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Parsons School of Design Foundation Program slides

 Record Group
Identifier: PC-02-17-01

Abstract

This collection consists predominantly of 35mm slides of work by students in courses that comprised Parsons School of Design's Foundation Program between 1972 and 2004. Some of the slides are associated with the course in which the work was created: 3D and 2D Design, Drawing Fundamentals, Design Concepts, and Digital Design. The collection also includes some course descriptions and color photocopies of student work.

Dates

  • 1972-2004

Creator

Extent

6.5 Cubic Feet (5 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Scope and Contents

The collection contains 35mm slides of student work and curricular documents from Parsons School of Design's Foundation Program, between 1972 and 2004. The Foundation Program is also referred to as the "Foundation Year" or "First Year" program.

The examples of student work are filed chronologically. A majority of the slides are annotated with information that describes when the work was created, such as the semester, course title, instructor, and student. Courses from the 1990s and after include 3D and 2D Design, Drawing Fundamentals, Design Concepts, and Digital Design. The courses Drawing Fundamentals and Design Concepts are occasionally abbreviated on the slides as "DF" and "DC," respectively.

A folder containing typed assignment handouts from the course Drawing Fundamentals was filed separately from the slides during processing. The assignments and reference notes on the handout indicate the types of foundational concepts students were learning, including but not limited to drawing composition, perspective, and value studies. The subsets of folders titled, "Slide presentations" consist of sleeves with slides from various semesters. These were likely used in orientation-like events to show examples of final projects from a cross-section of Foundation Year courses.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.

Conditions Governing Use

To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from the New School Archives and Special Collections. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu.

Historical note

The Parsons School of Design Foundation Year program or First Year Study program is a core-curricular program for first-year undergraduate students at Parsons School of Design at The New School. It was established in 1972 under the administration of David C. Levy, executive dean of Parsons School of Design from 1970 until 1989.

Prior to 1972, Parsons administrators explicitly rejected proposals to institute a “foundation program." A foundation year would introduce all incoming students to a core set of fundamental practices that would apply across art and design discplines, before they moved on to specialized courses in their major. Foundation program fundamentals would include understanding theories of color, composition principles, and life drawing. A 1955 report, “A Report: Parsons School of Design Self-Critical Study,” argues that because students rarely changed majors, a foundation year was unnecessary. Resistance to establishing a foundation program diminished after Parsons merged with The New School in 1970. The shift occurred in part because the school gained accreditation to grant bachelor's degrees, which carried with it an increased focus on students gaining technical proficiency; drawing skills, in particular.

The Foundation Year program was first offered in the 1972-1973 academic year. It was mandatory for BFA students majoring in fine arts and art education, and optional for students intending to major in environmental design, fashion design, graphic design, and illustration. From 1977 until 1982, Foundation Year was also mandatory for students in the new department of Crafts. Following the New School’s acquisition of Los Angeles-based Otis Art Institute in 1978, the first year program was mandatory for BFA students at the California campus, as well. Beginning in 1984, Parsons admissions policy heavily encouraged the program for all majors.

The purpose of the Parsons Foundation Year was to provide students with an interdisciplinary curriculum of basic studies in techniques, methods, and concepts in the field of visual arts. A student’s entire freshman or first year was devoted to the Foundation Program curriculum. The program also served as a means for students undecided about their major to learn about the various specializations offered. In the Foundation Program's inaugural year, course offerings included Survey of World Art, Life Drawing, and Design Fundamentals, among others.

Over the course of the 2000s, the Foundation Year Program slowly reduced its focus on teaching technically proficient drawing, incorporating courses in a wider range of media and courses that stressed more theoretical subject matter. Foundation courses in digital design were also introduced, reflecting technological developments in learning and design. From 2001 until 2005, Parsons offered a Wireless Studio Program as an alternative core curriculum to the Foundation Program, with a focus on the internet. While Foundation Year was a program offered across Parsons, beginning in the fall of 2008 it was administratively situated in the School of Design Strategies. In 2013, the Foundation Year Program was renamed the Parsons First Year Program.

Sources:

"A Report: Parsons School of Design Self-Critical Study", 1955 August 26, Box: 11, Folder: 9. Parsons School of Design Office of the President records, PC.01.01.02. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC010102_000002

Audio interview with David C. Levy, 1994 January 27, Box: Mixed pav_9, cassette: 8. Parsons School of Design Centenary oral history project, PC.07.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC070101_Levy_19940127

Fall 2008: Course Descriptions, Parsons The New School for Design, Part 1: AAS Programs, BBA Programs, BFA Programs, Graduate Programs, Part 2: Art & Design Studies, History of Decorative Arts & Design, University Lectures, University Seminars, circa 2008. New School digital course data collection, NS.05.02.02. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/2008_fall_parsons_course_data

Otis Art Institute 1979 Vol. 36 No. 6, 1979 January 14, Box: 4, Folder: 27. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_po1979ye

Parsons School of Design course catalog (1972-1973), 1972, Box: 2, Folder: 3. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_pg1972ye

Parsons School of Design course catalog 1977-1978 Vol. 35 No. 3, 1977 October 2, Box: 2, Folder: 8. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_pg1977ye

Parsons School of Design/Otis Art Institute course catalog (1981-1982), 1981, Box: 2, Folder: 12. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_pg1982ye

Parsons School of Design/Otis Art Institute (1984-1985), 1984, Box: 2, Folder: 15. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_pg1984ye

Parsons School of Design, Undergraduate Programs 2002-2003 Vol. 19 No.7, 2002 July 31, Box: 3, Folder: 23; Box: 8, Folder: 15. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_ug2002ye

Parsons The New School for Design course catalog (2013-2014), 2013. Parsons School of Design course catalog collection, PC.05.01.01. The New School Archives and Special Collections. https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/objects/PC050101_Parsons_all_2013ye

Arrangement

Folders are arranged alphabetically by title. Slides in the "Student work" folders—which comprise the bulk of the collection—are arranged chronologically.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Transferred to the Kellen Design Archives by Robin Campbell, Director of Operations, School of Design Strategies, Parsons School of Design, 2012.

Related Materials

There may be some overlap between the slides of student work in this collection and the Parsons School of Design slide collection (PC.04.02.01), which includes Foundation Program student work from 1971-1996.

Information about Foundation Program courses and curriculum are found in the Parsons School of Design course catalog collection (PC.05.01.01) and the Parsons School of Design academic departments, programs and schools collection (PC.02.01.01).

The New School Archives holds the Lesley Cadman records (PC.01.06.01) which includes departmental records of the Foundation Year program from Cadman's term as vice dean of Parsons School of Design (1981-2007). In an audio interview with David C. Levy on January 27, 1994, Levy discusses the establishment of the Foundation Year curriculum during his term as executive dean of Parsons School of Design (1970-1989). The interview and transcript are part of the Parsons School of Design Centenary oral history project (PC.07.01.01).

Separated Materials

Three folders containing Design and Technology courses syllabi were removed from this collection during processing and added to Series 3. Art, Media, and Technology of the Parsons School of Design academic programs collection (PC.02.01.02).

Title
Guide to the Parsons School of Design Foundation Program slides
Status
Completed
Author
Victoria Fernandez and Jack Wells
Date
November 21, 2024
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin