The mission of the Visual Arts Program at South Carolina State University is to provide students with an accessible and supportive learning environment that emphasizes the importance of visual arts in society. The faculty and administration strive to maintain a program that provides a valuable education in the visual arts, enhances career opportunities for all students, and promotes an appreciation of life- long learning. The Visual Arts Program is dedicated to nurturing the creative and scholarly potential of students, supporting faculty in the development of excellence in teaching and research, and promoting visual arts in the community.
GOALS
The goals of the Visual Arts Program are:
• To maintain a program that enables students to develop a range of formal and technical studio skills as well as conceptual and intuitive decision making skills in order achieve a level of visual communication or expression.
• To provide students with an understanding of standards of quality in the visual arts and encourage students to practice critical thinking skills when evaluating their own work and the work of others. • To instill in students an appreciation of the evolution and significance
of art history, including major movements/artists of both the past and present in Western and non-Western cultures.
• To provide students focused in Art Education with knowledge and experience in theoretical and practical teaching strategies
• To prepare students for careers in visual art and other disciplines or graduate studies.
• To encourage students to become visually aware of the world around them.
• To support faculty in teaching as well as scholarly and creative research efforts.
• To encourage an appreciation of the arts across disciplines. • To promote visual arts in the local community and beyond.
OBJECTIVES
• To structure studio art curricula so that student mastery of techniques in specific media as well as formal and conceptual studio skills may be achieved.
• To maintain and enhance standards of quality of student work through a shared philosophy of quality emphasized in class critiques SP 201/F 201/G 201 3 SP 202/F 202/ G 202 3
SOC 305 or PSY 3073 SOC 306
Approved Elective 3 Approved Elective 3
Approved Elective 3 Elective 3
GUID 210 1 Elective 3
E 302 3
Elective 3
and instructor evaluation.
• To create opportunities for students to practice critical thinking skills through class critiques and critical writing assignments. • To stress the significance of art history through curricular offerings
as well as museum and gallery visits.
• To structure an art education curriculum that will provide experience in studio techniques, education theory and practice and observed teaching.
• To prepare students for careers in visual arts by engaging in professional development activities.
• To promote visual awareness through specific studio projects and field trips.
• To support faculty teaching and research through funding, appropriate teaching loads, tenure and promotion, etc.
• To encourage faculty and students to engage in cross-disciplinary activities through collaborations with the Music, Drama and other University programs.
• To exhibit student and faculty work in the University and surrounding community.
• To reach out to students, faculty and the community through the scheduling of visiting artist lectures and arts related events.
VISUAL ARTS PROGRAM OFFERINGS
The Visual Arts Program offers the Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art and , in conjunction with the Department of Education, the Bachelor of Science in Art Education.
BACHELOR OF ARTS IN STUDIO ART
The Bachelor of Arts degree in studio art is a liberal arts degree that offers the student a breadth of experience in the visual arts. Students enrolled in this major will gain a range of experience in the traditional tools, techniques and modes of artistic expression as well as new media and design concepts. The student will also develop an understanding and appreciation of the history of art as well as critical thinking about art and how it relates to the world. The curriculum is structured so that the student begins with foundation level courses in studio arts, moves on to beginning courses in several disciplines, including drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, digital media, ceramics and sculpture, and then moves on to gain intermediate and advanced experience in one or more disciplines. The concentration on one discipline within a liberal arts degree allows the student to go beyond beginning level skill tests and exercises in order to provide the student with experience in more advanced creative development. The Visual Arts Program offers four concentrations in studio arts:
Ceramics/Sculpture Digital Media Painting/Drawing Printmaking/Photography Studio Art Program Requirements:
Studio Art majors must complete a total of 120-121 credit hours for the Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art with 48-51 credit hours in the Visual Arts Program. The requirements include 12 hours of studio art foundation courses, 12 hours of art history, 18-21 hours in a studio concentration with 12 hours at or above the 300- level, 6 hours of studio courses outside the concentration area, and 3 hours in art exhibition techniques. Students must earn a grade of “C” or better in all art
courses to meet graduation requirements. All students must pass the English Proficiency Exam. Studio Art majors are also required to attend lectures, meetings, and gallery and museum exhibitions associated with the department, as well as lyceum and cultural enrichment programs offered at the university. Upon completion of their course work, majors are required to mount an exhibition of their artwork at the university, usually at the end of their senior year.
Career Options in Studio Art:
Careers in studio art include professional artist, graphic designer, web/interactive media designer, illustrator, community arts instructor, exhibition technician, studio lab technician and print shop technician. Graduates in the studio art major may also choose to go on to further study in art therapy, arts administration, museum studies, and fine arts studies at the master’s level.
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN ART EDUCATION
The degree of Bachelor of Science is a liberal arts undergraduate education degree that is conferred upon students (i.e. pre-service teachers) who have majored in art education. The department of visual and performing arts collaborates with the department of education to prepare pre-service art teachers for K-12 licensure.
The purpose of the undergraduate art education program is to develop preservice art teachers who are artistically competent and pedagogically sound. The art education program is methodically structured to encourage and assist students in developing broad-based artistic capabilities and a repertoire of instructional competencies. Emphasis is placed on: in-depth knowledge and proficiency in the content of art; awareness of art history and appreciation for the arts; understanding of contemporary and historical philosophies in art education; comprehension of instructional strategies; development of effective communication skills; competence in instructional technology; exposure to ethical standards and professionalism; approaches to classroom management; knowledge of growth and stages of artistic development in children; sensitivity to diversity and its ramification for learning; commitment to scholarship and professional development; curricular paradigms that are reflective of goals and purposes of art education, the school, the community and the broader society.
Students majoring in the art education program are required to take 6 hours of studio art courses at or above the 300 level. This will enable them to develop more advanced experience in one or more of the visual art disciplines of ceramics, sculpture, painting, drawing, printmaking or digital media.
Students must apply to the Department of Education and be admitted before taking upper level education courses. In addition, students must pass the Praxis I, Praxis II (NTE specialty area exam), complete 150 pre-step hours and maintain a minimum GPA of 2.50 to remain in the program. All students must pass the English Proficiency Exam as well as apply and be admitted to the program for Professional Clinical Experience in the field.
Art Education Program Requirements:
Art Education majors complete a total of 123 credit hours. A total of 45 credit hours are required in visual art, which includes 12 hours of art history. A total of 7 credit hours are required in art education methods. A total of 31 credit hours are required in education including 12 hours of student teaching. A total of 45 credit hours are required from the General Education Curriculum. Students must earn a grade of “C” or
145 better in all art courses to meet graduation requirements.
Art Education majors are also required to attend lectures, meetings, and gallery and museum exhibitions associated with the department, as well as lyceum and cultural enrichment programs offered at the university.
Career Options in Art Education:
Careers in art education may include but not limited to Art teacher at the Elementary, Middle School, or High School levels; Museum Art Educator; Lecturer; Arts Consultant for Educational Programming; Visual Education Grant Writer.
Minor Programs
Students selecting studio art as a minor are required to complete a minimum of twenty-one credit hours in studio art. The following courses are required: ARTH 215, ARTH 216, ARTH 415 OR 420, ARTS 115 or ARTS 116 or ARTS 215, six hours from ARTS 216-223, and six hours at or above the 300 level.