Course Content & Topics

ART602 Elements of Visual Design 

This course is available for Design for User Experience (UX) students who are admitted conditionally to the Design for UX graduate program and need to meet the program requirement of previously completed studio art courses. ART602 will acclimate new Design for UX students with no previous studio art experience to visual design concepts and methods. Through a series of exercises and projects the ART602 student will learn and utilize various creative processes, conduct visual research, employ the elements and principles of visual design and methodology of design thinking, and apply color theory while utilizing a variety of visual digital processes. ART602 is an online course.

 

Course Objectives

  • Students will design and execute applied, investigative and creative works that draw on the perspectives and methods of visual design.
  • Students will provide evidence, through research paper, exercises, projects, and digital blogging, of utilizing, analyzing and refining the concepts of visual design.
  • Students will create explanations summarizing his/her work and providing analytical and constructive feedback to fellow students in critiques.
  • Through the execution of student projects, exercises and group critique the student will reformulate and adapt concepts, visual digital techniques and methods of visual design.
  • Students will articulate and defend the significance and implications of visual design in the context of digital design in terms of challenges and trends in a social or global context.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

WEEK

TOPIC

Weeks 1-2  

Getting started: Familiarize yourself with the ART602 online environment; Learn the basics of HTML; Introduction to Visual Design Skills and Visual Design Thinking

Weeks 3-4  

Elements of Design: Line; Contour Line and Cross Contour Line composition; Design Thinking Process: Ideate

Weeks 5-6  

Elements of Design: Shape; Visual tension in two-dimensions; Positive and Negative Shape

Weeks 7-8  

Elements of Design: Focus and Value

Weeks 9-10  

Elements of Design: Texture

Weeks 11-12   

Elements of Design: Direction, and Movement

Week 13-14 

Elements of Design: Color and Type

 

ART610 Foundations of User Experience (UX) Design

This course will explore the digital aesthetics and methods of user experience (UX), user interface (UI) and WWW design that are the foundation of design and production of for the WWW. Through a series of digital exercises and projects the student will become aware of the basic design issues and techniques of designing for the WWW. Students are expected to develop their design aesthetic as it relates to the WWW, and participate in researching and discussing various topics of UX, UI and WWW design including their impact on industry, culture, education, and the visual dissemination of electronic information. This is an online course.

Course Objectives

  • Students will utilize aesthetics, concepts, terminology and techniques used to create digital images for the WWW.
  • Students will design and produce digital images
  • Students will create a series of digital exercises and projects, which will raise their awareness of basic design principles, visual language (semiotics), international symbols, and layout techniques used in UX, UI and WWW design.
  • Students will utilize digital color control and explore its impact on web usability.
  • Students will create navigational symbols and research their potential effectiveness.
  • Students will create page layouts distributable via the Internet, and publish their projects on the Internet.
  • Students will utilize current industry software including: Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Adobe XD.
  • Students will utilize web technologies and social networking in course activities.
  • Students will utilize a flatbed scanner or digital camera to create source digital imagery for class projects.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

Week

Topic

Week 1  

Getting started: Familiarize yourself with the ART610 online environment; Learn the basics of HTML

Week 2  

The power of images; Digital collage techniques; Uploading files to the tigerweb.towson.edu web server

Week 3  

Semiotics and visual language; More digital imaging techniques; Creating type elements in raster graphics

Week 4  

Symbols; Creating and editing vector graphics

Week 5  

Identity and branding; Creating logotypes using the Pathfinder

Week 6  

The contextual meaning of color; Controlling color

Week 7  

Typographical concerns; Controlling typographical settings

Week 8  

Geometry in design; Creating vector based layouts structured with geographical forms

