Course Syllabus

Course Information

ATEC 6331.001: Aesthetics of Interactive Arts

Thursday 4.00-6.45 pm

Professor Contact Information

Dr. Mihai Nadin

ATEC Building, Office 1.618
(972) 883-2832
nadin@utdallas.edu
Office Hours: Mondays 2:00 - 4:00 pm or by appointment.

Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions

This is a required graduate class. If an undergraduate student wishes to take it, ATEC approval is
required.

Course Description

Aesthetics is present in everything we do. It is the underlying “logic of senses,” and as such it is
expressed in the ways in which we perceive the world.

Students in this class will practice aesthetics as it relates to their educational focus. The outcome
of this class is expressed in:

a) Knowledge of aesthetics as it shaped, and continues to shape, our own activity

b) Aesthetic skills expressed in aesthetic value judgments and aesthetic innovation in the
age of interactive media and computational design.

The class will engage students in reading and reporting on foundational texts, in particular,
informational aesthetics. Students will also explore the aesthetics of innovation and the aesthetic
experiment. Guest lecturers will cover the “hot” topics of current developments (interactivity,
immersion, virtuality, etc.). New media is of particular interest to our explorations. You are asked
to practice aesthetics. Students will be encouraged to post class-work on the website conceived
for this class. Given the many choices open to students in ATEC, the class will also serve as an
open forum for defining the students’ focus in the program.

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Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes

The outcome of this graduate class can be compared to the outcome of a class in mathematics for
future scientists and engineers. Indeed, they will not become mathematicians, but should
be able to apply the powerful means of mathematics to the problems they will resolve as
scientists or engineers.
In our class, aesthetics is seen as the “mathematics” art and design, in particular, of interactive
arts. More precisely, it provides a foundation for understanding the characteristics of
interactive arts, for experimenting, for advancing innovation. Concretely, the students
will explore:
a) Knowledge of aesthetics, as it shaped, and it continues to shape, human activity in
general, and in particular the emerging interactive forms of aesthetic expression
b) Aesthetic skills, expressed in aesthetic value judgments and aesthetic innovation in the
age of interactive media and computational design.
c) Aesthetic judgment as an expression of aesthetic knowledge-based evaluation.

Required Textbooks and Materials

• Mihai Nadin, The Civilization of Illiteracy, Book IV, Chapter 1 (Language and the
Visual), Chapter 8 (Art(ifacts) and Aesthetic Processes), Chapter 10 (The Sense of
Design), and Book V, Chapter 1 (The Interactive Future: Individual, community and
Society in the Age of the Web). Additionally: The chapters “Language and the Visual”
(pp. 321-352); “Science and Philosophy” (especially pp. 511-524); “The Sense of
Design” (pp. 590-611); and “A Sense of the Future” (pp. 729-767 will be discussed in
class. This book is available in its entirety on the Web. A limited number of copies will
be offered for sale at the University Bookstore, at a discounted price for students.

• Mihai Nadin, Anticipation—The End Is Where We Start From. Basel: Muller Verlag,
2003. It will be offered for sale in the University Bookstore at a discounted price for
students.

• Mercedes Vilanova and Frederic Chorda, A Mind at Work, Synchron Publishers, 2003,
pp. 7-32 and 167-197. The book will be offered for sale at the University Bookstore at a
discounted price for students.

• Mihai Nadin, Science and Beauty: Aesthetic structuring of Knowledge, Leonardo, 24/1,
1991. The article will be made available to students.

• Mihai Nadin, Emergent Aesthetics. Aesthetic Issues in Computer Arts., Leonardo,

Special Issue: Computer Art in context, august 1989. The article will be made available
to students.

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 • Malcolm Gladwell, The formula. What if you built a machine to predict hit movies? In
The New Yorker, 10/16, 2006. The article will be made available to students. It is also
posted on the website of The New Yorker.

• Gaut, Berys Nigel and Lopes, Dominic, The Routledge companion to aesthetics
[electronic resource], NetLibrary, 2005. Available as eBook at the McDermott Library of
UTD.

• computer art. To be provided on line or print-out.

Suggested Course Materials

Storage (regardless of the procedure): Maintain a digital library of examples (painting,

sculpture, music, literature, computer art, interactive works, etc.) to be shared in
class. Respect strictly academic and intellectual property procedures when quoting
a work or when presenting it as an example.

Assignments & Academic Calendar

Week 1: August 27th. Guest lecture: Aesthetics of music. Prof. Frank Dufour
Do NOT miss the opportunity. It is high quality content!

Assignment 1: Define your own aesthetics. Create an interactive presentation of

your aesthetics (Flash, Website, PowerPoint, animation—It’s up to you).
Post your presentation on the class Website. Due September 3rd
Reading: chapter on history of aesthetics in Gaut, Berys Nigel and Lopes,
Dominic, The Routledge companion to aesthetics [electronic resource],
NetLibrary, 2005. Available as eBook at the McDermott Library of UTD.

Week 2: September 3:
Class presentation of first assignment
Aesthetics in the age of computation
Assignment 2: Write a report on the assigned reading. Try to define what has
changed since 1989. Due September 10
Reading: Mihai Nadin, Emergent Aesthetics. Aesthetic Issues in Computer Arts,
Leonardo, Special Issue: Computer Art in Context, August 1989.

