Foundation

Foundation courses are required of all first year students.

• FA-100.1, FA-100.2

  Introduction to Techniques

  An introduction to the physical aspects of working with wood, metal, plaster - and plastics, as well as an introduction to on-campus computer facilities and resources. A basic introduction to the Adobe interface, specifically Photoshop and Illustrator will be provided.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. Required for first-year students. 1/2 credit. Pass/Fail.

• FA-101

  Color

  A study of the physical, perceptual, art historical and cultural aspects of color. The phenomenon of color and principles of light are explored in various media towards an understanding of color application in all of the fine art disciplines and architecture.

  Spring 2027. Required for first-year students. 2 credits.

• FA-102

  Two-Dimensional Design

  Exploration of the visual and intellectual aspects of form on the two-dimensional surface, in a variety of media. Investigations into the relationships of perception, process and presentation.

  *During the 2024-2025 Academic Year, FA-102.1 (Two-Dimensional Design) was offered in the Fall semester. Beginning the 2025-2026 Academic Year, FA-102 (Two-Dimensional Design) will be offered in the Spring semester.

  Spring 2027. Required for first-year students. 3 credits.

• FA-104

  Basic Drawing (Analytical and Descriptive)*

  A course in freehand drawing designed to emphasize perceptual and inventive skills in all drawing media.

  *During the 2024-2025 Academic Year, FA-104 (Basic Drawing) was offered in the Spring semester. Beginning the 2025-2026 Academic Year, FA-104 (Basic Drawing) will be offered in the Fall semester.

  Fall 2026. Required for first-year students. 3 credits.

• FA-105

  Four-Dimensional Design

  This course investigates the properties of time and movement and the fundamentals of four-dimensional design. Students explore duration, condensation, expansion, interruption, simultaneity, stillness, action and situation through a wide range of materials.

  Fall 2026. Required for first-year students. 2 credits.

• FA-108

  Foundation Studio

  A studio methods and theories course for foundation students with a focus on the development of multiple lines of visual competency helping to prepare students for advanced study. This course works in conjunction with technical labs through a set of offerings in shorter lab/studio seminars. In this sense, the technical or craft learning necessary for visual practice, and the beginning of a personal conceptual or research methodology, merge.

  Spring 2027. Required for first-year students. 3 credits.

• FA-109

  Three-Dimensional Design

  Students work on projects that explore the fundamentals of forms and space and investigate the properties of materials, structure, mass, scale, light and motion.

  Fall 2026. Required for first-year students. 3 credits.

• SE-101

  Foundation Orientation

  Foundation Orientation brings together all first-year students as an introduction to the academic life of the School of Art, as part of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. The course is designed to give students a working overview of opportunities and resources available to them.

  Fall 2026. Required for first-year students. 1/2 credit. Pass/Fail.

• SE-150

  Foundation Project

  This course brings together all first-year students within a seminar. This course consists of a series of presentations that introduce various artistic practices, critical languages, and criticism. This aspect of the course indents to present contrasting historical and contemporary models of creating, seeing, speaking, and thinking about art.

  Spring 2027. Required for first-year students. 1/2 credit. Pass/Fail.

Audiovisual

• FA-272

  Film: Experiments in 16mm

  This course is designed to foster independent student projects made using 16mm film. Alongside practical instruction into working with film, students will be exposed to the multiple and overlapping histories and practices of analog filmmaking. In-class workshops, discussions, and screenings will cover experimental, documentary, and narrative filmmaking strategies, toward providing students with a broad framework from which to make work. Students use Bolex 16mm cameras and black and white film in this course. Editing and post-production instruction includes analog and digital workflows.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: AV I. May be repeated.

• FA-275

  Audiovisual I

  Audiovisual I is the first semester of a two-semester trajectory. In semester one, students will be introduced to concepts, production techniques, and multiple histories of artists' sound and moving image work, exploring origins and evolutions of animation, film, video, and audio recording. Alongside a historical and theoretical framework, a wide range of practical tools will be introduced, including pre-cinematic image capture, 16mm film and digital cinema production, stop action animation, sound recording, and lighting. This is an assignment-driven class where students will work independently and in groups, supported by classroom instruction, screenings, workshops, and one-on-one meetings with the professor. Each of these modes will also contribute toward student development of critical thinking and language in which to conceptualize, make, and share with the class their time-based work.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-276

  Audiovisual II

  Audiovisual II is the second semester of a two-semester trajectory. The course is designed for students to further their exposure to important concepts, production techniques, and histories of artists' sound and moving image work, while developing the tools to work independently in the audiovisual realm. With an emphasis on students developing longer form prompted and self-generated projects, AV2 will delve further into both conventional and experimental techniques of moving image and sound recording, assembly, editing, post-production, lighting, and installation. Through classroom instruction, screenings, guest artist visits and group critiques, students will experiment with multiple modes of making, while also evolving critical thinking and language in which to conceptualize, make, and share with the larger class and school community their time-based work.

  Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: AV I. May not be repeated.

• FA-386

  AV Projects

  Students will advance their practice by producing work using a range of audiovisual tools and/or found material of their choice. Work will be discussed in group critiques as well as individual conferences with the instructor. Audiovisual strategies as forms—material and conceptual—will be the subject of readings, guest artists, and class discussions.

  Fall 2026, FA-386-1, AV Projects: Optics Antics: Presentation Plus, S Liu: Roving between "Analogue" Expanded Cinema, "Immersive" Video Installation, Audiovisual Stagings, Performative Lectures, and all out noise jams, students will investigate how these alternative methodologies of presenting moving image work may aid, offset, or imbalance their practices. Expect things to get overly quiet/loud, bright/dark, and/or fun/intense.

  Fall 2026, FA-386-2, AV Projects: Blender Bootcamp, J Boling and J Coombs
  This course is a hands-on introduction to Blender, a powerful and free 3D software that offers an expansive toolset for creative ideation across disciplines. Designed for artists of all backgrounds, Blender Bootcamp provides a structured immersion into the fundamentals of 3D modeling, texturing, lighting, rigging, animating, and rendering. By the end of the course, students will have a working knowledge of Blender’s core functions—and the beginnings of a personal toolkit for bringing three-dimensional thinking into their own artistic practices.

  3 credits. Pre-Req: AV I and Pre/Co-Req: AV II. May be repeated.

• FA-387

  AV Projects Topics

  This class will center around a specific audiovisual topic. Emphasis is on independent student work made in relation to the topic and related material presented by the instructor. Topics will range broadly to include thematic ideas and concepts in sound, video and installation, historic and contemporary strategies of making and installing work, and specific or esoteric zones of audiovisual interest. Student work will be discussed in group critiques and in one-on-one visits with the professor. The class will include readings, discussions, screenings, guest artists and class trips organized in relation to the class topic.

  Fall 2026, FA-387-1, AV Projects Topics: Revolutionary Change, J Reeves: In this course, we will view, listen to, and discuss motion-picture and audio works connected to historical social and armed revolutions and collective liberation struggles. The makers and subjects represent diverse countries, cultures, formats, and perspectives. Particular attention will be given to works with innovative forms or radical production contexts related to their subjects and goals, including documentary, artist video and film, propaganda, fiction, and podcasts.

  Within this framework, students will produce audiovisual projects to be completed and presented at the end of the semester. Finding one’s path as a media artist requires deep engagement with one’s passions and principles, as well as an understanding of the history and power of time-based media—works that have shaped public opinion, mobilized people, and influenced social change. Class critiques and meetings with Prof. Reeves will support students as they develop their projects. Cultivating a critical eye, conducting research, and understanding context will support thoughtful creative decisions and lead to more meaningful and impactful media works.

  3 credits. Pre-Req: AV I and Pre/Co-Req: AV II. May be repeated.

Drawing

• FA-345

  Drawing: Open Studio

  This studio-based course makes space for a diversity of approaches to drawing or drawing across disciplines. Students work and share individual and self-directed making with guidance from faculty. Students navigate their chosen path of making within the context of presentations, group, and individual meetings with faculty. The course may include in-class workshops, homework assignments, presentations, individual or group projects, and discussions. Attendance is mandatory. Independent studio work is required. Group participation may be required.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-346B

  Drawing in Practice: Image and Structures

  Hands-on workshops, lectures, assignments, individual and group discussions/meetings centered around interventions in two and three dimensional space. The course explores drawing practice as a vehicle to navigate relationships of images, objects, the built environment to the human subject.

  Fall 2026, FA-346B-1, Drawing in Practice: Image and Structures, Y Masnyj: This course is designed to strengthen one’s relationship to drawing as an act of envisioning and aesthetic conjuring. We will study the supportive and finished work of artists whose primary medium is drawing as well as by those using drawing as an integral part of their practice in painting, sculpture, design, architecture, music, film, writing, and other fields. Students should expect-in class drawing exercises, open-ended prompts, and group discussion on self-guided projects.

  3 credits. May be repeated 

• FA-347

  Colorlines: Social and Perceptual Activations in Line and Color

  This course explores the social and perceptual dimensions of line and color in the world and in art making. The provisional and fugitive experience of line and color expands possibilities in drawing practice and across disciplines. The course may include in-class workshops, homework assignments, presentations, individual or group projects, and discussions. Attendance is mandatory.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-348

  The Urban Studio: Drawing and Non-traditional Materials

  This course explores non-traditional art materials considering how non-studio-based making informs studio practice. Provisional making, notation and fugitive experience expand possibilities in drawing practice and across disciplines. The sustainable and metaphorical attributes of material will inform course discussions. The course may include in-class workshops, homework assignments, presentations, individual or group projects, and discussions. Attendance is mandatory.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May be repeated.

