The Department of Visual Arts educates students in the disciplines of art education, art history, fine arts studio, photography, and visual communication design. We are committed to providing a sound visual arts education within the broader context of liberal arts learning.

The department focuses on the following areas of educational development:

Skills and Processes

Students acquire the skills required to give visual form to intellectual and emotional
experience. They are introduced to a variety of materials, tools, and processes; they are expected to become familiar with all basic aspects of visual arts practice and to achieve genuine proficiency with selected media. As they advance, students refine their skills and employ them in more sophisticated practice; they are strongly encouraged to experiment and take risks. Mastery of the skills and processes of the visual arts is essential not only to the successful production of work, but also to the student’s self-awareness as an artist and to a sense of dedication and pride in the work produced.

Concepts and Contexts

In addition to technical and process problems, students learn to address conceptual challenges. They work with devices such as visual syntax, metaphor, allusion, and symbolism. Students acquire knowledge of art history that serves as a primary resource for their own work and for the larger understanding of the role of visual arts in all civilizations. They recognize and participate in the practice of making of art as a significant form of creating and responding to culture. Students are challenged to engage in the basic educational activities on inquiry, analysis, discovery, and integration. They become aware of the complex conceptual relationships that may exist among visual images and between such images and other forms of communication and behavior.

Critical Thinking

An understanding of concepts and contexts within the visual arts cannot develop except through the practice of penetrating and articulate critical thinking. Students examine their own work as well as the work of past and present artists in a manner that constantly challenges assumptions and discloses fresh perspectives. They learn the values associated with tradition, but they also learn to appreciate contemporary perspectives that confront tradition and provoke fresh thinking about familiar assumptions. Students become accomplished in their ability to identify works of art and to analyze their significance and the influences that played a role in their production. The various skills of critical thinking in the visual arts are strongly supported by the full spectrum of liberal arts studies.

Values

Students learn the values of dedication and self-discipline through the practice of making art. The same practice teaches the values of shared experience and collaboration as well as the values of independence and individuality. Students learn that personal values and self-expression are intimately connected with social, cultural, political, economic, and religious values. Through making and studying art, students become aware of the importance of global and multi-cultural issues and ways in which their singular experiences are reflected in universal concerns. This process leads to greater awareness of class, gender, racial, and ethnic diversity; the student achieves a richer and more inclusive sense of herself or himself within a value-centered understanding of personal and social responsibility.

Professional Applications

As they acquire essential skills, pursue integrated liberal arts learning, and develop a sense of their values as responsible citizens of the world, students also prepare for professional practice within their chosen fields. Their work is reviewed in contexts appropriate to their ambitions, which may include graduate education or embarking directly on a career in applied arts practice. Internships and related practical experiences are strongly encouraged.