About the Program
Emphasis is placed on the investigation of drawing as a media in which to create strong statements of personal expression. Through practice and the development of research and studio skills, students develop a studio practice where the making of drawings is deeply embedded and informed by the ideas behind them. Through a range of drawing courses students hone their individual voice and vision and construct their visual language.
Undergraduate
Early on, students study the basic language of drawing. The undergraduate Drawing sequence begins with courses in Perceptual Drawing and Figure Drawing which emphasize the uses of drawing from observation and art anatomy while Drawing: Movement and Motion teaches students to explore the language of drawing visual movement and the concepts of motion in two-dimensional art forms.
The junior year curriculum consists of Color Drawing, Figure Drawing II, Sketchbook/Journal Development, and Experimental Drawing. In these courses, themes are explored through assignments that engage traditional and contemporary approaches to drawing including a range of interdisciplinary approaches spanning altered books to installation, performance, hand drawn animation and site-specific projects.
During the senior drawing studio year, a body of more personal work is distilled. Students are guided in their professional practice as well as a studio ethic that hones the individualization of voice and vision, expansion of visual language, experimentation, and the necessary levels of self-reflection and self-discipline.
Drawing alumni are working in the US and abroad. Our graduates work at firms including Disney TV Animation, Anthropologie, Bento Box Entertainment. They've build careers at galleries on the East and West Coasts, as designers and as High School Art Teachers. Recent alumni have pursued MFA degrees with scholarships or fellowships at prestigious institutions such as Hunter College, University of California, Davis, San Francisco Art Institute, Pratt Institute, and University of Georgia.
Graduate
The Painting and Drawing Graduate Program at University of Florida fosters the student's art making practice through the development of conceptual, aesthetic and technical skills. The program provides students with access to a variety of courses including: art history and theory, criticism, methods of research and professional practice for the studio artist. Students take courses with Graduate faculty offering topical seminars in Painting and Drawing as well as seminars and studio courses across disciplines. Recent seminars include: The Problematics of Painting, Power, Paradox and Poetry, and Making and Meaning. Painting and Drawing students also receive individual instruction on a tutorial basis, meeting with individuals or small groups regularly. The graduate program is housed in a world-class research institution including libraries, lectures and seminars across the humanities and the sciences. Students have opportunities to participate in the Annual NYC gallery and museum tour, Art Basel Trip and International Study Abroad Programs as well as collaborative opportunities and funding support through programs such as the UF Genetics Institute, SAC (Science and Art Collaboration Program) and Creativity in the Arts and Sciences Program.
MFA Painting and Drawing Alumni pursue successful careers as independent studio artists, museum, gallery and design professionals as well as in academic positions. MFA Alumni have found success in professional practice including securing public art commissions and being awarded prestigious residencies and fellowships in the US and abroad. Our graduates work at firms such as Electronic Arts, museums including the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Miami Dade College Museum of Art + Design and teach at University of South Florida, Sam Houston State University, Bucknell University, Appalachian State University, Ball State University, Valdosta State University and University of Florida.