include close reading, discussion of assigned texts, and writing. We will attend public readings, curate and participate in community readings, and welcome poets to our class, when possible. Work can be developed in a range of styles, traditions, and languages. You will leave this class with a collection of workshopped and revised poems, which you will design, self-publish, and distribute in print and/or digital form.

This course is a prerequisite for LAS E421 - Advanced Poetry Workshop in the Spring.

Elective

This class is an intensive investigation of the processes of electroplating and electroforming copper metal by covering objects of various modeling materials to create new metal objects. All aspects of this technical application are discussed. Students are required to maintain an accurate logbook of their investigation while developing a body of work.

Major elective for Junior, Senior, and Graduate Jewelry + Metalsmithing Students. Experienced non-majors may enroll pending seat availability. To request permission, email the instructor and include images of past work.

Elective

This course would address many practical issues to do with becoming a professional artist after graduation. Some of these issues are: the commercial gallery, the not-for-profit gallery, museums, graduate programs, auction houses, grants, documentation of work, archival storage of work and restoration of artwork. Professionals from the gallery, museum and other fields will be invited to the class to share their expertise with the student. Artists will be invited to talk about their professional experiences. It is a seminar class addressed particularly to the senior painting student.

Elective

This immersive interdisciplinary Wintersession course offered by RISD Global is for art and design students interested in exploring past and current efforts to conserve biodiversity in Southern Africa while also developing their communication and documentation skills.

On location for two weeks in South Africa and one in Namibia, this course will be co-taught by longtime RISD faculty member, scientist Dr. Lucy Spelman (Senior Lecturer/HPSS) and Nellie Geraghty, Visiting Critic, Illustration. Students will study the local biodiversity, how local people and visitors interact with nature, and how art, science, and traditional ecological knowledge influence and inform conservation decisions. They will also have the opportunity to create/make new works of art, design, and writing while on location as well as upon return. Once back on campus, students spend two weeks on a final art/design project that explores the concept of conservation based on their African experience. In addition to a completed work of art or design, the final project will include:

1) an artist statement that describes the student’s artistic aim/inspiration/process

2) an annotated essay/summary of the scientific references and literary influences that informed their art.

Registration is not available in Workday. All students are required to remain in good academic standing in order to participate in the Wintersession travel course/studio. A minimum GPA of 2.50 is required. Failure to remain in good academic standing can lead to removal from the course, either before or during the course. Also in cases where Wintersession travel courses and studios do not reach student capacity, the course may be cancelled after the last day of Wintersession travel course registration. As such, all students are advised not to purchase flights for participation in Wintersession travel courses until the course is confirmed to run, which happens within the week after the final Wintersession travel course registration period.

Elective

The objective of this course is to develop a more precise, professional and sensitive approach to design while broadening the student's technical base. Precision machine tools such as metal lathes, millers and grinders will be introduced. Logical design and set-up approaches will be discussed. Outside design work will be required with emphasis on engineering drawing and sequence of operations. There will be a strong emphasis on experimenting with the material in order to promote innovative thinking and problem solving.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Junior and Senior Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design

The objective of this course is to develop a more precise, professional and sensitive approach to design while broadening the student's technical base. Precision machine tools such as metal lathes, millers and grinders will be introduced. Logical design and set-up approaches will be discussed. Outside design work will be required with emphasis on engineering drawing and sequence of operations. There will be a strong emphasis on experimenting with the material in order to promote innovative thinking and problem solving.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Junior and Senior Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design

The objective of this course is to develop a more precise, professional and sensitive approach to design while broadening the student's technical base. Precision machine tools such as metal lathes, millers and grinders will be introduced. Logical design and set-up approaches will be discussed. Outside design work will be required with emphasis on engineering drawing and sequence of operations. There will be a strong emphasis on experimenting with the material in order to promote innovative thinking and problem solving.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Junior and Senior Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design

The objective of this course is to develop a more precise, professional and sensitive approach to design while broadening the student's technical base. Precision machine tools such as metal lathes, millers and grinders will be introduced. Logical design and set-up approaches will be discussed. Outside design work will be required with emphasis on engineering drawing and sequence of operations. There will be a strong emphasis on experimenting with the material in order to promote innovative thinking and problem solving.

Majors are pre-registered for this course by the department. Preference is given to Junior and Senior Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design

This senior level course is offered to those students interested in designing and making apparel fabrics and accessories. Students are encouraged to explore a variety of techniques including silkscreen and digital printing, weaving, knitting, sewing, and invented techniques, along with designing on paper for industrial and hand production. While students will initially develop their ideas through samples and drawings, they gain a thorough understanding of the relationship between fabric and the human form, and will eventually bring their work to final form as prototypes or finished designs on paper. Researching the field will generate topics for discussion in class.

Elective

This senior level course is offered to those interested in pursuing work for an interior end use, such as furnishing fabric, wall covering, or carpeting to be produced by hand or industrially. At the start, students select an architectural space as a framework. Through analysis and sampling, they will arrive at their own design solutions, which will be showcased as a collection at the end of the class. Researching the design field will generate topics for discussion in class. Techniques include surface pattern, printing, weaving and knitting, along with invented techniques.

Estimated Cost of Materials: Varies based on use of advanced equipment; additional fees may incur.

Elective

Students in this class will learn to use a variety of ceramic production methods techniques including; molding, pressing, extruding, and giggering, to design and make small pottery editions. The focus is the design and perfection of the objects made and methods used. This class will also serve as a platform for inviting visiting artists to make small editions using our production facilities.

Major elective for Junior and Senior Ceramics students. Advanced non-majors may enroll pending seat availability. To request permission, email the Department Head and instructor jointly and include images of past work.

Major Requirement | BFA Ceramics

This semester is directed towards defining and organizing an evolved artistic viewpoint that incorporates glass in a visual imagery. At the beginning of this semester, students are required to present a slide source presentation to a department assembly that is a compilation of the previous three semesters' visual research. Each student is also expected to further develop his/her artistic association with a designated "outside" advisor(s) and involve this professional artist in critique and consultation. Artistic premise and intention are comprehensively presented in a senior thesis exhibition. A complete portfolio is presented to the department at the completion of this semester.

Estimated Cost of Materials: $500.00

Major Requirement | BFA Glass

This experimental seminar is a space for students to explore any issues of interest to you in the field of modern and contemporary art. You may work, independent-study style, on any topic that specially interests you. Research will be done in dialogue with fellow students and a faculty facilitator. On the first day of class we will discuss topics of common interest, and develop a provisional semester plan and a list of readings. As the conversation develops over subsequent weeks, our plan may be adjusted or even completely revised. Coursework will be tailored to the needs of individual participants.

This class is recommended for Seniors in Fine Arts and for THAD Concentrators.

Elective