In my courses, I generally start the semester with assignments that involve strict limitations and focus on fundamentals. My assignments build on each other, and requirements become less restrictive as the semester progresses. I like to include one or two final assignments that provide a lot of autonomy, allowing the students to make decisions, create something personally meaningful, and apply the principles they’ve learned over the course of the semester. In 2D Design we moved from basic principles of composition and color theory to a conceptual self portrait. I experimented with a variety of assignments over the 3 semesters that I taught this course. Here are examples of student work from some of my 2D Design assignments.

Text Collage

I would start the semester working with geometric black and white shapes. The text collage assignment uses black and white shapes on a grid to explore relationships between positive and negative space. Students could use text to add texture and variety. They were encouraged to establish a clear focal point.

4 seasons

This class included an introduction to color theory. In this assignment, students came up with a geometric composition based on the golden section. They repeated the composition four times, using different color schemes to express the four seasons.

master copy

In this assignment, students selected a master painting from art history to copy, using acrylics. This allowed the students to explore the way these painters used color, in order to inform the students’ own use of color.

Final Project: Self Portrait

In this assignment students were asked to create a self portrait that both expressed an aspect of their personality, and related to their major. It had to demonstrate at least three of the principles learned over the course of the semester. It could be a traditional self portrait, or a more conceptual expression of themselves. They had to submit a proposal, explaining how their plan fit the requirements both formally and conceptually. They were allowed to use any medium, as long as they already had some experience with it.