Elements of Art and Performance 1 of 2

Syllabus for Elements of Art and Performance AP 3300.501

Monday 7:00 - 9:45 p.m. AS 1.105 (Visual Arts Building)
Fred Curchack
972 883-2684
Email: curchack@utdallas.edu
Office hours: Tuesday 2:30 - 3:30 or by appointment

This course will consist of a series of creative and scholarly projects in the visual and the
performing arts. Students will be encouraged to develop work in their own primary area
of interest and also to try their hand at art forms in which they have no prior experience.
Classes will include presentation of projects, related lectures, demonstrations, readings,
and videos. Papers will be assigned.

Students will have one or two weeks to prepare each project before showing and
discussing it with the class. A proposal for the final project will be due on October 24.
The final project can be either an artistic creation with an accompanying written analysis
(5 or more pages) -- OR -- a research paper (12 or more pages). The final projects are
due on November 14 and class presentations will be on November 14, 21, and 28.

Visits to local museums will be assigned. Attendance will also be assigned at some UTD
and Dallas art events, including plays, concerts, and exhibits. Extra credit will be given
for attendance and written critiques of other approved art events.

This syllabus is subject to change based on the progress of the course.

Required texts (available at Off Campus Books and UTD Bookstore):

Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream (any edition)

The Twentieth-Century Performance Reader (2nd edition) -- edited by Michael Huxley

and Noel Witts

Ways of Seeing -- John Berger

Portraits -- Michael Kimmelman

Other articles may be made available.

Grading criteria: Creative projects and written papers; participation in class discussions;
final creative project or paper; attendance; punctuality; extra credit assignments. Papers
should be printed, double-spaced, in size 12 font. They must be carefully proofread for
grammar and spelling errors. Late assignments will generally not be accepted. Class
Attendance Policy: Attendance will strongly influence the final grade. An "A" will not
be given after three absences.
Elements of Art and Performance 2 of 2

Assignment #1 -- (due August 29): Read Shakespeare’s, A Midsummer Night's Dream.

If you have previously read it, read it again. Write a 4-page paper that considers various
elements of the play. What do you think the play is about? Write about possible
interpretations from various perspectives (i.e. social, political, historical, psychological,
religious, artistic). Discuss the characters, settings, and the four interweaving stories. Do
not summarize the plot! Consider the changing atmospheres, moods, and themes of each
scene. How do you imagine the play being staged? Write (at least half of the paper)
about how you see the acting, set, lighting, costumes, music, dance, masks, props, special
effects. Feel free to transform the play in any direction your imagination leads you.

September 5 -- Labor Day

Assignment #2 -- (due September 12): Create a work of art that responds to elements in
A Midsummer Night's Dream (i.e. theme, image, character, poetry). You may work in
any genre of visual or performing art (i.e. theater, performance, music, dance, mime,
puppetry, painting, sculpture, photography, installation, video, animation, computer
graphics) and be prepared to present your work in class (5-minutes maximum
presentation time). Works of art are to be accompanied by a written analysis (2 full
pages or more) discussing what you created, how you developed it, how it relates to the
play, and what it means to you. Be prepared to discuss these issues during your 5- minute
class presentation. Rehearse! Presentations may not go overtime. You may work in
your preferred medium or in an art form in which you are not experienced.