Week 9  

Navigational standards; Creating custom navigation icons

Week 10  

The grid in layout design; Using a traditional grid to design layouts

Week 11  

Structuring a layout; Layout design techniques and methods

Week 12  

WWW layout techniques

Week 13  

Digital images: optimization for the web

Week 14  

Preparing documents for electronic distribution

ART620 User Experience (UX) Typography

User Experience (UX) Typography is a studio art course in which the student explores advanced formal and technical concepts and the aesthetics of type. The course presents the ideas and concepts typography through lecture; slide presentations, demonstrations, and student research. Through execution and completion of Typography Projects and Exercises the student investigates the history, methods and aesthetics of typography while developing their own typographical aesthetic. This is an graduate level course so the emphasis is on research, technique, process, and the quality of the finished product. Students are expected to develop their typographical aesthetic as it relates to User Experience (UX) and WWW design, and participate in researching and discussing various topics of WWW typography including its impact on industry, culture, education, and the visual dissemination of electronic information. ART620 is an online course.

Course Objectives

  • Students will utilize typography aesthetics, concepts, terminology and techniques used to create typography for print and electronic design.
  • Students will design and produce an electronic typography journal (blog) and create a series of digital typographical exercises and projects, which will raise their awareness of the following: typographical history, principles of excellent typographic practice, typographical entrepreneurial ventures, typographical concept and expression, digital typography and WWW typography.
  • Students will create typography in motion.
  • Students will utilize Web 3.0 technologies, and social networking in course activities.
  • Students will utilize current industry software including: Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

Week

Topic

Week 1  

Getting started -familiarize yourself with the ART620 online environment

Week 2  

Introduction to typography - creating a typography blog journal

Week 3  

The history of type - the foundation of graphic design and the WWW

Week 4  

Letterform basics - vocabulary and fundamental concepts of type

Week 5  

Expressive typography - understanding the communicative power of type

Week 6  

Typography in motion - type as actor

Week 7  

Logo-typography - creating logotypes

Week 8  

Text type - the finer points of setting text type

Week 9  

Type hierarchy - typographic visual organization techniques

Week 10  

The grid -typographical elements as the construct of a layout grid for WWW design

Week 11  

The form and function of typography - readability, and legibility in UX typography

Week 12  

UX typography -managing type in the digital realm

Week 13  

UX typography- basic typographical considerations when designing for the WWW

Week 14  

More UX typography - controlling the uncontrollable

ART641 User Experience (UX) Design, Theory and Methods

This course will explore the concepts, theories and applied principles of user experience design. Through a series of user experience exercises and projects the student will become aware of the design issues and techniques faced by today’s UX designers. Students are expected to develop their  design aesthetic as it relates to the WWW, and participate in research and discussion of various topics of user experience (UX) design including its impact on business, industry, culture, education, and the dissemination of electronic information. Content management systems (CMS), cloud services and social media are utilized in this course. ART641 is an online course.

Course Objectives

  • Students will investigate aesthetics, concepts, terminology and techniques used in user experience design.
  • Students will design and produce interactive media for distribution via the WWW.
  • Students will complete a series of interactive media exercises and projects that will raise their awareness of user experience (UX) design principles, Web technologies and social media technologies.
  • Students will consider usability issues impacting interactive media created for the WWW.
  • Students will utilize current industry software including: Adobe Photoshop, and Dreamweaver.
  • Students will utilize HTML and Dreamweaver for website authoring in order to publish interactive projects and exercises.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

Week

Topic

Week 1  

Getting started: Familiarize yourself with the ART641 online environment. Learn the basics of HTML.

Week 2  

User Experience Foundations: overview
Uploading files to the tiger.towson.edu web server.

Week 3  

User Experience Foundations: research
The age of the Wiki - collective knowledge on the WWW

Week 4  

Interaction design paradigms

Week 5  

Interface design

Week 6  

User Experience - Usability and industry standards

Week 7  

Social Media Strategies

Week 8  

Social Media Options

Week 9  

Responsive Web Design

Week 10  

Wordpress Options

Week 11  

Email Service Providers

Week 12  

Online Video Sharing

Week 13  

e-learning

Week 14  

Future interactive media

   

ART671 Graduate Programming for Designers

This course will include the research and investigation of the concepts, theories and applied principles of script programming in the creation of applied art. Through a series of introductory to advanced programming exercises and projects the student will become aware of the logic of object-oriented programming languages. Students are expected to research current applications of the object-oriented languages in Art and Design. Students will write and read code for event-driven, object-oriented, and graphical user interfaces. ART671 is an online course.

