University of Iowa (School of Art and Art History)

Facilities

University of Iowa Art Building, 1935 on the Iowa River. The design is based on the Villa Emo in Italy with a central block connected to two outlying sheds via an arcade.

University of Iowa New Art Building, 2006 across North Riverside Drive from the original art building. Designed by Steven Holl Architects in New York. Take a tour of the new art building.

Printmaking Studios, 1969. Added between the original art building and the Iowa River. Designed by New York architect Max Abramovitz who also designed Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City

Sculpture, Ceramics and Jewelry and Metalsmithing Studios, 1969 directly south of the original art building. Also designed by New York architect Max Abramovitz

PROGRAMS

Art Education

The art education program is studio based and offers a series of courses for exceptionally well-qualified undergraduate and graduate art students to accomplish art teacher certification, K-12. These courses are elected by students who wish to understand more about the nature of learning in art and by those who may intend to teach art in alternative and other non-school, community institutions. Students participate in, observations in art classrooms, teaching in the University of Iowa Saturday Art Workshops, in artist-in-residency programs in secondary schools and community based arts programs.

The program's premise is that teaching art provides an opportunity to purposefully blend artistic production - grounded in an aesthetic of artist as social agent - with the concept of the teacher as an artist.

Graduate programs in art education are a means for artist-teachers to advance their understanding of art, art education, and art history by considering the role of art making in learning and the creation of new knowledge. M.A. and Ph.D. students usually are preparing for teaching positions in colleges, universities, and museums or as art administrators. The School's art and art history pioneering concept of the artist/teacher, which provides the personal aesthetic experience necessary for research, is especially valuable for graduate students in art education. This breadth of preparation in art education, art history, and studio art qualifies doctoral graduates to teach in colleges and universities.


Art History

Graduate students in art history can prepare for careers in college and university teaching and research or museum work. Students pursue a master of arts or a Ph.D. in art history with specialization in African (Oceanic), Asian, Ancient (3000 B.C.-300 A.D.), Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century European, American (includes Pre-Columbian, Native American, and African American), and Modern/Contemporary. Average class size is 15 to 30 students.

The University provides teaching, research, and museum assis-tantships to support graduate study and a variety of fellowships that support dissertation research. In addition, the School of Art and Art History offers scholarships for qualified graduate students.

The following are areas of specialty:

Modern Studies constitutes one of the most significant strengths of the school, with courses and seminars offered in 19th- and 20th-century art as well as contemporary art. The Dada collection and archives are among the University's many important holdings in the Modern area.

American Studies are well represented at Iowa. Students have opportunities to study not only the history of American art but also a variety of interdisciplinary programs in American history, literature, and politics.

Medieval and Renaissance Studies incorporate a broad spectrum of courses in art history as well as interdisciplinary programs in history, literature, and religion.

Ancient Art is represented by courses and seminars in Egyptian, Greek, Etruscan, and Roman art and archaeology

Asian Art is treated in an ample series of courses and seminars dealing with Chinese and Japanese art and culture

The Project for Advanced Study of Art and Life in Africa (PASALA) is among the school's major assets, an interdisciplinary program of fellowships. scholarships, conferences, and publications on the visual arts in Africa.

Facilities
The Art Library includes more than 95,000 volumes, an outstanding periodical collection, and an extensive microfilm and microfiche archive.

The Office of Visual Materials is an instructional resource of 360,000 35mm slides, 150,000 online digital images, and 370 titles on DVD, VHS, CD-ROM, and film documenting major works in art and architecture. The School uses MDID software to deliver high-resolution images to state-of-the-art classrooms via dual digital projection.


Ceramics

Undergraduate degrees include the B.A. in studio art and B.F.A. in Ceramics. A minor in studio art is also available to non-majors. Graduate degrees include the M.A. and M.F.A.

Both the undergraduate and graduate programs in ceramics give students the technical knowledge and skills they need to become mature, independent, and resourceful creative artists who respond to their culture. Graduates of the ceramics program have gone on to operate successful studios and in many cases to teach at all educational levels.

