Curriculum
Art and theory are approached in an interconnected fashion, with an emphasis on the flow and interchange of significant ideas between the visual and the textual—art in dialogue with theory and history.
- Year One
- Year Two
- Year Three
Summer
Course |
---|
Graduate Studio |
Graduate Critique Seminar |
Contemporary Art Seminar |
Visiting Artist Lecture Series |
Optional Studio Elective |
Fall
Course |
---|
Mentor-Guided Independent |
Graduate Studio |
Winter
Course |
---|
Library Research Course |
Winter Review |
Spring
Course |
---|
Mentor-Guided Independent |
Graduate Studio |
Summer
Course |
---|
Graduate Studio |
Graduate Critique Seminar |
Critical Studies Seminar |
Art History/Critical Studies |
Visiting Artist Lecture Series |
Fall
Course |
---|
Mentor-Guided Independent |
Graduate Studio |
Winter
Course |
---|
Graduate Thesis Writing 1 |
Winter Review |
Spring
Course |
---|
Mentor-Guided Independent |
Graduate Studio |
Graduate Thesis Writing 2 |
Summer
Course |
---|
Graduate Studio (Thesis) |
Graduate Critique Seminar Elective |
Professional Practice |
Learn More
Curriculum Description
The eight-week summer intensive includes graduate seminars, critiques, studio visits, visiting artist lectures and demonstrations, and focused periods of studio practice. Each MFA student is provided with a private studio to make new work over the course of the summer session. Work made each summer is used for display, critique, dialogue, and iteration. While the majority of the students’ studio work is developed and guided by mentors in subsequent terms, the summer provides valuable peer-to-peer observation and focus guided by the MFA Chair and visiting artists and faculty.
Each week during the intensive, the program hosts a Visiting Artist or Scholar, introducing MFA students to the breadth of contemporary artistic, scholarly, philosophical, and cultural voices.
Graduate Seminars expose students to contemporary art histories, strategies, artists, curators, critics, and systems that influence and drive the expansion of the current art world. In these courses art and theory are approached in an interconnected fashion, with an emphasis on the flow and interchange of significant ideas between the visual and the textual—art in dialogue with theory and history. These seminars provide students with an intellectual community and critical forum in which they may test, temper, and enlarge the ideas that underlie their artistic goals.
Credits per term
First Year Summer/Fall 15 credits Winter/Spring 6 credits
Second Year Summer/Fall 18 credits Winter/Spring 7.5 credits
Third Year Summer 13.5 credits
60 credits total
Electives
Elective courses are chosen in consultation with the MFA Chair and allow opportunities for new exploration of ideas and skills acquisition. Global study abroad and internship opportunities incorporate as much flexibility as possible to support the student’s specific area of specialization and career interest.
Questions?
For more information about the Low-Residency MFA in Visual Studies program, get in touch with Chair, Aeron Bergman.