Design Courses

Description:

Students will have the opportunity to research the application of digital design in one or two of the following areas of concentration, under the direction of a full-time faculty advisor. Design for Print Media: Student research projects will explore aspects of digitally-generated print media. Projects can be undertaken in experimental and applied image, in graphic design, typography, font exploration and generation, packaging book works and posters. Applied and Experimental 3D Object Making: Student research projects will involve the design of three-dimensional objects, space and environments. This design option integrates the learning of computer software for 3D modeling, rendering and animation programs, computer aided design (CAD), computer aided machining (CAM) programs for plotting, rapid prototyping for block and concept modeling and using a 3D scanner to measure existing objects for computer input. Interactive Media: Student research projects will investigate screen-based digital design and interactive systems. These will include websites, animation, the design of virtual spaces, interactive desktop presentations and visual navigation systems, the design and interface of virtual communities, distance learning and CD ROM based interactive educational and cultural projects, and web based national and international exchange opportunities. Inter-media and Hybrid Practice: Student research projects will focus on digital integration or hybrid practices including social design or art interventions, installations, exhibitions, compilation works that use cross-discipline means of expression, and include the integration of digital technology into the process or final production. Theoretical Investigations in Design Art: Student research projects will be used to investigate the theoretical constructs and discourse relating to the impact of digital technologies in art and design. This will also include the application of digital technologies for appropriate pedagogies and the development of innovative teaching methodology.

Component(s):

Lecture

Description:

The readings in this seminar will examine the ethical responsibilities, social impact, and cultural consequences of the new technologies in design art practice. The course will identify, situate and develop a language for dialogue and discourse. The issues considered will be on design ecology and ethics, gender polarization and biases, political strategies in the public sphere, and essential declarations of the digital era, in present and future technological environments.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

This course will explore the new opportunities designers have to fundamentally change the ways in which information is organized, manipulated and disseminated in the context of new communications technologies. The computer, as a medium for expression, will be explored through issues of cognition, metaphor, narrative structures, the creation of three dimensional objects and environments, symbolic interaction, information architecture and interactive visual navigational systems.

Component(s):

Lecture

Description:

This course approaches design and digital technologies through interdisciplinary theoretical engagement to investigate the cultural and discursive context in which design resides. Through a combination of seminar discussions, workshops, and individual writings, students situate their work in different environments, such as commercial, public or domestic contexts, and explore new venues of dissemination. Such investigations enhance students’ ability to contextualize, articulate and exhibit the thesis work.

Component(s):

Studio

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

Written permission of the Graduate Program Director is required. Independent study proposals must be supported by a full-time faculty supervisor and approved with written permission by the Graduate Program Director.

Description:

The student undertakes research in a specific field or topic relevant to their area of study.

Component(s):

Studio

Description:

This seminar develops a framework of practice-based and theoretical approaches that build the foundation of contemporary critical design practice and study. Drawing on examples and readings from a range of disciplines, students will explore design as a product, a practice, and a mode of social communication and investigate the cultural and discursive context in which design resides. The course will integrate the three program streams, namely visual communication, the built environment, and interaction design, and address the theme of sustainability as a timely concern for design practice.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

This course introduces students to a range of methodologies and strategies used to conduct research in design. Students will be exposed to the relationship that exists between research as a practice-based activity and research as theory-based inquiry and will have the opportunity to engage in the research process through studio work, writing, and presentations.

Component(s):

Seminar

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following courses must be completed previously: DART 600 and DART 601.

Description:

Through a combination of studio work, seminar discussions, workshops, and individual writings, students situate their work in different contexts, such as commercial, public, or domestic environments, and explore new venues for dissemination. Such investigations enhance students’ ability to contextualize, articulate, and exhibit the thesis work.

Component(s):

Seminar

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following courses must be completed previously: DART 600 and DART 601.

Description:

This seminar examines the question of how knowledge is produced and transferred through interdisciplinary design and scholarly practices. Topics include socio-cultural, environmental and economic sustainability, participatory design, collaborative methods, communities of practice, epistemic cultures, embodiment, and knowledge production. Readings will be drawn from a broad range of disciplines.

Component(s):

Seminar

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following courses must be completed previously: DART 610 and DART 611.

Description:

The Graduate Colloquium will foster a community of practice and research by exposing the students to a diversity of work and methods and developing understanding of disciplinary commonalities and differences. Through this colloquium series, presentations by students will be augmented with presentations by faculty, visiting researchers, and practicing designers.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives related to sustainability in terms of the environmental triad of ecological, socio-cultural and economic foci. Sustainable practice can refer to specific technical or scientific fields but also has a broader connotation towards integrative and enduring practices.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives related to the use of signs, icons, and visual symbols to convey ideas and communicate information. This includes graphic design, typography, illustration, and photography, as well as applications in information design, wayfinding, advertising, packaging, and electronic media.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives related to the structures, landscapes and spaces, both physical and virtual, in relation to the actions and activities that take place in them over time. This can include large-scale city planning, the design and conceptualization of living and workspaces, and the scale of object that are embedded in those spaces.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives related to the behaviour of an object or system in relation to its users or participants. Interaction design refers to design practices that embed electronics and computing capabilities into objects, materials, and devices, and it also describes the ways in which systems and processes produce form and structure over time.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives on contemporary Indigenous art and design in terms of the aesthetic, political, and cultural issues such work illuminates. The course focuses on digital media but may encompass other forms of Indigenous creative practice, including visual arts, performance, and writing.

Component(s):

Seminar

Description:

Topics may address a range of critical perspectives relevant to the evolution of design research.

Component(s):

Studio

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

Students must have completed 9 credits in the Master of Design program prior to enrolling. A cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher is required. Written permission of any faculty member of the Thesis Advisory Committee and the Graduate Program Director is required.

Description:

Students may enrol in a directed study under faculty supervision in order to undertake a specialized study of theoretical or research-creation related topics.

Component(s):

Seminar

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following course must be completed previously: DART 651. A cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher is required. Written permission of any faculty member of the Thesis Advisory Committee and the Graduate Program Director is required. 

Description:

Students may enrol in a directed study under faculty supervision in order to undertake a specialized study of theoretical or research-creation related topics.

Component(s):

Seminar

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

Students must have completed nine credits in the Master of Design program prior to enrolling. A cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher is required. A clearly defined written agreement between the student intern and the employer and written permission of any faculty member of the Thesis Advisory Committee and the Graduate Program Director is required. 

Description:

This course provides an opportunity for students to further develop their design research in a design firm, cultural organization or residency.

Component(s):

Practicum/Internship/Work Term

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following course must be completed previously: DART 671. A cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher is required. A clearly defined written agreement between the student intern and the employer, and written permission of any faculty member of the Thesis Advisory Committee and the Graduate Program Director is required. 

Description:

This course provides an opportunity for students to further develop their design research in a design firm, cultural organization or residency.

Component(s):

Practicum/Internship/Work Term

Prerequisite/Corequisite:

The following courses must be completed previously: DART 610 and DART 611.

Description:

The Master’s Research and Thesis will combine a body of work or practice-led research with a written thesis document of 40-55 pages that contextualizes the practice historically and theoretically and reflects critically on the process and production. A formal oral defense and a final public exhibition of the work or practice-led research are required.

Component(s):

Lecture; Thesis Research