Design and Computation Arts

Design

Computation Arts

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Chair: Joanna Berzowska

The Department of Design and Computation Arts offers programs that examine the broad vision or culture of design within contemporary society. Digital technologies are integrated into the creative process to enhance strategies for communication, application, representation and dissemination.

The Design program is located primarily within the domains of image, object-making and screen-based media with an emphasis on applications of material, visual and spatial cultural studies. The program recognizes and promotes design as a persuasive form of intervention within the physical and discursive landscape. Students develop a background in the three streams (image/object/multimedia) and then specialize according to their interests and abilities. In both the theoretical and practical considerations of the program, curriculum integrates creative experimentation in design with societal, ecologically-oriented and collaborative productions. One off and multiple productions in the areas of print works, web sites, typography, furniture, 3d rapid prototyping, display, web sites and design installations are created.

The Computation Arts program challenges students to re-imagine objects, narratives and environments through the use of emerging digital technologies and prepares students to pursue careers as designers, artists and researchers in a variety of innovative creative industries. The program provides students with a rich foundation in creative work at the intersection of design, art and technology, and guides students in developing media that is aesthetically engaging, conceptually provocative, and technically sophisticated. The program examines how digital media get meaning and seeks to understand how cultural assumptions inform design. The approach emphasizes an awareness of cultural and political implications of a society that is increasingly wired and networked together.