2025
This will get adjusted as time goes on. It’s always hard to predict how fast we’ll be going. Guest lectures will be inserted as soon as they are scheduled, and lecture content will move accordingly. Zoom recordings and lecture note links will go live within a day or so of the class.
| Week | Monday | Wednesday | Friday |
| 1 | Jan 13
In person in Fleming 33. Simultaneous Zoom link is in Canvas; same link for the whole semester. Topics: Welcome, syllabus, initial assignments (login, survey, Upcycle Project etc) Please read the syllabus and initial assignments documents. Print if you want a hard copy. Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topic: Initial Assignments, Definition of art and aesthetics.
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topic: More art theory. Aesthetics Tour 1
Zoom recording, lecture notes Due: Syllabus agreement in Canvas, Slack signup, AesDes.org login
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| 2 | Jan 20
No class
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Topic: How to post. Upcycle specs and resources.
Zoom recording, lecture notes Blog Post 1 due: Aesthetic Exploration |
Topics: Lab and Fab resources: Idea Forge by TBD and BTU lab by Zack Weaver. Shade and shadow intro.
Zoom recording, lecture notes Due: CATME survey |
| 3
Due every Sunday night: Blog critiques |
Jan 27
Topics: Lab and Fab resources: ITLL (Rachael Sharpe). 2 point perspective sketching
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topics: Meet your team and pod. Team behaviors.
Zoom recording, lecture notes Blog Post 2: What is your Upcycling project? What is the aesthetic and why? |
Topics: 20th Century Timeline intro.
Zoom recording, Lecture notes |
| 4
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Feb 3
Topics: sketching – intro to perspective and boxes, 20th Century Timeline. Gothic Revival movement. Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topics: Team time. Rococo and Gothic Revival
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post 3: Upcycle progress. What progress have you made on your Upcycle project? Show your plans. What does your fabrication schedule look like? What materials have you collected? |
Topics: Arts and Crafts to Art Nouveau
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 5 | Feb 10
Topics: Arts and Crafts to Art Nouveau, cube sketching errors Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topics: Upcycle presentation logistics. International Style and Art Deco.
Zoom recording, lecture notes, Blog Post 4: What is the opposite of your Upcycling project aesthetic? Sketch and describe what this would look like. How might you enact this with the overall function and materials that you already have, or have planned? |
Topics: International Style to Organic Design. Critical Response Process.
Zoom recording, lecture notes, |
| 6 | Feb 17
Due: Upcycle project! Upcycle Presentations to your pod. Meet in your pod facilitator’s Zoom room, posted in Slack. Attendance is required. |
Upcycle Presentations to your pod. Meet in your pod facilitator’s Zoom room, posted in Slack. Attendance is required.
Post 5: Upcycle Design Report |
Upcycle Presentations to your pod. Meet in your pod facilitator’s Zoom room, posted in Slack. Attendance is required. |
| 7
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Feb 24
Topics: Ideation – Brainstorming, linear techniques and intuitive techniques. Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topics: More Ideation Techniques
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post 6: Main Project plans and inspirations |
Guest Lecture 1:
Attendance required Zoom recording, |
| 8 | March 3
Topics: Streamlining, Mid Century Modern. Shade and shadow sketching. Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topics: Design Preview specifications. Pop Art. Radical Design to Post-Modern.
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post 7: Main Project Aesthetics: Plans and Alternatives. Sketch your project in two wildly different aesthetics than the one you are planning. What if….?
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Topics: Magic Factor of 7 and Guest Lecture 2
Attendance required Zoom recording, lecture notes
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| 9 | March 10
Topics: Universal Principles of Design (UPD): Contour Bias and Aesthetic-Useability Effect Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Design Preview Presentations (Day 1) to your pod. Attendance is required. Design Preview Specs Post 8: Design Preview Report |
Topics: Guest lecture 3
Attendance required
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 10 | March 17
Design Preview Presentations (Day 2) to your pod. Meet in your pod facilitator’s Zoom room, posted in Slack. Attendance is required. |
Design Preview Presentations (Day 3) to your pod. Meet in your pod facilitator’s Zoom room, posted in Slack. Attendance is required.
No post is due. |
Topics: Aesthetics Game! You don’t want to miss this!
Lecture notes, no zoom recording Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 11 | March 24 Spring Break
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Break
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Break
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| 12 | March 31
Aesthetics Game recap. Universal Principles of Design: Supernormal stimuli. Sketching, ellipses Zoom recording, lecture notes
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Topics: UPD – Black, white, red effects. Also sketching vertical and horizontal cylinders
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post 9: Top 5 specifications, top 5 constraints. What are the top 5 things you want your project to look like, to feel like, to do? What are the aspects that will tell you you’ve succeeded in your project? What are you prioritizing? Next, what are the top 5 constraints you face? Time, money, skills, supplies, ideas, room to work? Which ones will be the toughest to deal with?
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Topics: Color nomenclature, Pantone, vertical cylinder sketching.
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 13 | April 7
Topics: Geometric aesthetics Zoom Recording, lecture notes |
Topics: The Chair. Thonet, bentwood and flat-pack.
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post 10: Progress |
Topic: The Chair – Bauhaus to Eames
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 14 | April 14
Topics: Eames to Post Modern Zoom recording, lecture notes |
Topic: Final report and presentation specs
Zoom recording, lecture notes Post None! Work on your project. |
Guest Lecture, attendance required
Zoom recording, lecture notes |
| 15 | April 21
Topics: design competitions Zoom recording, lecture notes
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Final Design Presentations to your pod. Attendance is required.
Due: your project! Fabrication should be complete. Documentation only from here on out. Post 11: Final Report Part 1 – What |
No class. Instead, go to the Mech E Senior Projects Design Expo. Analyze the project aesthetics you see. Use the Critical Response process to give feedback. |
| 16 | April 28
Final Design Presentations to your pod. Attendance is required. Expo Needs survey due. |
Last regular class meeting.
Final Design Presentations to your pod. Attendance is required. Post 12 : Final Report Part 2 – How |
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| 17 | Final Exam Slot Weds May 7, 1:30 – 4 pm
AesDes Expo at the Idea Forge. Live showing of work. In person and zoom (for truly remote students). Final revisions and any late work due at noon.1:30 – 4 pm Post 13: Portfolio |