Syllabus
 
Photo 1
History of Photography
Summer 2009 Tuesday & Thursday 6:30 - 10 pm
section 56243

Instructor Denise Johnson
email: djohnson@theslideprojector.com or denise.johnson@chaffey.edu
Voice mail: 909-652-7867

Course Description

This course will explore the history of photography from its foundations in the Renaissance to its ever evolving position in the 21st century.  Visual language and art terminology will be used to examine photographs from a wide assortment of historical, social, political and personal contexts.  During this investigation, students will be encouraged to develop and maintain a critical eye that takes nothing for granted and is actively engaged in questioning.  Through this critical examination, students will gain a general level of knowledge, understanding and appreciation for photography and its history. 

This is a 3-unit UC/CSU course.

Required Text
Marien, Mary Warner. Photography: A Cultural History . Second ed.  Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Halll, 2006.

Instructional Website

This course will be taught from the instructional website: www.theslideprojector.com.   Lecture presentations, assignments, and other course materials will be available to students at this site, and you will need to access it regularly.  Please let the instructor know if you do not have access to the internet.

 
Attendance

Good attendance is essential to your success!  While you will not be graded directly on your attendance, numerous absences are sure to negatively affect your grade.

The deadline to add this course is June 14.  If you wish to drop this course, it is your responsibility to submit a drop card to the Admissions Office by July 15.

 
Be Kind

Please DO NOT use cell phones and other electronic devices (for text messaging, music listening, etc.) during class.  If you receive an emergency message during class, please leave the classroom and return when you can commit your attention to class discussion.

 
Special Accommodations

Please discuss any special accommodations you require with the instructor as soon as possible.  If you are having difficulty in any class, you are strongly encouraged to contact the DSPS office at 941-2379 for information regarding the valuable resources that are available.

 
Cheating and Plagiarism Policy
Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated. If the instructor finds evidence that a student is involved in cheating or plagiarism, the student will receive an F on the assignment and further action may be considered.


Grading
Students will be graded on 7 worksheets, 2 exams, a final exam, the Writing About Art assignment, an Exhibition Review, a Research Paper, and on class participation. There are 500 points possible in this class.
Grades will be available online August 7.
 
The grading scale is as follows:
A
  100 - 90% 500 - 448 points
   
A+
  500 - 483
   
A
  482 - 466
   
A-
  465 - 448
B
  89 - 80% 447 - 398
   
B+
  447 - 433
   
B
  432 - 418
   
B-
  417 - 398
C
  79 - 70% 397 - 348
   
C+
  397 - 373
   
C
  372 -348
D
  69 - 60% 349 - 300
   
D+
  349 - 333
   
D
  332 - 328
   
D-
  327 - 300
F
  59% - or less 299 - 0

 

Worksheets - 7 @ 20 = 140 points

Students are required to complete 7 worksheets, worth a maximum of 20 points.  You may choose any combination of the full credit worksheets to submit.  Points are earned for effort – an incomplete assignment will NOT receive points.

 Up to 2 extra credit worksheets may be completed for a maximum of 15 points.

 
  Writing About Art - 10 points
 

This assignment is designed to familiarize students with strategies for writing about art and the basic logic behind MLA style in-text citations.  The Writing about Art worksheet is worth a maximum of 10 points and will prepare students for writing their exhibition review and research paper.

   
Exhibition Review - 40 points

Students are required to visit a museum or gallery showing photographic works and to write a 2 to 3 page review of one work on exhibit.  Seeing a photo online does NOT count!  Specific exhibitions and museums showing modern and contemporary art are recommended on the last page of this syllabus.  The Exhibition Review will be worth a maximum of 40 points. 

   
  Research Paper - 5 + 5 + 90 = 100 points
 

Students are required to write an individual research paper on a topic or artist relevant to this course.  This paper should follow MLA guidelines, and at least three credible sources of information originating in print should be cited within the body of the text.  The paper should reflect extensive research as well as personal insights and interpretations.  In preparation, students will be asked to submit a research topic report and source report, each worth 5 points.  The paper itself will be worth a maximum of 90 points.