Graphic Design

• FA-211

  Graphic Design I

  An introduction to the techniques and visual language of graphic design. Weekly projects explore fundamental concepts in form, composition, and typography. Presentations and readings in graphic design history will complement weekly assignments. Students will explore basic imagemaking processes as well as be instructed in digital production techniques.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-212

  Graphic Design II

  The complex relationship between word and image is explored. The study of semiotics, emphasizing the philosophy of communication, provides a rich historical and intellectual base for experimental projects combining verbal and pictorial information. Weekly projects reflect a broad range of disciplines within the field of design. Computer instruction will be provided as it relates to specific projects.

  Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: GD I. May not be repeated.

• FA-215

  Typography

  An introduction to the core principles of typography. Students will explore how typography influences language and communication, and gain a foundation for purposeful and expressive typography. This course will emphasize the formal qualities of typography, the implications of typeface selection, adapting to various contexts, visualizing concepts using only type, and attention to detail.

  Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: GD I and Pre/Co-Req: GD II. May not be repeated.

• FA-317

  Advanced Design: Open Studio

  This class gives students an opportunity to conduct investigations of their own choosing through a series of open-ended prompts. We will look at the wide range of methods used in contemporary design practice and investigate ways they can be used to generate your own work. Projects include expanding on a past project, accumulating a series of daily acts of design, and creating a format to house
  contributions solicited from classmates. We will discuss a variety of techniques for creating self-generated work with a focus on how projects can be presented and circulated. Students will be required to share their explorations in carefully designed and clearly articulated presentations. Visiting lectures, videos, and readings will complement group critiques and one-on-one meetings.

  Fall 2026, FA-317-1, Adv Design: Open Studio, M Essl: In this course students will complete two fully realized independent projects. Emphasis will be placed on contemporary graphic design and typographic practices and on developing a personal voice and aesthetic. Students are expected to regularly present their works-in-progress and to participate actively in class discussions. Visiting lecturers, readings, and individual meetings with the instructor will complement group critiques.

  3 credits. Pre-Req: GD II and Pre/Co-Req: Typography. May be repeated.

• FA-318

  Advanced Design: Book Design

  Through assignments, lectures, field trips, and in-class projects, this class will explore the design of a wide range of multi-page publications, touching on traditional text-based books, image-based catalogs, illustrated essay collections, and zines. Students will refine their typographic skills, applying them to a wide range of texts, including body copy, titles, captions, notes, and everything in between. The relationships between word and image, form and content, sequence and rhythm will also be explored. Opportunities for the distribution and promotion of self-published works will be discussed along with the timeframe and methods involved in commercial printing.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: GD II and Pre-Co-Req: Typography. May be repeated.

• FA-320

  Advanced Design: Visual Identities

  Issues unique to creating a coherent, yet diverse visual system will be analyzed and applied in a variety of contexts. Concepts and methods for integrating symbols, images, words and objects will be explored.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: GD II and Pre-Co-Req: Typography. May be repeated.

• FA-328

  Motion Graphics

  Students will explore the conceptual and technical challenges of design for the television screen. All aspects of industry video/ broadcast production are introduced and integrated into a design core focused on strong communication. Projects include identity design, combining kinetic typography, animation, sound and video. The course includes workshops in After Effects, Final Cut Pro and Protools.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: GD II and Pre/Co-Req: Typography. May be repeated.

Painting

• FA-130A

  Painting I

  This course is centered around the material, conceptual and historical concerns of painting media within a group setting. The course is intended to give foundational technical and theoretical instruction in preparation of advanced study in painting. There is an emphasis on group learning with in-class and out of class assignments. Group critiques and instruction will enhance the development and articulation of individual ideas and build relationships with paint media. This hands on approach to painting will be supported by readings, films, lectures and field trips that expand the historical and contextual understandings in the area of painting.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-130B

  Painting II

  This course is centered around the material, conceptual and historical concerns of painting media within individual studio practice. There is an emphasis on individual projects or assignments and the studio as generative space. The course is intended to clarify and evolve each student's individual relationship with paint media in preparation of advanced study in painting. Individual studio critiques and group critiques will enhance the development and articulation of each student's concerns in painting and image-making. The objectives of the course will be supported by readings, films, lectures and field trips that expand the historical and contextual understandings in the practice of painting.

  Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: Painting I. May not be repeated.

• FA-331

  Advanced Painting

  This course offers students individual and group contexts to discuss their work and personal development as an artist. Students engage with relevant, practical, historical and contemporary discussions around painting. There is an emphasis on personal development. Clarification of interests, content, material processes center students within the context of advanced study. Individual and group critiques offer students opportunities to further locate their practice and voice as an artist. Various media and experiences such as lectures, films, reading and field trips expand classroom and individual studio space learning.

  Fall 2026, FA-331-1, Advanced Painting, C Lehyt: This course will connect students’ work to larger areas of painting, delving deeply into various ways of working and their meaning production within larger discourses in painting and in the fluctuating spaces of art. The course will be structured around lectures that contextualize contemporary ways of painting within larger fields of making beyond, and against, the Western, European, and United States constructed canon. Class will consist of lectures, extended group critiques and working time to paint.

  Fall 2026, FA-331-2, Advanced Painting, N Souirgi: This course will work with students in individual and group settings to discuss their work and personal development as artists, as well engage with practical, historical, and contemporary questions around painting. Questions like: What makes a painting impactful? How do paintings make meaning? What is the difference between bad representation and bad painting? How do we learn to ask paintings- those of others and our own- useful, and more precise questions? A series of walking lectures and group discussions in the classroom, as well as at museums and surrounding galleries, will help students demystify the practice of formal analysis by learning to name some of painting’s components: materiality, gesture, formalism, iconography, relationship to the body, and historical context, to name a few. And more, to perceive how those components work together Three rounds of group critiques, one-on-one studio visits, and guest critics will provide necessary critical feedback back to advance each student’s personal development. Students should expect debate around ideas, process, and technique, specifically rooted in a practice of collegiality and mutual support. Painters will spend most of their time working independently in their studios though whole class painting sessions may take place as needed. A highly self-motivated work ethic is essential.

  3 credits. Pre-Req: Painting I and Pre/Co-Req: Painting II. May be repeated.

• FA-336

  Advanced Painting: Alex Katz Chair

  The Katz Chair is a distinguished artist working in the fields of Painting and Drawing invited to teach for one term. The style and objectives of this course vary and build in relationship to the Katz Chair, their work, research and experiences as an artist. The flexible nature of this course is for highly self-motivated students who wish to collaborate and/or work closely with a distinguished practitioner in the field. The course offers students opportunity for further growth within the context of advanced study. Individual critiques and group critiques guide individual studio development. Media such as readings, films, lectures and field trips support
  the course objectives.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: Painting I and Pre/Co-Req: Painting II. May be repeated.

• FA-339

  Advanced Painting: Katz Guest Artist Series

  The Katz Guest Artist Series is named after and funded by Cooper Union alumni Alex Katz. This course introduces contemporary emerging and established artists in the fields of Painting & Drawing guided by a Cooper Union faculty. The course offers students opportunity for further growth within the context of advanced study through conversations around professional practices and individual development. Students interact with each guest in lectures, one-on-one studio visits and group critiques. Lectures introduce students to a wide range of practice and perspectives in Painting or Drawing within a classroom setting or field trips to guest artist studios. There is time for critical discussion about the material presented. Individual studio spaces become sites for creation, research, presentations and meetings with faculty and guest artists. In this way, the course reflects the professional space of the artist studio. Students develop a deeper connection to their personal language and practice through a rigorous studio visit and lecture schedule. Students experience the “real world” model of studio visits in which visitors not familiar with their work or immediate concerns engage them. In this way students develop the communication of their work and interests outside of the traditional classroom structure. Group critiques and media such as readings and film expand and clarify student development and course objectives.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: Painting I and Pre/Co-Req: Painting II. May be repeated.

Photography

• FA-206

  Lens/Screen/Print I

  LSP I Lens/Screen/Print I is the first section of a two-semester trajectory. This is an immersive foundation course in the practice of photography focusing on a critical engagement with lens technology, color theory/management and combined analog/digital workflows. Topics include: exploratory and technical knowledge of 35mm analog cameras, DSLR cameras, lenses and lighting conditions, fluid movement through digital black-and-white and color processes, such as digital imaging editing software, scanning analog color, and digital printing in black-and-white and color. Exposure to critical theory and major philosophical arguments central to lens, screen and print based practices will be explored. This is an assignment driven class.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-207

  Lens/Screen/Print II

  Lens/Screen/Print II is the second half of a two-semester trajectory. This course builds upon the foundations of LSP I with an emphasis on post-production and a critical engagement with lens technology, color theory/management and combined analog/digital workflows. Technical knowledge of the tensions and possibilities found between "digital" and "analog" spaces in relation to critical theory and major philosophical arguments central to lens, screen and print based practices will contribute to student development. Topics include advanced digital editing and printing techniques, analog black-and-white production methods, such as shooting with black-and-white film and darkroom printing, advanced medium-format cameras and scanners, as well as introduction to new technologies and modes of display. A distinction in LSP II is a focus on experimentation, articulation and acumen. Students are encouraged to begin to develop semi-autonomous ways of working over the course of the semester, this includes supervised independent or collaborative projects. This course will afford students the opportunity to build a coherent body of work in preparation for advanced study.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Req: L/S/P I. May not be repeated.

