The Department of Art at San Francisco State University’s principal focus is the production of future generations of socially engaged artists who understand that individual and collaborative contributions to culture are paramount to their practice.
With a program structure that incorporates coursework in Art History, Art Education and Studio Art, the Department of Art considers the broad landscape of contemporary art practice from within the academy and far beyond – fostering dialogue between generations of practitioners, as well as between media and disciplines. Broadening the scope of our students’ experience, study of the major takes place in a four-year liberal arts university with over one hundred degree programs.
The Department of Art strives to provide a model of skilled creative production grounded in critical inquiry, technical mastery, and global ethics. All department programs seek to bridge the practice, theory, and history of art and to combine traditional and new technologies in a manner that reflects contemporary culture.
In addition to conceptualizing and executing works of art, the program teaches students practical and relevant skills. On campus, opportunities are provided through teaching assistantships, guilds, service learning, and exhibition design and installation methodologies in a variety of exhibition spaces. Off campus, students can intern at a range of local institutions including non-profit and commercial galleries as well at several nationally-regarded museums. Through these and other activities, the Department of Art fosters community service and engagement throughout the Bay Area’s cultural network of arts and educational institutions.
Located in one of the most vibrant, culturally diverse and cosmopolitan cities on the West Coast, the Department of Art at San Francisco State University has been growing a collective body of regionally and globally established artists since 1903. Amidst an array of Bay Area schools and universities, it is a dynamic and affordable place to study studio art and art history as an undergraduate or graduate student.
