ART 101 Drawing I (3)
This is a broad foundation course that introduces a variety of drawing techniques, approaches and subject matter. A focus on observational drawing improves the student's ability to "see" (visual perception) and develops technical drawing skills. Projects are designed to enhance the understanding and use of formal elements, principles and composition while exploring drawing's creative and expressive potential. subject matter includes still life, landscape, interiors, and the figure. Studio projects are augmented by critiques, visual presentations, and discussion. Sketchbook/journal required.

ART 103 Design Lab (3)
The main goal of Design Lab I is to solve design (world?) problems through creative design solutions. In learning how to visually communicate in imaginative ways, you’re seeking to radically alter how people look at and perceive the world around them. You will become an effective and imaginative cultural producer. For this course, students will use some of the digital creative software found in the Adobe Creative Suite, as well as other digital software. Other techniques include collage, drawing, photography, printmaking, and videography.

ART 106 FYS: Selfie (3)
An exploration of the self investigated through contemporary forms of imaging and visualization. This course will ask how images shape our perceptions of who we are, how they help to define the enduring contours of each generation and establish a sense of personal and communal place in the historical continuum. Exploratory activities may include work with digital and analog photography, video, holography and other imaging methodologies. Journals, and other observational writings are included.  Requirements: Phone with camera and a willingness to view the world through varied lenses. Gen ed: Creative & Performing Arts

ART 112  Earth Art (3)
Earth artists have been exploring the fragility of nature in a changing world, but the body's place and its relationship to earth, ephemerality, and human values in relation to humanity's future for many years.  Whether you are an artist or not, the COVID pandemic has forced us to reconsider all the above.  This course will explore works by Earth Artists:  Joan Jonas, Ana Mendieta, Andy Goldsworthy, and Agnes Denes, to name a few.  Researching the work that Earth Artists have made in the past, students will then create works of their own while reflecting on their own current situation, utilizing the outside grounds of the Saint Mary's campus.

ART 125 Silkscreen (3)
Introduction to the various methods of screen printing, with exploration of color, tone, and texture as the natural result of the process. 

ART 221 Photography I (3)
Introductory black and white photography. Students study the basic elements necessary for control in the exposure, development, and printing of photographic materials. Initial exploration of the medium stresses consideration of its visual and aesthetic dimensions through a creative problem­ solving approach. (Variable shutter/aperture camera required)

ART 224 Video Art (3)
This course introduces the medium of video as an art form and will explore, in theory and practice, issues of space, time, and action. Proficiencies in camera use, storyboarding, lighting, digital editing, and presentation will be developed. The use of video for artistic expression will be supported by readings and the viewing and discussion of works by video artists.

ART 290 Digital Fabrication: Graphics, Objects, and Environments (3)
In this studio-based, makerspace course, students will explore the intersection of digital fabrication, environmental graphic design, and sculpture. Emphasis is placed on how emerging tools—such as laser cutting, 3D printing, and large-format UV printing—shape creative practices and influence how we think about making, materiality, and spatial experience in a technology-driven culture.  Students will investigate what it means to create objects within a material culture mediated by digital tools. How is our sense of craft redefined when production is driven by machines? Through hands-on projects, students will learn vector-based design using Adobe Illustrator and 3D modeling in Fusion 360, developing work that spans sculptural, spatial, and graphic outcomes. Projects may include layered surfaces, site-responsive graphic installations, and public or semi-public interventions. Discussions will address evolving ideas of objecthood, authorship, and materiality in the context of digital culture.  Pre-req:  Some previous knowledge with Adobe Illustrator

Multiple dance courses may be used to satisfy the Creative & Artistic Expression requirement as long as they add up to at least three credit hours. Students receive two credits for technique courses taken for the first time and one credit for subsequent enrollment in the same level technique course.

DANC 144 Modern Dance Technique: Beginning (1 or 2)
An introduction to movement concepts of modern dance. Designed for students with no previous movement training. May be repeated for one credit. 1.000 OR 2.000 Credit hours

DANC 145 Ballet Technique: Beginning (2)
An introduction to basic ballet technique and terminology. Designed for students with no previous movement training. May be repeated for one credit.

DANC 148 Jazz Technique: Beginning (2)
A practical course in contemporary jazz technique hip hop and lyrical styles. May be repeated for one credit.

DANC 245 Ballet Technique: Intermediate (2)
A technique course with an emphasis on correct alignment and proper execution of barre and center exercises. May be repeated for one credit.

DANC 345 Ballet Technique: Advanced (2)
A continuation of ballet technique with an emphasis on accuracy, style, intricate combinations, strength, endurance, and a more extensive vocabulary; may be repeated for one credit.

ENWR 202W Introduction to Creative Writing (4) 
This special section of Introduction to Creative Writing will teach you the basics of writing poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, while also fulfilling the "W" requirement. Every student will write original, creative work in all three genres, and we'll use the fourth hour to write a series of thesis-driven papers related to creative writing that will help fulfill the requirements of the "W" portfolio. Class time will be split between reading published works of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction, writing exercises designed to teach you the basics of creative writing, and full-class workshops. This class will help you strengthen your writing skills at large, learn about the arts, and practice creatively-focused, imaginative problem-solving. This course provides students the opportunity to earn the Basic Writing Proficiency requirement.