• FA-364

  Advanced Photography: Open Studio

  Students will advance their practice by producing work using photographic material(s), cameras or any photographic device of their choice. Work will be discussed in group critiques as well as individual conferences with the instructor. Photographic issues and representation will be the subject of readings and class discussions.

  Fall 2026, FA-364-1, Advanced Photography: Open Studio, T Masushio

  Fall 2026, FA-364-2, Advanced Photography: Open Studio, C Rodriguez

  3 credits. Pre-Req: L/S/P I and Pre/Co-Req: L/S/P II. May be repeated.

• FA-366

  Photography: Alternative Processes

  This course breaks the barriers between digital and analog photography, transforming meaning and content through various forms of manipulation. Fastpaced hands-on demos include hand-applied photographic emulsions (such as cyanotype, Van Dyke, palladium, and liquid light) and digital printing/transferring options (beyond emulating the traditional print, on surfaces such as paper, wood, metal, fabric, etc.). Eco-friendly options will be discussed and explored. The production of large-format analog and digital negatives will also be explored. Student work will be discussed in relation to contemporary art issues.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. Pre-Req: L/S/P I and Pre/Co-Req: L/S/P II. May be repeated.

• FA-368

  Advanced Photography: Henry Wolf Chair

  This course is intended to help students clarify and further the growth of their own work through group and individual critiques, classroom presentations and discussions with a contemporary photo based artist in the position of the Wolf Chair.

  Fall 2026, FA-368-1, Advanced Photography: Henry Wolf Chair, S Wolukau-Wanambwa: This course addresses contemporary art practices through the concept and practice of ‘rendering,’ which can imply the generation of images, the delivery of performances, the distillation of one substance from another, the application of treatments, or the satisfaction of debts. Renderings can be faithful or transformational—they are unconditioned by the requirement of fidelity—but they constitute a translation effected across form(s), across thresholds. Students will conceive of their work through this framework, develop and share original work in group critique. The course will comprise group readings, discussions, lectures, museum and studio visits, student presentations and group critiques, along with interactions with practitioners in the field relevant to the course’s core theme.
  
  

  3 credits. Pre-Req: L/S/P I and Pre/Co-Req: L/S/P II. May be repeated.

Printmaking

• FA-250

  Screen Printing

  This introductory course covers all aspects of contemporary Screen printing as a photomechanical stencil printing method. In a series of demonstrations, lectures and projects, students will become familiar with stencil making, color separation, printing, color mixing and image registration with the goal of building a broad knowledge of Screen printing. Methods for producing images by hand and by computer output are both addressed. Attention will be paid to the use of Screen printing within fine art, design and popular culture spheres as a way of discussing the history and current use of the process.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-251

  Lithography

  This is a comprehensive course covering the full range of lithographic techniques. Instruction begins with hand working processes on lithographic stones and progresses through to contemporary approaches of digital image preparation for output to photographic printing plates. A series of projects and critiques are targeted to develop command of the material process and place the use of Lithography in contemporary visual practice.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-252

  Etching

  This course is an introduction to the process of etching and printing from metal plates. Topics covered are the full range of platemaking techniques, from traditional wax grounds to contemporary photographic grounds, and printing techniques, including chine-collé, multi-plate color work and surface rolling. Lectures and critiques will place the practice of Etching in historical and contemporary context.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-253

  Paper: Materiality and Sustainability

  This studio course explores making paper from traditional to contemporary approaches. The course incorporates specified instruction and experimentation driven by student independent projects. The exploration of the structural and historical uses of Western and Eastern methods including contemporary issues of recycled and alternative fibers will frame an understanding of the potential uses and appearances of handmade paper. From a basis in sheet forming, pigmenting, sizing, and the use of additives, the class will move into an emphasis on paper as a visual and sculptural object, covering paper casting and other three-dimensional approaches.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-354

  Experimental Printmaking

  This course is focused on advanced studies across all forms of print media toward the development of individual student work. Instruction will build on the introductory level courses, covering color separations, extended techniques, experimental approaches, and additional print media forms. Student development will be driven by individual meetings and a series of group critiques.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. Pre-Reqs: 2 of the following 5 courses - Etching, Lithography, Relief, Paper: Materiality and Sustainability, or Screen Printing. May be repeated.

