The Drawing Program prepares students to practice as studio artists, go on to advanced study, or enter careers related to their studio specializations.
The courses provide an opportunity to study from observation and experimental processes. The major goal of the program is for students to learn creative problem solving, theory, specific skills and knowledge necessary to meet the demands of the current art world in a professional setting.
Najjar Abdul-Musawwir, Cheonae Kim, Erin Palmer, Ed Shay
Allyn Building and Glove Factory
The Master of Fine Arts in Art with an emphasis in Drawing offers students a comprehensive education that helps prepare them for careers as professional artists. The program has two major goals: 1) for students to learn the skills, creativity, critical awareness, and autonomy necessary for being a professional artist, while simultaneously, 2) gaining the skills and experience necessary to teach art at the college level. Students must be able to demonstrate a high level of ability in their area of emphasis, present a professional-level body of original artwork which reflects their ability to investigate concepts, issues and processes relevant to their studio practice, and be able to discuss this work critically. Students supplement their studio practice through graduate assistantships, when possible, using them to complement and enhance their skills, understanding, and ability to communicate art issues. The outcome is that students are able to pursue a professional art career by exhibiting their work in appropriate venues, as well as pursuing grants and artist residencies and garnering critical acclaim for their work in the press. They are prepared to teach art at the college level in term or tenure-track positions as well as find other professional opportunities in a variety of cultural venues.
Generally speaking, the Drawing, Painting, and Printmaking areas of emphasis work together as a whole at the graduate level, and are colloquially known as the “2D area.” The MFA Degrees with emphasis in Drawing, in Painting, and in Printmaking are integrated and inclusive, situating the student's experience within a studio dynamic that broadly investigates the combined and collaborative potential of these studio areas. Students are simultaneously encouraged to explore the relationship of their subject area to other disciplines and media possibilities within the resources of the School. Through a process of practical and intellectual engagements, students are encouraged to devise individualized strategies to develop and inform their own work in relation to the broader spectrum of contemporary professional practice. The faculty consequently places considerable emphasis on the opportunity for students to encounter a range of ideas, attitudes, and approaches that are necessary to this development, all of which are further enhanced by a program of visiting artists and relevant critical and historical contextualization.
A minimum of 60 semester credit hours is required for the Master of Fine Arts degree with a major in art.
Primary Studio emphasis: 26 hours
Art History or related subjects: 12 hours
Studio Electives (may be within specialization): 9 credit hours
Thesis or terminal project work: 6 hours
Other Electives: The remaining 7 credit hours may be elected from any area within the School of Art & Design or from the University at large.
The undergraduate major in Drawing can be accomplished by fulfilling the requirements for the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree.
Total Degree Requirements: 125 credits
University Core Curriculum: 32 credits
(3 covered by AD 100A or B, 6 by AD 207A, B, or C Introduction to Art History)
Art and Design Requirements: 93 credits
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