Honors

The Artist as Naturalist – A Drawing Course

HON 398 - Professor Colleen McGuire

This drawing course will explore periods in art where nature has been used as a catalyst for personal expression and scientific investigation. Traditional drawing tools and approaches will be used to create drawings based on observations gleaned from walks at the Charles Ives Nature preserve.  A multi-faceted approach will be taken so that the course meets the individual interests of the honors student. The course will be divided into projects, beginning with a lecture which focuses on a period in art, examining the sociological, philosophical and scientific influences of the time period, followed by a drawing response.  The course will culminate in a final project that reflects the student’s personal interests regarding the natural world. While drawing and artistic expression is the main focus of this course, Weekly written reflections will deepen the students understanding of nature and their relationship to it, with the intention of cross-pollination among disciplines.