If you are in this class, then you are interested in the Arts. Some of you are currently majors in Graphic Design or the Studio Arts and will make careers for yourselves in this field. Others are in the Humanities or Social Sciences and will appreciate the Arts in your spare time. This course will give you the opportunity to study this topic in depth and work on your writing.

Good writers generally regard writing as a very difficult process. Even though some seem to write beautiful prose without apparent effort, all of us have struggled and continue to struggle with the cumbersome tools of the trade (nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, subordinate clauses, gerunds, onomatopoeia, etc.) in order to write prose that is not only readable, but also persuasive, elegant and eloquent. We have found that a command of grammatical rules is not enough to accomplish this. We also need to have the ability to organize our thoughts well and anticipate the perspectives of our audience. In other words, the skills we need to write well are analogous to the skills a painter needs to paint well or that a poet needs to write good poetry, skills that include critical awareness in addition to technical mastery.

Consequently, this class begins with ideas and critical thinking skills before proceeding to the more formal rules of writing in specific formats such as the job application, the grant application and the press release. The subject matter will be art, a topic including but not limited to drama, fiction-writing, voice, film, sculpture, video, design, architecture, poetry, painting, lapidary, weaving, performance art, etching, playing the harmonica, and building spiral jetties in the Great Salt Lake. Along the way, we will review some of the nuts and bolts of writing and develop engaging and informative ways to write about art. All of this work will culminate in a series of presentations in which students in the class will choose an artist of interest and present that artist with examples of her or his work to the rest of the class.

Sylvan Barnett, A Short Guide to Writing about Art

William Gibson, Writing about Arts and Letters

Mary Laine Yarber and Robert E. Yarber, Reviewing Basic Grammar (RBG)

• In order for written work to receive a passing grade, it must adhere to the conventions of Standard Written English. This means that it must present its argument in a clear and grammatically correct manner with a minimum of spelling and other typographical errors.

• Show up to class on time and prepared to discuss the material for that day. Being late too many times can bring your participation grade down. More than three unexcused absences will have a negative impact on your grade, and more than five will result in failure in the course.

• Any infractions against UMD's Scholastic Dishonesty provisions in the Student Conduct Code as stated in the UMD catalogue will receive serious attention and appropriate penalties.

• Individuals who have any disability, either permanent or temporary, which might influence their ability to perform in this class, are encouraged to inform me at the start of the quarter. I can make special adaptations of teaching methods, assignments, materials, or testing as required to provide for equitable participation in the course. The Access Center is also available to assist students with disabilities. It is located in 138 Library and on the web at <http://www.d.umn.edu/access>.