The ceramics program encompasses approximately 5,000 square feet of studio space and a 3,000-square-foot kiln room, with additional kiln space outdoors. Kilns include six large electric and six large gas reduction, including salt and sagger types. Three woodfired kilns are used to study that particular aesthetic quality and to explore renewable fuel possibilities. Students are encouraged to build and be resourceful in design and material use. Two large clay mixers, an industrial clay reprocessor, a slab roller, hand extruder, 25 pottery wheels, and ample work space serve 250 or more students per year, including six to nine M.F.A. majors.

Hazardous materials information about toxicity and handling procedures satisfies state and federal standards.

The School's Office of Visual Materials has an ample supply of historical and contemporary examples of ceramics available as slides, videos, and films. A good selection of contemporary slides is available within the ceramics building library also. The Art Library in the Art Building has an excellent selection printed material on reserve, including theses on technical, aesthetic, and multicultural resources. Art history classes deal specifically with African and Pacific Rim ceramics.

The ceramics program supports a lab coordinator and three part-time assistants who help manage and maintain equipment, stock materials, and teach entry-level courses.

Visiting artists conduct several two-day workshops each semester. Enrollment in required courses ranges from 15 to 20 students. Grading is based on completed piece work, class attendance, and participation. Some past graduates have established scholarships at the University for students studying the ceramic arts. Angelo Garzio, a 1954 M.F.A. graduate, established a scholarship for a graduate and/or undergraduate student who excels in vessel making. The Glen C. Nelson Ceramic Scholarship recognizes Nelson, a well-known educator and author of a ceramics textbook that is widely used in universities world wide. The scholarship is given to a student majoring in ceramics. Students must be nominated by a ceramics faculty member.


Design

Undergraduate degrees include the B.A. in studio art and B.F.A. in Graphic Design or Three-Dimensional Design. A minor in studio art is also available to non-majors. Graduate degrees include the M.A. and M.F.A.

Design within the School reflects a holistic approach toward the study of design, comprising graphic design, environmental and interior design. The focus is on developing the conceptual awareness and creative skills that will enable students to meet the demands of continuously changing visual communications and environmental needs.

The design program emphasizes instruction in theories and concepts through the development of problem-solving or "design-thinking" skills. This approach distinguishes The University of Iowa from many other institutions in which the disciplines within design are studied in a specialized and vocational manner.

The foundation for all study, exploration, and manipulation of two and three-dimensional space is Design Fundamentals, an indispensable core course not only for design students but for students in all other areas within the school. Graphic Design I forms the basis for advanced courses in two-dimensional design and typography. Problems in Design I and II are the foundation for advanced three-dimensional design.

The design program has its own computer stations with updated equipment and software for two- and three-dimensional design, such as InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Freehand, AutoCAD and 3DS Max.

The design program offers 1/4-time teaching and research assistantships for graduate students. The average class size is 16 students.


Jewelry and Metal Arts

The Jewelry and Metal Arts program provides students a rich and stimulating environment for the development of their creativity, concepts, and technical skills. Students work freely without media boundaries to produce conceptual and/or functional jewelry, hollowware, flatware, indoor and outdoor sculpture, mixed media objects, installation pieces, and other functional and nonfunctional objects.

Our program is known for pioneering the use of new materials, improving and developing cutting edge technologies, and progressive concepts. This leads students to produce a substantial quantity of high-quality work for their professional portfolios, exhibitions, competitions, and publications. Our students? work has been consistently accepted into numerous national and international competitions, many receiving awards. Outstanding works of the graduates from this program have been acquired by major museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the American Craft Museum, and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Design-Cooper-Hewitt Museum. Many of these pieces were produced at the metals studio while the artists were still graduate students.

* Program offers BA, BFA, MA, MFA degrees.

* Courses offered are: Introduction to Jewelry and Metal Arts, Intermediate Jewelry and Metal Arts, Advanced Jewelry and Metal Arts, Mixed Media Workshop, and Graduate Metal Workshop.

* Entering graduate students are expected to be self-motivated, skilled in fundamental metalworking techniques, and capable of technical and conceptual exploration and of producing independent work.

* The program places great emphasis on creativity and originality. The student will develop their personal artistic directions and styles. Students are encouraged to explore progressive concepts, use new materials, and develop new techniques. Students will learn to refine a variety of traditional, contemporary, and innovative metalworking techniques and other media processes.

