Benjamin Franklin Scholars Seminar fnar 238/538 –401 ...

Open Book, page 2
p r e r e q u i s i t e s , e x p e c t a t i o n s , r e q u i r e m e n t s
There are no prerequisites for this course.
The class is intended for students who are strongly motivated to pursue a particular interest,
and who can work independently—that means with plenty of feedback and support but little
supervision.
Because most of the work will be done outside of class, you will be expected to self-direct your
work, both in terms of adhering to a (self-imposed) time schedule and in taking the initiative to
find the resources you need.
The freedom you will have in shaping your project might present difficulties different from a
traditional classroom assignment. You will be engaged in a creative process which is, by nature,
an open-ended endeavor; it comes with surprises and challenges.
weekly presentations of work-in-progress
Every Wednesday, we will discuss your project in class. You will present the progress you have
made and receive feedback.
From the very beginning, we will focus on articulating information visually, on keeping material
records of one’s thinking process, on actually creating these records in cases in which we would
normally forego the visual and rely on a (written or mental) note. You should get into the habit
of drawing diagrams, visualizing abstract relationships, writing down ‘irrelevant’ thoughts, collecting
seemingly unrelated artefacts and clippings, taking photographs, and collaging. In short,
you should allow yourself to explore without the constant corrective of what is ‘relevant’ to your
project. These visual records (preferably in the form of a bound sketchbook) will be part of your
weekly presentation and should help you to convey your ideas more clearly.
As we explore different media — computers, drawing, photography, letterpress, paper crafts, collage,
typewriter, etc.— you will be expected to experiment with the newly acquired skills by applying
them to in-progress models of your project. This might be a single letterpressed sheet, a digitally
printed double-page spread of text and images, a paper dummy of an experimental binding
method, etc.
peer editing and feedback
Students will be expected to engage with each other’s projects. This will involve—in addition to
in-class discussions—reading fellow students’ work-in-progress and making editing suggestions.
student slide presentations
We will discuss traditional and alternative book forms and look at examples of book-related
arts. During the semester, each student will be asked to make a 10–15 minute presentation
accompanied by images (slides, powerpoint, etc.) on assigned topics. The presentation should
include outline handouts.