Location/Time/Instructor/Etc:
ARTS 445: Net Art
Spring 2018, University of Illinois
3 hours credit
4-6:40pm, Monday/Wednesday
Room 225 ADB
Instructor: Ben Grosser

Overview:
This course is about net art….  Read more…

Prerequisites:
For New Media majors, successful completion of ARTS 344: Interaction I, or consent of instructor

Learning Goals:
By the end of the semester, students in this course will:

• become familiar with major works of net art
• feel comfortable manipulating existing websites using free tools for live editing of HTML/CSS
• be able to write Userscripts that manipulate websites programmatically
• know how to package Userscripts as Chrome extensions and post them on the Chrome Web Store
• understand some basics of coding in Javascript with jQuery
• document net art work with video and image
• be comfortable describing and defending their net-based artwork in terms of strategy and meaning
• think critically about the internet, the web, and software

Required Supplies:
USB thumb drive, Google Drive account, Box account, or some other way of storing files.
Notebook & pen/pencil!  For notes and visual thinking.  Important!!
Headphones (so you can work with sound w/o bothering others).

Submitting Projects and Project Management:
All projects will require submissions of work and project documentation via the blog. We’ll talk about how to do all of this in class. Github is an optional alternative.

Facilities:
You are responsible for following the A+D computing facilities guidelines.
You will be assessed a facility access fee of $95 for using the A+D labs.

Other Costs:
You will have to spend $5 on a one-time Google Developer account so you can post your projects on the Google Web Store.

Facebook, Texting, Phone, Etc.:
When anyone is presenting, whether it’s myself as instructor or your peers during critique, do not disrespect the presenter by texting or otherwise paying attention to your phone. When we are in lab mode (individual work time), you are free to use whatever device you want, but please keep diversions to a minimum.

Contacting Ben:
You can email me at grosser [at] illinois [dot] edu.  If you do so, please put ARTS445 as the first part of the subject line so I can easily track it!

Attendance:
Regular attendance is required.  Sometimes I’ll present important material needed for the completion of your projects.  Other times will include presentations by you or your colleagues, as well as individual work time.  During that work time I will be available for consultation and help when you get stuck.  You need to attend all classes to get the most benefit.

Because of this, excessive absences (4 or more) will result in the lowering of your final grade by 1/2 letter for each additional absence.  Only absences resulting from illness or other documentable circumstances (such as a family emergency or emergency hospital/doctor visit) will be “excused”. If you can notify me of an absence beforehand, please do so. All other absences will be counted. Two late arrivals to class will constitute one absence.  If you show up without required work (e.g not prepared to present on critique day) you will be considered absent and your project grade will suffer. If you don’t agree to abide by this policy then you should drop the class immediately.

Participation:
Regular participation is an important part of this class. 5% of your grade is dependent on this and I will grade accordingly. If you don’t speak in critique or in other class discussions you will lose that 5%. School is a privileged (and unusual) environment for learning to speak about things before you understand them well. Take advantage of it!

Grading Criteria:
The artwork created in and for this class will be evaluated and graded according to the following criteria, and is not a relative scale based on the output of the class (i.e. no bell curve guarantee):

A: outstanding; thoughtful and intelligent ideas presented in a clear, organized, and engaging manner; both concept and execution illustrate critical thinking and engagement with course material.

B: good; the ideas are interesting and successfully presented; shows potential, but not necessarily distinctive.

C: mediocre; achieves minimum requirements of the assignment, but not particularly clear, successful, or ambitious.

D: poor; does not satisfy the minimum requirements of the assignment; generally unsatisfactory in terms of quality and clarity.

F: you probably didn’t submit a finished assignment.

Grade Calculation:
Your final grade will be determined roughly as follows (including attendance):

10%: Project 0
70%: Projects 1-7 (10% each)
15%: Project 8
5%: Participation

Integrity and Nondiscrimination:
Be aware of the University’s Policy on Academic Integrity + Nondiscrimination as they apply to this class.