* Students learn through demonstrations, slides, lectures, individual and group discussion/critiques, visiting artists' workshops, reading, and project assignments. Graduate workshop emphasizes portfolio preparation, participation in national and international exhibitions, practicing presentation and teaching skills, marketing experiences, in addition to working toward their professional goals.

In order to give students a broader range of career options, students have the opportunity to use tools such as AutoCAD, Rhino, 3D computer modeling, laser cutting, PhotoShop, and other advanced industrial techniques to create, render, and achieve the layouts of their designs to make one-of-a-kind or production art work. These skills help students working in many other fields as well. One of our most recent acquisitions is the "Dimension SST" 3-D printer (a rapid prototyping machine), the device converts a digital model into a real-world ABS plastic prototype. The plastic form can be used as it exists or can be transformed into metal with processes such as casting and electroforming.

* The Jewelry/Metal Arts Studio is composed of a well-equipped and well-ventilated graduate and a general metals studio. Each graduate student is provided with an individual bench in the graduate studio.

The metals studio provides students with access to all the major equipment and tools needed to explore traditional, contemporary, and experimental processes. Our facilities include a 200-gallon copper-plating tank (the largest electroforming unit of any art school in the United States), a 90-gallon aluminum anodization tank, metal lathe, forming and milling equipment, a TIG welder, an English wheel, casting and enameling equipment, to name a few. The studio is also well equipped with advanced computers and computer aided machines, including a "Dimension SST" 3-D printer (a Rapid Prototyping machine), 4 - axis desktop CNC milling machine, PC and MAC systems with slide and flatbed scanners.

* The program provides students with excellent reference resources for research on new concepts and technology. Our Art Library has a rich collection of historical and contemporary books, periodicals, and catalogs on jewelry and metal arts. The studio has large collections of slides and other visual materials on jewelry and metal arts as well. The program also provides students with computer and Internet access in the studio.

Scholarships Three teaching assistantships and tuition scholarships are available for outstanding graduate students. The total number of graduate students is limited to ten. Faculty members raise funds for students' tuition scholarships and material fees. Currently, all graduate students are receiving partial tuition scholarships as well as material scholarships donated by our Metal Arts program supporters.


Painting and Drawing

Undergraduate degrees include the B.A. in studio art and B.F.A. in Painting or Drawing. A minor in studio art is also available to non-majors. Graduate degrees include the M.A. and M.F.A.

The painting and drawing programs were the first in the nation to hire artists as teachers, based on their professional record. Six regular faculty members, one lecturer, and recurring visiting faculty teach drawing and painting classes at all levels. The current faculty is diverse and exhibits regularly and widely, including venues in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, St, Louis, Cincinnati, Atlanta, and New Orleans. Nationally and internationally renowned artists are invited to the School each year to lecture, present their work, and critique student work.

All course work focuses on the development of the individual student's strengths within a pedagogy that reflects both historical and contemporary theory. The average class size is 12 to 16 students and, with the completion of the new art building, the undergraduate painting program will be housed in two large studios. There are 18-20 graduate students in the painting and drawing programs and each has a private studio in the building at 109 River Street, adjoining the new art building.

The painting and drawing areas have a strong visiting artist program. Fellowships and teaching assistantships are available to graduate students.


Papermaking

Courses in papermaking offer an in-depth curriculum for students interested in papermaking history, technique, or studio art options. Neither a major nor a minor in papermaking or paperworks is available, so many students augment studies in an area of specialty with courses in papermaking and/or paperworks. Students begin their studies with the papermaking course, An Introduction to Asian and Western Hand-papermaking History and Technique. Students may choose advanced course work in papermaking or they may elect the paperworks course, which focuses on use of paper pulp as a 2-D/3-D art medium. Advanced course work as well as independent study opportunities are available in both areas.

Students from many of the studio art areas often discover that a greater understanding of paper is advantageous and occasionally crucial to creative success in their particular medium. Some students have explored paperworks as a primary means of expression. Many graduate students majoring in art history find that a well-developed understanding of papermaking history and technique is useful to their studies and research.

The papermaking/paperworks facilities at The University of Iowa are among the best in the nation. In addition to the studio in the School of Art and Art History, a second Center for the Book paper facility is located at the University's Oakdale Campus. Specialty papers designed for book and art conservation, book arts, and art applications are produced on a daily basis. Research on the role of gelatin in the permanence of 15th-century Italian papers also is under way. Graduate students occasionally have opportunities to work or participate in activities at Oakdale.

