Mar 28, 2024  
Rensselaer Catalog 2015-2016 
    
Rensselaer Catalog 2015-2016 [Archived Catalog]

Electronic Arts


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The B.S. degree in Electronic Arts (EART) provides a foundation for students who aspire to careers as practicing artists in the digital age. Combining traditional studio and theory courses in the Fine Arts with Electronic Arts disciplines, the program familiarizes students with the full range of creative digital media and allows them to select areas of concentration in such fields as video, animation and visualization, computer music and sound design, game design, multimedia, installation, interactivity, and performance art.

Situated within the context of a technological university, Rensselaer’s art program offers a unique creative environment in which to explore the relationship between the creative arts and emerging technologies.

Rensselaer’s location within a thriving community of technological innovation and proximity to art and cultural centers such as Williams College, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA), Dia: Beacon, Bard College, and Bennington College further strengthens its arts programs.

Applicants must submit a portfolio and written statement of interest. In this statement, an applicant should address his or her specific interests in the program, desire to work with electronic media, and a description of work submitted in the portfolio. The successful portfolio should include 10 to 20 examples of work that shows excellence as an artist and a desire to work with electronic arts tools. The portfolio should represent what the applicants consider to be their best work in any medium.

All majors in the Electronic Arts take a total of 60 credits in the field, including a 24-credit sequence of arts foundation courses, as well as eight credits of Creative Seminar. The remaining 28 credits for the major are configured to allow the student to concentrate in one of three tracks:

  •    Computer Music and Sound Art
  •    Media, Ecology, Entrepreneurship, and Experimentation
  •    Visual Arts and Animation

Outcomes of the Undergraduate Curriculum
Students who successfully complete this program will be able to demonstrate:

  • an ability to evaluate works of art in relation to style, period, and social context.
  • an ability to effectively discuss and critique own work and the work of others.
  • proficiency integrating technologies appropriate to creative practice.

 Typical schedules for each of the concentrations are shown below:

 

Electronic Arts - Computer Music and Sound Art Concentration


First Year


Second Year


Fall


  • ARTS Performance Elective Credit Hours: 1
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS Performance Elective Credit Hours: 1
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4

Third Year


Fall


  • ARTS Performance Elective Credit Hours: 1
  • ARTS Advanced Technical Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS Performance Elective Credit Hours: 1
  • ARTS History/Culture Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Fourth Year


Fall


  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Electives


Performance Electives


  • ARTS 2000-level Performance Topics Courses

History/Culture Electives


  • ARTS 296x Audio Culture Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 4000-level History/Theory Topics Courses Credit Hours: 4

Advanced Technical Electives and Advanced Studio


  • ARTS 496x Creative Collaborations Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 496x Music Composition Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 4000-level Technical/Studio Topics Courses Credit Hours: 4

Electronic Arts - Media, Ecology, Entrepreneurship, and Experimentation Concentration


First Year


Second Year


Fall


  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4

Third Year


Fall


  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Video Topics Course Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Radical Culture Topics Course Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Fourth Year


Fall


  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Video Topics Course Credit Hours: 4

        or

  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Radical Culture Topics Course Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Recommended Courses


  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Video Topics (including: Postproduction; TV Content & Development Studio; Writing and Directing for Video; Speculative Fiction; Expanded Video) Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 4000-level Advanced Radical Culture Topics (including: Art, Community, and Technology; Eco Chic; Creative Activism; Globesity; Urban Survival) Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 496x Pure Performance Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 496x Inflatables Public Sculpture Credit Hours: 4

Electronic Arts - Visual Arts and Animation Concentration


First Year


Second Year


Fall


  • ARTS 2000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS 2000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4

Third Year


Fall


  • ARTS 4000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS 4000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • HASS Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Math/Science Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Fourth Year


Fall


  • ARTS 4000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Spring


  • ARTS 4000-level Visual Arts Elective Credit Hours: 4
  • Free Elective Credit Hours: 4

Electives


4000-Level Visual Arts Electives


  • ARTS 496x Advanced Video Credit Hours: 4
  • ARTS 49xx Topics Courses Credit Hours: 4

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