University of Utah (College of Fine Arts )

Departments

* Art & Art History
* Ballet
* Film
* Modern Dance
* Music
* Theatre


About the College

The arts have always maintained a place of prominence in Utah. Early settlers began building theatres and dance halls at the same time they started construction on homes and businesses. The fledgling University of Deseret, founded in 1850, was dedicated to "fine art and sciences." As that institution evolved into The University of Utah, a central focus on the importance of the performing and visual arts remained. The College of Fine Arts was officially established in 1948 and has continued to grow and flourish for the past 60 years. The College is home to the School of Music, the Division of Film Studies, and the Departments of Art & Art History, Ballet, Modern Dance, and Theatre.

In addition to traditional art forms, the College embraces the infusion of digital technologies in the arts by offering a certificate and minor in Fine Arts Technology. The Center for Interdisciplinary Arts and Technology (CIDAT) is also housed in the College. CIDAT exists to promote, encourage and support the integration of innovative technologies and collaboration within the various visual and performing arts as well as between the arts and the sciences, thereby reframing creative inquiry, artistic practice and pedagogy for the 21st century. We see the future as an exciting time for all of the arts and The College of Fine Arts at The University of Utah is committed to being a leader in the field well into the future. A rigorous course of study, high standards of achievement, and a history of success have resulted in national recognition for our departments and a list of celebrated alumni.


Art & Art History

The Department of Art and Art History is comprised of three disciplines in the visual arts: art education, art history, and studio art. Approximately 550 majors and minors are enrolled in courses at any one time, and art majors may specialize in ceramics, graphic design, illustration, painting/drawing, photography/digital imaging, printmaking, sculpture, and intermedia. The faculty-student ratio is low to allow for individual attention, and faculty mentoring is a strong part of the Departments mission.

Many students are supported by a variety of scholarships, tuition waivers, travel awards, work-study programs, and other financial aid packages. Additional awards are made for the Student Exhibition and the Intercollegiate Exhibition annually. Faculty also serve as advisors for Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program fellowships when students work with faculty on special research or creative projects.

The department sponsors an active Visiting Artist/Art Historian Lecture series endowed by Carmen Morton Christensen, Foundation as well as annual events such as High School Art Day, Student Exhibitions, the Art History Symposium, and the BFA Student Exhibition.


Ballet

The Department of Ballet is an educational training center that prepares majors for professional performing and teaching careers, and encourages creative and scholarly research in undergraduate and graduate students. A balanced and comprehensive curriculum created for the 100-plus professionally-oriented students leads to the BFA Degree with an emphasis in Performance, Character Dance, or Teaching; the MFA Degree with an emphasis in Choreography/Teaching, Scholarly Research, Research in Performance, or Research in Character Dance; and the MFA in Scholarly Research with a language component. Each emphasis is fully supported with opportunities for performance and/or choreography through participation in Utah Ballet, Character Dance Ensemble, Ballet Ensemble, Ballet Showcase, Senior Concert, our close association with Ballet West, and through teaching experiences and independent study courses. The Ballet Department was founded in 1951 when Willam F. Christensen returned to Utah and established the first ballet program housed in a College of Fine Arts in an American University.


Film

The Division of Film Studies offers training in the production of film and video, writing, and the history and criticism of the motion picture. The Division enrolls four hundred undergraduate majors and sixteen graduate students, and has a faculty of eleven regular and adjunct professors and lecturers. Hundreds of students from the University's other colleges enroll in the Divisions general education offerings including the History of Film and American Film and Culture.

Film Division faculty and students have exhibited at major film festivals including Sundance, Ann Arbor, and the Chicago International Film Festivals, and have won more than fifty awards, including the Student Academy Award. The Division has an active schedule of guest artists and teachers.

Graduates of the Division have formed their own production companies, gone on to successful careers in Hollywood and New York, and to doctoral study at other prestigious universities with the goal of college teaching. The Division offers three annual film shows: a program of documentaries in February, animations in April, and student produced sixteen millimeter films in May.


Modern Dance

The Department of Modern Dance at the University of Utah has a history of excellence that unites the world of academia with the world of professional dance. Many alumni are working with international, national and regional dance companies as dancers, choreographers, and artistic directors. Others are teachers and administrators in high schools, universities and professional studios.

With nine full-time and several part-time faculty members, standards of professional excellence are a tradition. Through a rigorous and demanding program of study, talented students are nurtured and challenged. The undergraduate program leads to a BFA degree and an MFA degree is offered at the graduate level.

Dancers from all parts of the nation and from many foreign countries are drawn by the faculty's philosophic commitment to the development of kinesthetic awareness, theoretical understanding, creative ability and aesthetic sensitivity in addition to technical accomplishment. It is the faculty's conviction that such training not only prepares students to be vital and exciting artists, but also creative human beings committed to the enrichment of society.


Music

The School of Music has been a fully accredited comprehensive music school by the National Association of Schools of Music since 1952. With over 400 students pursuing degrees in music, the School of Music also annually enrolls over 3,000 other students from across campus in courses focused on life-long appreciation of music as an integral part of the human experience. There are 28 full-time and 50 part-time faculty, many with national and international distinction, who support academic degree programs in music at the undergraduate and masters levels including: composition, conducting, music education, music history, musicology, music theory, and performance. The School of Music also offers doctoral studies in composition and music education and beginning in 2007, a DMA degree.

Housed in the beautifully renovated David Gardner Hall, the School of Music supports an abundance of student performing ensembles. These include bands, choirs, jazz ensembles, opera, orchestras, as well as many chamber ensembles. Graduates of the School of Music are enjoying professional careers in Utah and beyond including membership in prestigious professional performing groups, teaching at all levels from early childhood through college, and a wide variety of other vocations involving music.


Theatre

The Department of Theatre provides professional level classes for theatre majors and a host of courses for non-theatre major students. Programs for theatre majors include Theatre Studies, Actor Training, Performing Arts Design, Stage Management, and Theatre Education. In addition, the Department offers a London Study Abroad Program and classes for children as part of Youth Theatre at the U. A solid foundation in all aspects of theatre is accomplished through a wide range of classes, with opportunities for collaboration with other departments, and a variety of outstanding visiting artists who present master classes and enhance the learning experience for students, faculty, and staff.

The Department produces work on two campus performance stages. The Babcock Theatre, the Department's main stage, is the site of five productions a year. Studio 115 mounts seven productions annually. The Department's season ranges from the classical to contemporary, from traditional to experimental; all selected to expose our students to the full breadth of performance possibilities.

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