• FA-355

  Relief

  This course provides an introduction to Relief printing techniques. Projects will cover hand carving wood and alternative surfaces, with specific attention to the Japanese water-based woodblock tradition and the western oil-based tradition. Instruction will cover printing by hand, as well as printing on Etching presses, hydraulic presses and Letterpresses.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

Sculpture

• FA-391

  Sculpture: Open Studio

  In this course “Sculpture” will be understood as open to an expansive and changing definition of its limits. Students may draw from its historical traditions or choose more experimental modes of production, in other media or methodologies. The course will be structured as an open studio, where students can bring in works as they progress through each individual’s studio thought and experiment. Students are expected to work independently in initiating their research, concepts, choice of mediums, and the installation/context for their projects.

  Fall 2026, FA-391-1, Sculpture: Open Studio, L Raven

  Fall 2026, FA-391-2, Sculpture: Open Studio, f harrington

  Fall 2026, FA-391-3, Sculpture: Open Studio, J Magid

  Fall 2026, FA-391-4, Sculpture: Open Studio, C Klockner

  Fall 2026, FA-391-5, Sculpture: Open Studio, S Kwon

  Fall 2026, FA-391-6, Sculpture: Open Studio, I Okariz

  Fall 2026, FA-391-7, Sculpture: Open Studio, A Vo: The body will be foregrounded as both material and site of sculptural inquiry, where the corporeal negotiation with space and time becomes integral to the emergence of form. Through attention to the socio-historical conditions of making and aesthetic consumption, students will consider how bodies encounter, resist, and are shaped by the materials and structures around them.

  3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-393

  Sculpture: Making, Craft, and Concept

  This course will emphasize a balance between craft and concept in making Sculpture as creative acts that produce physical interventions in the world. Unlike other courses, we will work closely with the 4th floor Shop facilities to explore how a combination of woodworking, metalworking, casting, as well as other fabrication methods (plastics, sewing, new technologies, etc.) can facilitate and expedite each student’s vision. Students are expected to be self-driven and self-motivated with the projects they are interested in working on over the semester. This class will help reinforce their technical and material research in completing complex fabrication. Skills will be learned as well as built upon, and workdays will be integrated into class time to get as much hands-on experience as possible.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-394

  Sculpture: Narrative and Systems

  This is a sculpture studio course. While all media are welcome, we will approach the course with sculptural concerns. The theme of the class is Narrative and Sculpture with a focus on Relationships to Systems. This class is loosely defining a system as a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. The class is broken into three ways of exploring this theme: artists intervening within existing systems; artists reinventing or creating their own systems; artists displacing or circulating material from one system to another. Together we will look at examples of artists practice which fall within these themes, visit related exhibitions, and host visiting artists. Throughout the class, students will make their own works or projects with these themes in mind.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May be repeated.

Seminars

• SE-401

  Contemporary Art Issues

  This seminar addresses issues essential to an understanding of contemporary aesthetic thought and critical practice as explored by artists and theoreticians. Integral to this discussion is an examination of the role of art in contemporary society, the changing concept of the avant-garde and the relationship of art to culture. The format of the seminar provides for required readings, oral and written reports, guest speakers and regular museum and gallery visits.

  Fall 2026, SE-401-1, Contemporary Art Issues, C Fusco: Artists write with blood, dirt, flowers and ink. They make paintings and sculptures with words. They write manifestos, letters, essays and press releases. They craft slogans, cite poems, and publish magazines. They describe their work, ask for money, lambast their critics and support their colleagues. They redefine the parameters of art. They do all this with writing. In this course we will explore all these methods and experiment with a variety of ways that artists use writing to create, sustain, and understand their art.
  Among the artists whose work we will consider are Australian Aboriginal artist Archie Moore, Pope L., Martha Rosler and Felix González-Torres.

  2 credits. May be repeated once for Art History credit.

• SE-402

  Drawing Seminar

  This seminar-based course offers students the opportunity to develop an individual drawing practice and across disciplines within a lecture or workshop style classroom environment. Faculty guide students through one-on-one discussions and classroom presentations. The student will need to prepare work for studio visits. Long-form projects are not required. The course may include a series of in-class workshops, group activities, presentations, and group discussions. Attendance is mandatory. In-class participation is required.

  Fall 2026, SE-402-1, Drawing Seminar, J Barth: Why drawing? All artistic creation is an act of imagination, which requires a mysterious transaction between thinking and bringing those thoughts into the world, regardless of media, materials, or genre. Drawing is the singular activity of that mysterious transaction, the generative starting point of all works of art. It helps us articulate even the most abstract or inaccessible feelings, intuitions, sensations, dreams, ideas into visible form. The aim of the course is for the student to achieve a high level of self-sufficiency and conceptual fluency in projects conceived by the student, whether it be painting, sculpture, installation, mixed media, film, or video.