Week 3: September 10
Is aesthetics deterministic?
Assignment 3: Can you imagine a machine that will generate aesthetic artifacts?
Based upon the purpose you define for your aesthetic machine, prepare a
presentation to the class of how such a machine will work and what kind of
artifacts it will eventually produce. You can use digital means (such as modeling,
software, animation, interactive diagrams), or you can use traditional means
(clay, wood, or paper models). The project and your current competence dictate

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 the medium you will use; but you will have to justify your choice of medium
and explain how the machine you conceived works.
Within 2 weeks, “make” an aesthetic machine: a program, a device, or an
illustration. Show the input variables, the machine state, the output. Make a
professional presentation of your machine.
Presentation in class: October 1
Reading: Malcolm Gladwell, The formula. What if you built a machine to
predict hit movies? In The New Yorker, 10/16, 2006.

Week 4 september 17
Information aesthetics: Foundation and Principles
Assignment 4: What is information aesthetics? How can it guide you in your
work? Due February 19
Reading: Arie Altena, Lucas van der Velden, Max Bense, Georg Nees, Frieder
Nake (to be provided)

Week 5 september 24
Defining your semester project: Aesthetics at work applied to your own
interactive arts focus. How do you define your academic goals? How will your
graduate education contribute to your long term professional goals? What role
will aesthetics play? Start defining this major project in class.

Week 6: October 1
Presentation of your aesthetic machine. Each student will have 15 minutes for the
presentation. Each assignment will be graded by the class.

Week 7: October 8
Visit the Nasher Sculpture Center. Your visit will be the basis of our assignment.
Assignment 5: Define the aesthetic characteristics of one of the exhibited works.
Due: October 29

Week 8: October 15
First class presentation of final project proposal (what you intend to do). Define
the subject, what the final product will be, evaluation criteria.
.
Week 9: October 22
Second class presentation of final project. In the second part of the class, your
YouTube project will be defined (Surprise!).

Week 10: October 29

Present Assignment 5
Class test. A concrete example of interactive arts, to be chosen from the variety
of directions pursued by the students in class, will give you a chance to apply the
knowledge acquired so far. You can use any medium for applying your aesthetic
knowledge.

Week 11: November 5

How do we evaluate the aesthetics of interactive arts? As a future professional,
you have to be aware of the evaluation process. You have to develop methods
that will allow you to evaluate the aesthetic quality of your work and the work of
those you will interact with.

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Week 12: November 12
Aesthetics in context. The difference between American, German, Japanese, etc.
is the result not only of cultural differences, but also of a context: differences in
the practical experience.
Assignment: Prepare examples characteristic of your own region and/or country.
Due: November 19
Reading: “The Sense of Design” (pp. 590-611); and “A Sense of the Future” (pp.
729-767) in The Civilization of Illiteracy.

Week 13: November 19th

Presentation of examples characteristic of your own region and/or country.

Week 14: November 26--Thanksgiving

Week 15: December 3rd

FINAL Project Presentation and posting on the Web. Continued presentation
of YouTube projects

Grading Policy

During the Semester, reading, independent research, acquisition of software skills and class
participation – in the form of short presentations and discussions – will be evaluated. The final
project, supposed to be the expression of your semester-long research and independent work –
will make up 50% of your grade. The remaining 50% will be accumulated through class
attendance, class participation, and weekly assignments. The following is a breakdown of the
grades:
Attendance 10%
Class Participation 25%
Individual Assignments 15%
Final Project & Presentation 50%

Course & Instructor Policies

No make-up exams, no late work, no extra-credit. All work must be presented in on time to the
class. Class attendance is very important. Make sure you are on time and ready to learn!

Field Trip Policies

Some assignments require that you visit some Dallas locations on your own Please take such
visits seriously since they will serve as a basis for your work.

Student Conduct & Discipline

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 The University of Texas System and The University of Texas at Dallas have rules and regulations
for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business. It is the responsibility of each student and
each student organization to be knowledgeable about the rules and regulations which govern
student conduct and activities. General information on student conduct and discipline is contained
in the UTD publication, A to Z Guide, which is provided to all registered students each academic
year.

The University of Texas at Dallas administers student discipline within the procedures of
recognized and established due process. Procedures are defined and described in the Rules and
Regulations, Board of Regents, The University of Texas System, Part 1, Chapter VI, Section 3, and
in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities of the university’s Handbook of Operating
Procedures. Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the
Dean of Students, where staff members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and
regulations (SU 1.602, 972/883-6391).

A student at the university neither loses the rights nor escapes the responsibilities of citizenship.
He or she is expected to obey federal, state, and local laws as well as the Regents’ Rules,
university regulations, and administrative rules. Students are subject to discipline for violating the
standards of conduct whether such conduct takes place on or off campus, or whether civil or
criminal penalties are also imposed for such conduct.

Academic Integrity

The faculty expects from its students a high level of responsibility and academic honesty. Because
the value of an academic degree depends upon the absolute integrity of the work done by the
student for that degree, it is imperative that a student demonstrate a high standard of individual
honor in his or her scholastic work.

Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, statements, acts or omissions related to
applications for enrollment or the award of a degree, and/or the submission as one’s own work or
material that is not one’s own. As a general rule, scholastic dishonesty involves one of the
following acts: cheating, plagiarism, collusion and/or falsifying academic records. Students
suspected of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary proceedings.

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