MUS 160 FYS: Finding Your Voice – Using Music to Express Your Creative Side (3)
Creative problem solving is one of the skills most valued by employers in today’s world. Creativity is inside all of us, and is a proficiency that can be developed through creating in the arts. In this course, students will work with music to exercise creativity, self-expression, and critical thinking. Students will learn vocabulary and strategies to listen to music on a deeper level and to analyze how music can be a force for social justice, play simple instruments like guitar or ukulele, and use computer software to create music of their own. The focus of this class is how to make learning in the creative arts more equitable by exploring how tools like technology can empower students with or without a background in music to make creative choices. This course is a First Year Seminar. 

MUS 162 FYS: Her Song, Our Story (3)
What’s in a song? And how do music and the arts change us, and make our world a better place?  This course will introduce students to a variety of historical and global female musicians (and other artists), from Hildegard of Bingen to Taylor Swift and beyond.  We will engage closely with specific songs (a term we will interpret loosely), researching their backgrounds and learning different ways to listen to and interpret music—and our reactions to it!  We will also actively participate in the larger story of women in music, exploring a variety of creative practices throughout the semester such as singing and writing our own songs.  (No previous musical experience required!)  Students in this course will grow as musicians and music lovers, as songs will bring us together and also help us to learn about ourselves, our world, and ways that we can make a difference. This course is a First Year Seminar. 

MUS 111–131 Applied Music: Private Lessons — Instrumental or Voice (1–2 credits)
Multiple courses may be used to satisfy the Creative and Performing Arts requirement as long as they add up to at least three credit hours. Lessons are offered for voice, piano, and all brass, string, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Fees are $415 per semester for a half-hour lesson a week (one semester hour of credit), and $620 per semester for a 50-minute lesson a week (two semester hours of credit).

MUSIC ENSEMBLE

Students may enroll for ensemble courses that offer one hour of credit per semester. Auditions are required before acceptance into any of the choral ensembles. After you arrive on campus, sign up for an audition appointment in Moreau Hall, Room 309. If you are selected for one of the groups, you may add the course to your schedule through PRISM or at Student Academic Services (166 Le Mans Hall).

MUS 201 Collegiate Choir (1)
A treble choir that performs primarily on campus. Goals include developing excellent individual and group tone quality, working toward clear and proper diction, and strengthening aural and music reading abilities. Performs quality treble repertoire, both sacred and secular, in 2–4 parts. Membership by audition only. Auditions will take place during August orientation through the first week of classes.

MUS 203 Belles Voix (1)
This is the College’s select treble ensemble which performs music of all periods with an emphasis on new music. The choir regularly commissions and records new works, takes national concert tours every other year, and makes regular Carnegie Hall appearances. The ensemble performs biennially with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra and hosts the annual High School Treble Choir Festival. Membership is by audition only which will take place during August orientation through the first week of classes. 

THTR 145 FYS: Event Planning: Be the host to toast & plan like a boss (3)
Learn about the tools needed to create successful events, from business meetings to extravagant cultural affairs, from logistical needs to examining the deeper purpose for meaningful, impactful experiences. With focus on how the diversity of participants and how their collective investment can increase the value of an experience, the class will learn good planning practices that provide authentic opportunities and experiences for all involved.   Classroom exercises explore making schedules, communication techniques, budget setting, and venue considerations. In class activities will develop team building, leadership training, and goal setting. Course readings and discussions will examine purpose and embracing differences. Course projects will use real world scenarios for event planning, and each will be presented for class feedback with an emphasis on creative problem solving and how to prepare for the unexpected! Skills and experiences from this course can be useful in life beyond the classroom in both professional and personal life.  This course is a First Year Seminar. 

THTR 135 Introduction to Theatre (3)
This course is designed to introduce students to the art, practice, and enjoyment of theatre. Participants will learn through lecture, assigned readings, hands-on exercises, and demonstrations about the elements of a theatrical production. As often as possible, students will be invited to learn about the theatre by “doing” (i.e. acting in a scene rather than simply talking about it). The course structure assumes that while the student may never choose to participate in a play she will, hopefully, enjoy attending the theatre long after the course ends.

THTR 140 The Joy of Exploring the Broadway Musical (3)
The Broadway Musical is a unique, influential, and popular art form that has come into being only in the last half of the 20th century. Students in this course will discover the range of the Broadway Musical from 1940 to the present and will develop a deeper understanding of the components which make the musical function as a unique art form. They will study the place of female characters and performers in the genre. And they will become familiar with the ways that the musical has both reflected, hindered and advanced the place of women, heteronormativity and queer consciousness in the larger US and world society. Students will deepen their enjoyment of the musical by developing a deeper understanding of how the musical developed, how it interacts with society now, and what makes this powerful art form unique.

THTR 205 Introduction to Acting (3)
Exploration of the elements of a realistic acting technique using games, improvisations and exercises, culminating in two-character scenes later in the semester.