  An outside speaker will be invited to lead a seminar relevant to concerns that are raised in studio discussions during the semester. Past seminars have included subjects such as Where Are We in History?, The Fate and Destiny of the Avant-garde, What Are the Limits of Representation?, The Mass Culture Debate, and What is a "Classic"?

  2 credits. May be repeated.

Science

• RS-201H

  Science: Laws of Nature

  The course will look into the history and significance of major physicals laws, such as mass and energy conservation, Newton’s laws of motion, the laws of thermodynamics etc., and explore their applications in biological and environmental sciences. The topics covered in the course will include the origins and the physical basis of life; the mechanisms of heredity, genes and the DNA; the evolution of species; Earth’s systems and climate change.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• RS-201I

  Science: Properties of Ceramic, Metals, and Glass

  In this course students will gain an understanding of the fundamental similarities and differences between ceramics, metals and glass. Through first exploring the crystalline unit structures of each material on a microscopic level, students will learn about the related material characteristics, working properties, and ultimately manufacturing techniques on a macroscopic level. Then we will focus on causes of degradation of each material with particular attention to pollution, the life cycle of the materials, and the resulting chemical reactions from the inorganic materials and the interactions with their environments. Project based work will serve as a focal learning tool with independent research and weekly in class hands on work and discussions. Students will recreate, observe, and document degradation properties through accelerated aging of metals. Sustainability, sustainable development, and our mindsets towards changing our behaviors in favor of lower environmental impact choices will be a continual thread throughout the semester. Students will evaluate a carbon calculator at the beginning and at the end of the class, and will work on an independent assignment where they will explore material production, use, atomic structure, degradation mechanisms, how the climate crisis threatens our cultural heritage, and experimentation of artists materials as a driving force for technological advancements.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• RS-201K

  Science: Physics for Artists

  This course will study the physics of Newton and his followers, although it will touch on some of the more modern topics, such as relativity and quantum mechanics. The course will concentrate on the basic things that shape our world, such as forces, momentum and energy. Knowledge of center of mass might help a sculpture stand rather than fall. Gravity plays a role even in the visual arts--we often put more massive objects near the bottom of the frame. Equations will be used to show how physicists can make statements with confidence, but the main thrust of the course will emphasize the ideas behind equations.

  Fall 2026. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

Studio Electives

• FA-281

  Project in Sound Art

  This class will introduce strategies for understanding and participating in the aural world. The course is divided into specific weekly topics including acoustic ecology, radio transmission, and others. Screenings, readings, and discussion are supported by hands-on workshops in capturing, manipulating, and reproducing sound in unconventional ways. Grading is based on student projects and participation in class discussions.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 3 credits. May not be repeated.

• FA-326

  Interactive Design Concepts: AI, Browser, Code

  An exploration of the nature of interactive design and how it informs and transforms experience. Information structures, navigational issues, design strategies and social implications of interactive experiences using traditional as well as electronic media will be examined.

  Fall 2026, FA-326-1, Interactive Design Concepts - AI, Browser, Code, R Yurewitch: Developing a fluency with AI is foundational for individuals practicing in today’s unique historical moment. Artificial Intelligence occupies a wide expanse of roles ranging from image creation to diagnosing the early stages of cancer to shaping the information landscape. Students will learn how to effectively use and collaborate with AI agents, LLMs and other forms of AI to create design, art, and software. Students will develop an introductory understanding of the internet, version control systems, and programming in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Python. This class will explore the ethical implications of the discussed technologies and their role in warping our physical environment, our creative and professional lives, and our social landscapes. There is no required technical knowledge to take this course.

  3 credits. May be repeated after 3 credits.

• FA-327

  Computational Studio: Digital Fabrication

  This course provides a comprehensive introduction to digital fabrication and is designed to augment existing practices through access to new tools, materials, and concepts for art production. Students will learn fundamental skills and will utilize a variety of digital fabrication methods including 3D printing, laser cutting, and CNC machining, along with software & capture methods such as: Rhino 3D and 3D scanning. In the first half of the course, students will learn fundamental digital fabrication skills through technical demos and technique-oriented projects. In the second half of the course, students will develop a body of work utilizing these tools. We will move between computer classrooms, the AACE lab, and individual studios to explore topics such as built environments, sculptural methods, and medium specificity. As background, we will explore the history of digital fabrication, and ask critical questions about its relevance and impact on creative industries and society more broadly.

  Fall 2026/ Spring 2027. 3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-384

  Projects

  Students work independently on self-initiated projects under the guidance of professors and visiting artists.