 
Exams - 2 @ 50 + 1 @ 100 = 200 points
 

Exams #1 and #2 will be worth 50 points each and will consist of image i.d.s, multiple choice, fill-in-the blank, and short-answer essay questions.

The final exam will be worth 100 points, and will be cumulative.

   
  Participation - 10 points

Students will earn up to 10 points based on their active participation in class discussions, positive attendance and general commitment to learning.

   
  Extra Credit
 

Multiple opportunities to earn extra credit will be announced during class.  However, students are limited to earning a maximum of 40 extra credit points during the semester for any combination of opportunities.

 
Late Policy

You may turn one assignment in late by one class day.  The late assignment will not be marked down but no other late assignments will be accepted afterwards.

 
Miscellaneous Assignment Information

Students should plan on spending three hours reading, doing homework assignments and studying for tests for every hour spent in class.  That's about 53 hours of Photo 1 study time this semester :0)

Please DO NOT complete assignments in class.  Assignments should be turned in at the beginning of class.  Any work done during class will NOT be given credit.

Exams may NOT be made up.  If you have extenuating circumstances that prevent you from being able to take an exam, please discuss your options with the instructor BEFORE the exam takes place.

 
Success Centers

Students are highly encouraged to make use of the resources and consultation services available at the Writing Center, located in the library (909) - 652 – 6820 and the Rancho Success Center in the Educational Excellence Building (909) 652 – 6932.  The Writing and Rancho Success Centers are open: Monday – Thursday from 9 am to 7 pm, closed on Friday, Saturday from 9 am to 12 pm and closed on Sunday.

 

Class Schedule and Required Reading
Please complete and be prepared to discuss the assigned readings before the date they will be presented in class. This is a tentative schedule, and may be changed by the instructor at any point during the semester according to the needs of the class.
 
* italicized title = article provided online
Date
Discussion Topic
Assignment Due
June 9
Introduction
 
Chapters 1 & 2
 
June 11
Developing Techniques
 
Chapters 3 & 4
 
 
June 16
Photographic Objectivity?
Pages 80 - 85 & 99 - 127
June 18
Imaging the Other
Research Topic Report
 
Pages 143 - 163 & 202 - 209
 
June 23
Exam #1
 
June 25
Between Art & Science
 
Pages 85 - 98, 127 - 143 & 209 - 216
 
June 30
Impact of the Hand-Held
 
 
Pages 164 - 171
 
July 2
Pictorialism
 
 

Pages 171 - 196

 
July 7
Modernism
 
 
Pages 197 - 202 & 227 - 268
July 9
Healing the Madness
 
 

Pages 268 - 294
Games of the Doll

 
July 14
Imaging America
 
Pages 276 - 344
July 16
Exam #2
 
 
Landscape of Signs
 
Pages 344 - 350 & 364 - 370
 
July 21
Through the Lens of Culture
 
 

Pages 350 - 363 & 371 - 385
America Seen Through Photographs Darkly

July 23
Postmodernism
 
 
July 28
The Death of Photography?
 
 
July 30
Final Exam
 

 

Recommended Exhibitions Including Photographic Works
Venue
Dates

In Focus: The Portrait

The Getty Center

through June 14

Robert Frank's The Americans

MOCA Grand

June 14 - October 19

Shirin Neshat: In Conversation

LACMA Bing Theatre

June 15 at 8 pm (tickets required)

Jo Ann Callis: Woman Twirling

The Getty Center

through August 9

Agent Orange

UCR/ CA Museum of Photography

through August 29

Sight Unseen

UCR/ CA Museum of Photography

through August 29

Downstream

Huntington Museum

through September 28

Re-figurative Ordering dnj Gallery
through August 29
  154 1/2 North La Brea Ave  
  Los Angeles, CA 90036  

 

 

|
|
|
|
|
|