Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts: A Crucible of Creativity and Innovation
Shaping humanity, one masterpiece at a time, the Carnegie Mellon College of Fine Arts (CFA) stands as one of the nation's first comprehensive arts training institutions. Within its walls, curious, passionate, and innovative artists, musicians, architects, dramatists, and designers from across disciplines unite. Here, society melds with culture through critical inquiry and creative production, fostering an environment where styles intersect to create work that inspires. Remember that Carnegie Mellon and the School of Drama are not just places that end after four years. CMU is a continual universal happening. "My heart is in the work."
A Legacy of Artistic Excellence
The College of Fine Arts has its roots in 1900, when the institution was first founded as Carnegie Technical Schools. The School of Fine and Applied Arts was one of the original four schools within Carnegie Technical Schools and later became the College of Fine Arts. From its inception, CFA has focused on the education of professionals in the arts within the broader context of Carnegie Mellon University.
Beyond their education in their chosen field, through required and elective course work, students are involved with other disciplines within CFA and within the other colleges of the University. In addition, CFA actively promotes integrative and interdisciplinary practices throughout the Carnegie Mellon University campus and currently offers the BXA Intercollege Degree Programs with Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mellon College of Science, and School of Computer Science.
CFA alumni have shaped the television, stage and film worlds; have created work collected in international museums; have composed for and are performing and conducting in major symphony orchestras, choruses and opera companies; have built notable buildings, designed building systems and architectural imaging systems; created significant innovations in graphic and industrial design; and are professors and deans in major arts institutions. These graduates have actively developed the innovations, inventions, techniques and information structures in their professional fields. Notable alumni include Gabriel Macht, Christian Borle, Jonathan Borofsky, Philip Pearlstein, Steven Bochco, James Cromwell, Holly Hunter, Rob Marshall, Ricky Ian Gordon, Stephen Schwartz, Billy Porter (actor), Zachary Quinto, Ryan McGinness, Judith Light, Patrick Wilson, Ted Danson, Keith Lockhart, Matt Bomer, Josh Groban, Josh Gad, Leslie Odom, Jr.
The School of Art: Challenging Norms and Crossing Disciplines
At the Carnegie Mellon University School of Art, students begin by asking bold questions. Here, artists challenge norms, cross disciplines and experiment with new approaches, grounded in conceptual thinking and the resources of a top-ranked research university. Art at CMU is a way of engaging with the world.
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The School of Art was preceded by the School of Applied Design, founded in 1906. In 1906 Andrew Carnegie added the School of Applied Design to the recently founded Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1911 the School of Applied Design became the Department of Painting and Design, and over the next 40 years it absorbed programs in sculpture and design from throughout Carnegie Mellon, and went through multiple renamings. In 1967, Carnegie Tech merged with the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research to become Carnegie Mellon University.
The School of Art spans more than 50,000 square feet of studios, classrooms and state-of-the-art facilities. Whether students are casting metal, building circuits, editing video or printing photographs, our spaces are designed for making, experimenting and pushing boundaries.
Undergraduate Programs
The undergraduate program offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts with concentrations in four major fields: drawing, painting, printmaking, and photography; Electronic and Time-Based Media; sculpture, installation and site-specific work; and contextual practices. All undergraduate students take two years of foundation studio in various 2D, 3D, and time-based media, alongside art history and theory courses. A unique feature of the program is the inclusion of Concept Studio courses, alongside foundation studios, that emphasize non-medium specific approaches to artmaking. Advanced upper-level coursework is completed in one of the four aforementioned concentrations.
The School of Art offers three interdisciplinary bachelor's degrees: a Bachelor of Arts and Humanities (BHA), a Bachelor of Science and Arts (BSA), and a Bachelor of Computer Science and Arts (BCSA).
Graduate Programs
The graduate program’s unique three-year structure is designed to provide the time and resources for in-depth multidisciplinary research.
Read also: A Guide to CMU Master's
The Master of Fine Arts program is a three-year interdisciplinary studio-focused program, with an emphasis on "contextual" art practices that manifest themselves in non-traditional ways, from institutional critique to public interventions and culture hacking. Graduate students work closely with faculty advisors throughout the three years, but are encouraged to take coursework outside of the School of Art. The MFA program requires a substantial written thesis.
The School of Art places a strong emphasis on interdisciplinary work and encourages undergraduate and graduate students to engage with the broader Carnegie Mellon community. The College of Fine Arts houses the Studio for Creative Inquiry, directed by artist and faculty member Golan Levin.
The Carnegie Mellon School of Art further benefits from the surrounding Pittsburgh art scene, which includes museums like the Carnegie Museum of Art, the Andy Warhol Museum, and the Mattress Factory.
Read also: From Thistle to Scottie: CMU's mascot history
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