The Department of Visual Arts (DoVA) teaches art making as a creative vehicle for exploring ideas, perception, and our constructed world. Whether students take courses listed under ARTV to meet a general education requirement or as part of a major in visual arts, the goal is to develop communicative, analytical, and expressive skills through the process of artistic production.
Students who major in visual arts take an individually arranged program of studio, lecture, and seminar courses that may include courses outside the Arts & Humanities Collegiate Division. The BA program seeks to foster understanding of art from several perspectives: the practice and intention of the creator, the visual knowledge employed, and the perception and critical reception of the audience. In addition to work in the studio, these aims may require study of many other subjects, including but not limited to art history, intellectual history, criticism, and aesthetics.
Entry into DoVA begins through one of three 100-level courses. These classes explore two and three dimensional phenomena or time-based media. After taking these keyhole classes, in subsequent coursework students explore the potential of various media, learning which most fully supports the investigation of their ideas.
The pathways for students who wish to be majors, studio track majors, or minors in visual arts are unique and depend on the student’s level of commitment to the visual arts discipline. Many students at the University who major in visual arts often major in another discipline as well. It is common for our visual arts majors and studio track students to be double majors.
To view full course descriptions in the Department of Visual Arts, visit the college catalog.
Ways to Engage in the Visual Arts
- As part of the Core
- As an Elective
- As a Major or Minor
- As a Studio Track Major