James Lawton
School: | University of Massachusetts Dartmouth |
Department: | Architecture |
Location: | North Dartmouth, MA |
Overall Rating
rated by 12 students
Helpfulness | |
Clarity | |
Easiness |
School: | University of Massachusetts Dartmouth |
Department: | Architecture |
Location: | North Dartmouth, MA |
Helpfulness | |
Clarity | |
Easiness |
Mailing Address:
Uloop Inc.
306 S. Washington Ave
Suite 400
Royal Oak, MI 48067
Telephone Support:
312.854.7605
Email Support:
greg@uloop.com
Cons: Needs to be clearer about deadlines and expectations
If you are a studio art major be not only prepared but willing to put in all the time it takes to produce the best work you can possible make. The University says be prepared to spend at least 3 hours a week on homework or projects out side of class, for art classes you should be prepared for at least 3 hours per credit out side of class. If you change your thinking to that you should have no problems 4.0'ing.
He requires you to buy a book to look up terms to describe your work that you can get from common knowledge or off the internet.. and a $50 supply fee - when the only supplies you are given from him is wire and hot glue sticks. Also he gives you no guidelines for projects yet when you start working on them and have already developed your idea he nitpicks what you chose to do. If you pretty much do what he tells you for your project and put in effort he will give you a fair grade on the individual project - but if he disagrees with your "vision" for the project you'll get knocked down a few points. Nice guy but frustrating.
Cons: too early in the morning (8AM!!)
Great class, great prof
The other thing: for a required class (which is basically what this is if you're a BFA), there are times when it can be a lot of work outside class. There's a sketchbook, three artist lectures to attend, and a five-page paper on top of your normal work. It's the sketchbook that is killer - 3 to 5 pages each class period - and he goes for quantity, not quality, as I found out. There is also a rubber model project (the bust) which he expected us to spend 15 hours of our weekend on (15 coats of rubber, each taking an hour or more to dry). I found myself wishing I had taken Mixed Media instead. Also, he allocates way too much time with the model - you'll find yourself pretending to look busy or tempted to skip the last week or two. It was kind of a disappointing experience by the end of the semester, especially since this was the one class I was looking forward to most.
In the whole class you have to do like five projects and an essay which is actually quite easy, and I hate writing. You just go to three visiting artists and write whatever you want.
The cost of the class isn't really that bad. There's only a $10 fee at the Kresge Art Store, and a couple things you should buy but you don't necasarily have to. The book is pretty much a waste of money. Just find someone in class who doesn't mind you reading over the glossary or find someone to go in half on, because you do need to use a certain amount of terms in your presentations. For supplies, I pretty much just used whatever I could find that was free. Cardboard, broken dishes, plastic bags, empty pop cans. You can use whatever you want. You can even find free wood.
To rate a professor with a low number based souly on the cost of the class is stupid. Prof. Lawton knows what he is talking about when it comes to sculpture and presentation. I learned a lot in his class, not just how to present a work, but how to push my ideas into something unexpected. A simple sculpture ended up as a performance piece, the only one that my class had ever seen. That's his goal, is to get us to think out of the box. He may be "hard to find", but he is willing to answer any sort of question and help you develop your ideas into something larger.
Also, he is a great person outside of class. He is wonderful to talk to, and his own art is fantastic. I had the opportunity to see his work on display at a local gallery, and I was very impressed. He was happy to see me at the gallery, being the only student of his to attend the opening.
I highly recommend Prof. Lawton.