ART 387 The Art of World Building

Fall

Video games, role‐playing games, graphic novels, film and television, theme parks and educational recreations, cosplay, and immersive experiences both actual and virtual draw deeply from art historical sources when designing the visual elements of an imagined world. With new technologies, including generative AI, world building has expanded in visual cultures across the globe. While many of these imagined worlds are grounded in fantasy or science fiction, historical places or contemporary locations are also re‐imagined. This course will identify the art historical themes and references and the applications of existing and emerging technologies in visual creation, as well as analyze the theoretical underpinnings of world‐building and deeper cultural implications of using art and visual culture within these contexts.

3 credit hours