4.390

Art, Culture, and Technology Studio

Explores the theory and criticism of intersections between art, culture, and technology in relation to contemporary artistic practice, critical design, and media. Students consider methods of investigation, documentation, and display and explore modes of communication across disciplines. Students develop projects in which they organize research methods and goals, engage in production, cultivate a context for their practice, and explore how to compellingly communicate, display, and document their work. Regular presentation and peer-critique sessions, as well as reviews involving ACT faculty and fellows, and external guest reviewers provide students with ample feedback as their projects develop.

Spring
2024
3-3-12
G
Schedule
Lecture: M 2-5
Recitation: F 10-12
Location
E15-001
Prerequisites
permission of instructor
Required Of
SMACT
Open Only To
SMACT
Can Be Repeated for Credit
Yes
4.388

Thesis II: SMACT Thesis Preparation

Aids students in the selection of a thesis topic, development of an approach method, preparation of a proposal that includes an outline for their thesis. Explores artistic practice as a method of critical inquiry and knowledge production/dissemination. Students examine artist writings and consider academic formats and standards. Regular group meetings, including peer reviews, are supplemented by independent study and individual conferences with faculty. 

Spring
2024
3-0-6
G
Schedule
F 10-12
Location
E15-001
Required Of
SMACT
Open Only To
First-Year SMACT
Can Be Repeated for Credit
Yes
4.368
4.369

Studio Seminar in Art and the Public Sphere

UG: 4.368; G: 4.369

Focuses on the production of artistic interventions in public space. Explores ideas, situations, objects, and materials that shape public space and inform the notion of public and publicness, with an emphasis on co-production and cooperative ethics. Examines forms of environmental art in comparison to temporal and critical forms of art and action in the public sphere. Historical models include the Russian Constructivists, the Situationists International, system aesthetics, participatory and conceptual art, contemporary interventionist tactics and artistic strategies, and methods of public engagement. Students develop an initial concept for a publicly-situated project. Includes guest lectures, visiting artist presentations, and optional field trips.

Additional work required of students taking graduate version. 

4.368/4.369 Syllabus (MIT Certificate protected)

Spring
2024
3-3-6
U/G
3-3-3
G
Schedule
MW 9:30-12:30
Location
E15-207
Prerequisites
UG: 4.301 or 4.302; 4.307; 4.312 or permission of instructor; G: 4.307; 4.312 or permission of instructor
Restricted Elective
BSA
Enrollment
Limited to 12
HASS
A/E
Lab Fee
Per-term $75 fee after Add Date; SMACT students are exempt
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.359

Synchronizations of Senses

Focused on the practices of varied practitioners — film directors, artists, musicians, composers, architects, designers — whose writings relay a process of thinking and feeling integral to their forms of material production. Testing various ways aesthetic forms and their shifts — historic and contemporary — have relations to still emerging contemporary subjectivities (felt emotion in a human body), the class studies productions created by participants and case studies of varied producers, and generates new work individually and/or collaboratively via diverse media explorations. Includes reading, writing, drawing, and publishing, as well as photographic, cinematic, spatial, and audio operations and productions. Activities include screenings, listening assignments, and guest visits, in addition to readings, discussions, and presentations.

4.359 Syllabus (MIT Certificate protected)

Spring
2024
3-0-6
G
Schedule
M 9:30-12:30
Location
E15-283A
Enrollment
Limited to 12
Lab Fee
Per-term $75 fee after Add Date; SMACT students are exempt
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.341
4.342

Introduction to Photography and Related Media

4.341 U / 4.342 G

Introduces history and contemporary practices in artistic photography through projects, lectures, artist visits, group discussions, readings, and field trips. Fosters visual literacy and aesthetic appreciation of photography/digital imaging, as well as critical awareness of how images in our culture are produced and constructed. Provides instruction in the fundamentals of different camera formats, film exposure and development, lighting, black and white darkroom printing, and digital imaging. Assignments allow for incorporation of a range of traditional and experimental techniques, development of technical skills, and personal exploration. Throughout the term, present and discuss projects in a critical forum. 

Additional work required of students taking the graduate version.

Note: section taught by Ryan Aasen is digital photography only

Syllabi (MIT Certificate protected):

Spring
2024
3-3-6
U
3-3-3
G
Schedule
Sec. 1: MW 2-5
Sec. 2: TR 9:30-12:30
Sec. 3: MW 9:30-12:30
Location
E15-054
Prerequisites
permission of instructor
Restricted Elective
BSA, BSAD, D minor
Enrollment
Limited to 20
HASS
A/E
Lab Fee
Per-term $75 fee after Add Date; SMACT students are exempt
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.302

Foundations in Art, Design and Spatial Practices

Develops an introductory foundation in artistic practice and its critical analysis, and develops artistic approaches and methods by drawing analogies to architectural thinking, urbanism, and design practice. Covers how to communicate ideas and experiences on different scales and through two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and time-based media in new genres. Uses artistic methods that engage the public realm through spatial, sculptural, performative, and process-oriented practices. Instruction components include video screenings, guest lectures, visiting artist presentations, and field trips. Instruction and practice in written and oral communication provided.

Spring
2024
3-3-6
U
Schedule
TR 9:30-12:30
Location
E15-207
Prerequisites
4.021 or 4.02A
Required Of
BSA, BSAD, D Minor; restricted elective for A Minor
Enrollment
Limited to 20
Preference Given To
Course 4 majors and minors
Lab Fee
Per-term $75 fee after Add Date; SMACT students are exempt
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.288

Preparation for SMArchS Thesis (AD)

Students select thesis topic, define method of approach, and prepare thesis proposal for SMArchS degree. Faculty supervision on an individual or group basis. Intended for SMArchS program students prior to registration for 4.THG.

This offering of 4.288 is for SMArchS Architecture Design program students.

Spring
2024
3-0-6
G
Schedule
M 2-5
Location
3-329
Prerequisites
permission of instructor
Required Of
SMArchS Design, Urbanism
Open Only To
SMArchS Design, Urbanism
Can Be Repeated for Credit
Yes
Document Uploads
4.286

SMArchS Urbanism Pre-Thesis Preparation

Explores initial thesis ideas and bases for choosing among multiple interests. Assessment of design research strengths and weaknesses. Overview of conceptual frameworks and research methods. Preparation for summer field research and proposal development.

Spring
2024
3-0-0
G
Schedule
see advisor
Required Of
SMArchS Urbanism
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.275
11.912

Advanced Urbanism Colloquium

Introduces critical theories and contemporary practices in the field of urbanism that challenge its paradigms and advance its future. Includes theoretical linkages between ideas about the cultures of urbanization, social and political processes of development, environmental tradeoffs of city making, and the potential of design disciplines to intervene to change the future of built forms. Events and lecture series co-organized by faculty and doctoral students further engage and inform research.

Sarah Williams
Spring
2024
1-1-1
G
Schedule
M 5:30-6:30
Location
E14-140L
Prerequisites
permission of instructor
Required Of
PhD Adv Urbanism
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No
4.255
11.304

Site and Environmental Systems Planning

Introduces a range of practical approaches involved in evaluating and planning sites within the context of natural and cultural systems. Develops the knowledge and skills to analyze and plan a site for development through exercises and an urban design project. Topics include land inventory, urban form, spatial organization of uses, parcelization, design of roadways, grading, utility systems, off-site impacts, and landscape strategies.

Eran Ben-Joseph
Mary Anne Ocampo
Spring
2024
6-0-9
G
Schedule
MW 2:30-5:30
Location
7-434
Prerequisites
Permission of instructor
Can Be Repeated for Credit
No