Welcome
We at American University believe that an artist’s work is formed through individual choice, knowledge, and experience and that exploration and experimentation in the studio are central to aesthetic development. Our mission at AU is rather straightforward: We want to provide students with the formal and intellectual tools to understand and dialogue the historical and contemporary criteria for the making of their work.In an era when contemporary art cannot be easily contained within the traditional categories of painting and sculpture, the Studio Arts Program at American University retains a strong core of courses that provide a firm grounding in basic techniques and principles. Our newly opened, state-of-the-art Katzen Arts Center offers facilities for painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, multimedia, and exhibition.
A distinctive characteristic of American University’s Studio Art program is that all of the full-time faculty teach throughout the program, from fundamentals to graduate courses. Resident Visiting Artists program augments the Studio Arts Program by bringing important artists from around the country to the department and expanding students' views of contemporary art.
American University offers MFA, BFA, and BA degrees in Studio Art. In addition, the University is in close proximity to institutions such as the National Gallery of Art, Hirshhorn Museum, Phillips Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum, and many other world class museums and collections, including the university's own Watkins and Katzen collections.
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