Additional book-related facilities and course work allow students with an interest in paper to explore typography, history of the book, offset printed artists books, book binding, and calligraphy.


Photography

The photography program prepares students to meet a wide range of professional challenges and to pursue a variety of career opportunities. The program stresses visual literacy and encourages students to develop an aesthetic that synthesizes personal temperament with a contemporary understanding of the medium's history and its cultural ties.

A full range of courses is offered. Facilities are available for large format and studio lighting, black-and-white and color printing, and digital imaging, including a complete silkscreen and offset print shop. While we are building up the digital component in many of our course offerings, we recognize the impact that the camera-derived image has within both the fine arts and the culture at large. Students can augment their studies by using School and University resources, which include traditional media, video, cultural studies, and the Center for the Book.

A varied and diverse faculty ensures that the program is contemporary in its approach and pluralistic in its scope. Enrollment in required courses averages 12 students.

Scholarships are available on a competitive basis for students within the School. A limited number of graduate assistantships are available to qualified students.


Printmaking

Undergraduate degrees include the B.A. in studio art and B.F.A. in Printmaking. A minor in studio art is also available to non-majors. Graduate degrees include the M.A. and M.F.A.

For nearly 50 years, The University of Iowa's printmaking program has ranked among the best in the country. From class discussions of the history of printmaking to instruction in the making of prints, emphasis is placed on teaching students about significant historical print concepts and helping them discover new ways of adding to the printmaking tradition. Students also learn about artistic self-analysis through group and individual critiques. Actual masterworks on paper are accessible through a comprehensive museum collection of prints including all techniques and all periods of art history.

Class size ranges from 10 to 15 students. Instruction from printmaking faculty members varies; students are encouraged to take courses from each of the following faculty members: Robert Glasgow, and Virginia Myers.

Required course work in intaglio and relief, lithography, monotype, paperworks, and foil-stamping is supplemented by annual seminars that focus on such topics as preparation for professional life, issues in print history, theory, and technical considerations. National and international visiting artists invited to the department bring diverse styles that complement the teaching and images done by the printmaking faculty.

The University's tradition of exhibiting graduate work has led to prints in juried shows throughout the United States and abroad. Group exhibits of student work often are sent to other schools on an exchange basis.

Faculty work is exhibited regularly in juried national and international exhibitions, and some are permanently placed in some of the world's major museums.

The program is actively involved with the University's papermaking facilities and the Center for the Book.

The Bergmann Printmaking Scholarship is just one of the competitive scholarships awarded annually.


Sculpture

Undergraduate degrees include the B.A. in studio art and B.F.A. in Sculpture. A minor in studio art is also available to non-majors. Graduate degrees include the M.A. and M.F.A.

Recent changes to the sculpture facility and curriculum have allowed for a broader range of course selection, philosophical inquiry and specific instruction in a variety of materials.

Emphasis is placed on the development of the individual artist to produce and critically evaluate his or her own work and the work of peers. Concepts and ideas are stressed along with materials and processes. Studio facilities include a fully equipped woodshop and metalshop and a bronze foundry with investment and ceramic shell processes.

Beginning courses encourage the exploration of the fundamental principles of three-dimensional form with projects designed to create a historical awareness while questioning conventional techniques. Advanced students initiate their own projects guided by critical evaluation and technical advice and assistance. Graduate students participate in group workshops, critiques, and seminars and receive individualized attention while pursuing their own work and courses of study

---

School of Art and Art History Art School Location

Other art schools in Iowa

Briar Cliff University (Art Department) Art Department About Art is more than a four-year program of study at Briar Cliff University. It is the beginning of a lifetime of experiences, gr... Address: 3303 Rebecca Street

University of Northern Iowa (UNI Department of Art) The UNI Department of Art has a current student enrollment of more than 300 majors, and a young, energetic faculty of 16 full-time teachers of ... Address: 104 Kamerick Art Building

Buena Vista University (School of Communication and Arts) The School of Communication and Arts offers majors in art, arts management, communication and graphic design, communication and performance studies, E... Address: 610 W. FOURTH STREET

Back to: » Art schools in Iowa » Art schools in Iowa City

More information: » Marinas » Boats for sale