Course Objectives

  • Apply fundamentals of computer programming to applied art and design projects.
  • Utilize concepts of object-oriented programming.
  • Research strategies for creating and troubleshooting computer programs.
  • Construct various programs using the JavaScript programming language.
  • Identify, explain and discuss aspects of the programming language and algorithm design.
  • Investigate the role of algorithm efficiency in the design process.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

Week

Topic

Week 1  

Course Introduction: Introduction to Programming

Week 2  

Basic Syntax, Structure, Types and Operations

Week 3  

Conditional Statements

Week 4  

Loops

Week 5  

Functions

Week 6  

Arrays

Week 7  

Objects

Week 8  

Advanced Objects 

Week 9  

Events

Week 10  

Introduction to DOM

Week 11  

Working with Images, Sound and Text

Week 12  

Working with Animations

Week 13  

jQuery

Week 14  

Projects

 

 

ART765 User Interface (UI) Design

This course explores the aesthetics and methods of UX, UI and WWW design and authoring. Through a series of exercises and projects the student will become aware of the design issues related to the authoring of comprehensive websites. Students will use digital imaging methods for image generation, and web authoring techniques including: HTML and CSS code, animated graphics, and movie/audio clips. Students will learn and utilize current industry web authoring software including: Adobe Dreamweaver and Photoshop. Students will engage in the design and production of websites, publish via the internet, and participate in researching various aspects of user interface design (UI) and its impact on industry, culture, education, and the visual dissemination of electronic information. ART765 is an online course.

Course Objectives

  • Students will utilize concepts, terminology and techniques used in UX, UI and WWW authoring.

  • Students will produce a series of exercises and projects, which will raise their awareness of the design issues related to UX, UI and WWW authoring.

  • Students will utilize design principles of information architecture and interactivity to enhance the effectiveness of their web designs.

  • Students will utilize digital imaging techniques specifically related to WWW authoring.

  • Students will utilize Web 3.0 technologies and social networking in course activities.

  • Students will conduct research on various aspects of user interface design (UI) and its impact on industry, culture, education, and the dissemination of electronic information.

Weekly topics (subject to change)

Week

Topic

Week 1  

Getting started: Familiarize yourself with the ART365/765
online environment; Basic HTML

Week 2  

More HTML: Effective file management and naming conventions;
Upload a website (HTML and image files) to a public server

Week 3  

Dreamweaver basics; Optimize images for display on the WWW

Week 4  

Basic WWW design conventions; Use Dreamweaver to insert images, create linked images and linked text in a website

Week 5  

Utilize design techniques unique to the WWW; Investigate WWW ; Typography methods; Use the grid to structure WWW layout design

Week 6  

More quality tools for the e-designer: Analysis of information heavy WWW design; Designing for a defined WWW audience; Controlling color

Week 7  

Information architecture; Construct website concept/narrative; Use information design methods and tools

Week 8  

Web usability; Create Cascading Style Sheets (CSS); Web design
accessibility issues

Week 9  

Web visibility: Investigate search engines, and how get your website listed; Investigate domain name registration; Utilize Metadata keywords

Week 10  

From web to print and back: Examine the pros and cons of the PDF format; Predict and control color from print to web

Week 11  

Navigational standards and symbols; Investigate browsing habits;
Javascript basics; CSS layout techniques

Week 12  

Including media files in your webpages; More CSS layout techniques

Week 13  

Career opportunities and presenting your work

Week 14  

Designing for alternative displays