  Fall 2026, FA-384A-1, Projects, D Adams

  Fall 2026, FA-384B-1, Projects: Draft Notation, L Raven: In this class, we will develop shared systems of notation and models from which to construct and analyze individual student research and practice. The course is designed for students who intend to initiate or develop a semester long (or beyond) art project. Students are expected to present their work-in progress several times each semester, to research the works of other artists, writers, and thinkers, and to participate actively in class discussions. Class meetings will alternate between in-class presentations and discussion, and one on one meetings with the professor.
  Draft Notation is a drawn system used to construct and analyze woven fabric. Used and written about extensively by Bauhaus master weaver Anni Albers, it uses a specialized, straightforward drafting technique to understand complex weaves. As Albers wrote: Whenever the piece of cloth that is the subject of analysis can be cut, this process of tracing the course of each thread—usually with the help of a long needle—is greatly simplified. For, by cutting along a filling thread, for instance, the path of the thread can be seen in cross section when looked at from above, and the following filling threads can be lifted out one by one, giving a chance for easier observation of the thread’s intersections than when seen on the face of the fabric only.

  Fall 2026, FA-384C-1, Projects: Exhibitions: Design and Practice, D Ashford and F Backström:

  This studio course is about showing and telling.

  In this course we will experiment with pleasure, audience, signage, memory, catalogs, notation and archive. Although supplemented with periodic readings, lectures, field trips, and discussions - this course is a practicum - a learning context where students and teachers will make shows that can apply their studio learning to larger spheres of the production of meaning.

  The course will emphasize students’ existing skill sets of to reinvent the exhibition's ability to address human value, consciousness, identity, education, and democracy. It proposes that institutional spaces, catalogs, signage, and archives are opportunities for the public performance of artistic invention. We will use our imaginations in combination with the visual languages of art/design histories to produce public exhibitions in the exhibit spaces of Cooper Union and possibly off-campus.

  The skills of artist/designers have long been invested to work beyond the established habits of the contemporary museum and its supporting partner, the commercial gallery. Today, interventions by artist/designers into the appearance and function of exhibiting art, (the contextual reality of our work), are explosively important to redefining what art has done, and what it might stand for in the future.
  

  3 credits. May be repeated.

• FA-399

  Special Topics

  This class will center around a specific topic in art. Emphasis will be on the students' work in relation to the topic. The specific topic will cover a range of ideas, methods, strategies, and installation of work related to the topic. Work will be discussed in group critiques and individual studio visits. The class will include readings, discussions, visitors, and class trips to exhibitions that pertain to the topic of the class.

  Fall 2026, FA-399B-1, Special Topics: Artists as Writers, G Bordowitz: Writing is an activity of thought manifesting in many forms. Words are gestures are images are letters in artists' ongoing transdisciplinary projects. The common definition of Poetics often limits the plural noun to poetry, but the methods of writing poetry can be applied to any discipline. Poetics describe the way we put stuff together. Just as drawing can be a form of thinking, writing is a method that transcends communication. We write the world we inhabit. The way we author our world is a matter of Poetics.

  3 credits. May be repeated.

Techniques

• TE-216

  Calligraphy

  Geometry, optical balance and the stoke of the broad-edge pen are primary influences that shape the Roman alphabet. Students learn the fundamentals of “beautiful writing” through the study of historical models and the principals that are the basis of classical and modern letter forms. Exercises in ink train the hand kinaesthetically to write letters with graceful movement. Exercises in pencil train the eye to see and analyze the subtle geometry and skeletal “ideal” form of letters. Precise rhythm in letterspacing and careful line-spacing create the color and texture of the page. The class will have an emphasis on page design involving hand written compositions. Roman and Italic capitals and small letters will be the focus of first semester students.

  Fall 2026. 2 credits. May not be repeated.

• TE-390

  Casting Techniques

  Casting Techniques is a process intensive course covering the methods of translating a wax positive into bronze or other non-ferrous metals. All associated techniques from beginning a plaster or rubber mold to casting, chasing, finishing and patination of metal sculptures will be covered. Students will explore a variety of approaches to casting, as well as engage in discussions involving the history of bronze casting, and its place in contemporary art.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 2 credits. May not be repeated.

Required Senior Presentation

• FA-349

  Senior Presentation Project

  A public presentation of each senior student's work, normally in the student's final semester, is a requirement for graduation. Each student may satisfy this requirement with an exhibition or, where appropriate, a screening, performance, or publication. No student will be permitted to receive a degree unless this requirement is completed to the satisfaction of the faculty and the dean of the School of Art at a mutually agreed upon time and venue.

  Fall 2026/Spring 2027. 0 credits. May not be repeated.