Studio Art: Painting, BFASA
for the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art Major in Studio Art, Painting Concentration
Students in the BFASA who choose the concentration in Painting pursue a course of study that begins with rigorous instruction in traditional drawing and painting materials, methods, techniques, and concepts, and proceeds to encourage a diversity of experimental and multi-disciplinary approaches to painting as a field with a complex and culturally influential history. Students are guided in the understanding of mark-making, color theory, composition, pictorial analysis, and visual perception as they develop their individual interests. At the advanced levels, students may choose to focus on Painting as a distinct genre with an important place in contemporary art, or to explore the expanding set of drawing- and painting-related practices, such as comix and graphic novels, character development, and 2D public and community-based art, among other topics, both established and developing. Specialized courses taught by Painting faculty, as well as electives across the School of Art and Design and across campus, permit students to enrich their educational experiences, seek out knowledge and expertise in a vast variety of fields, and develop their unique artistic identities and vision.
Students in the School of Art and Design must complete the Campus General Education requirements. Some Art and Design courses will also apply toward the General Education requirements.
Students majoring in this degree program must complete the First Year Curriculum requirements before beginning other major requirements.
Students in the BFA Studio Art degree, major in Studio Art, must declare one concentration and students may not declare more than one concentration.
A portfolio review is required for admission to the School of Art and Design.
for the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art Major in Studio Art, Painting Concentration
Graduation Requirements
Minimum hours required for graduation: 122 hours.
University Requirements
Minimum of 40 hours of upper-division coursework, generally at the 300- or 400-level. These hours can be drawn from all elements of the degree. Students should consult their academic advisor for additional guidance in fulfilling this requirement.
The university and residency requirements can be found in the Student Code (§ 3-801) and in the Academic Catalog.
General Education Requirements
Follows the campus General Education (Gen Ed) requirements. Some Gen Ed requirements may be met by courses required and/or electives in Art and Design.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Composition I | 4-6 | |
| Advanced Composition | 3 | |
| Humanities & the Arts (6 hours) | 6 | |
fulfilled by ARTH 110 and any other course approved as Humanities & the Arts | ||
| Natural Sciences & Technology (6 hours) | 6 | |
| Social & Behavioral Sciences (6 hours) | 6 | |
| Cultural Studies: Non-Western Cultures (1 course) | 3 | |
| Cultural Studies: US Minority Cultures (1 course) | 3 | |
| Cultural Studies: Western/Comparative Cultures (1 course) | 3 | |
fulfilled by ARTH 110 | ||
| Quantitative Reasoning (2 courses, at least one course must be Quantitative Reasoning I) | 6-10 | |
| Language Requirement (Completion of the third semester or equivalent of a language other than English is required) | 0-15 | |
First Year Curriculum
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| FAA 101 | Arts at Illinois | 1 |
| ARTF 101 | Contemporary Issues in Art | 2 |
| ARTE 101 | Art, Design, and Society | 2 |
| ARTH 110 | Introduction to the History of Art and Visual Culture | 3 |
| ARTF 103 | Design I | 3 |
| ARTF 105 | Design II | 3 |
| Select one Drawing course: | 3 | |
| Observational Drawing | ||
| Expressive Drawing | ||
| Visualization Drawing | ||
| Total Hours | 17 | |
Art History Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| 200 level and above ARTH courses | 9 | |
Painting Concentration Requirements
Students must declare one concentration, students may not declare more than one concentration.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARTS 251 | Beginning Painting | 3 |
| ARTS 250 | Life Drawing | 3 |
| ARTS 354 | Intermediate Painting | 3 |
| ARTS 454 | Advanced Drawing (May be repeated to a maximum of 6 hours.) | 3 |
| ARTS 455 | Advanced Painting (Taken twice for a total of 6 hours) | 6 |
| ARTS 499 | Special Topics in Studio Art (Required for 3 hours; May be repeated to a maximum of 9 hours, if topics vary) | 3 |
| Additional 200-level ARTS courses | 9 | |
| Additional 300-400 level ARTS courses | 18 | |
| Total Hours | 48 | |
Capstone Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARTS 392 | Current Art Issues Seminar | 3 |
| ARTS 451 | BFASA Capstone Studio | 4 |
Summary of credits for Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Arts
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| General Education | ||
| First-Year Curriculum | 17 | |
| Art History | 9 | |
| Concentration | 48 | |
| Capstone | 7 | |
| Free electives to bring the total hours earned to 122, including a minimum of 40 credits at the 300- or 400-level. | ||
| Total Hours | 122 | |
for the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art Major in Studio Art, Painting Concentration
This sample sequence is intended to be used only as a guide for degree completion. All students should work individually with their academic advisors to decide the actual course selection and sequence that works best for them based on their academic preparation and goals. Enrichment programming such as study abroad, minors, internships, and so on may impact the structure of this four-year plan. Course availability is not guaranteed during the semester indicated in the sample sequence.
Students must fulfill their Language Other Than English requirement by successfully completing a third level of a language other than English. For more information, see the corresponding section on the Degree General and Education Requirements page.
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| FAA 101 | 1 | ARTE 101 | 2 |
| ARTF 101 | 2 | ARTS 251 | 3 |
| ARTH 110 | 3 | ARTF 105 | 3 |
| ARTF 103 | 3 | Composition I or Language Other than English (3rd level) | 4 |
| ARTF ### (Drawing Category) | 3 | General Education course | 3 |
| Composition I or Language Other than English (3rd level) | 4 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| ARTS 250 | 3 | ARTS 354 | 3 |
| ARTH 200-400 level course | 3 | ARTH 200-400 level course | 3 |
| Additional ARTS 200-level course | 3 | Additional ARTS 200-level course | 3 |
| General Education course | 3 | General Education course | 3 |
| General Education course | 3 | General Education course | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| ARTS 454 | 3 | ARTS 392 | 3 |
| ARTH 200-400 level course | 3 | ARTS 455 | 3 |
| Additional ARTS 200 level course | 3 | Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 |
| Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 | Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 |
| General Education course | 3 | General Education course | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| First Semester | Hours | Second Semester | Hours |
| ARTS 499 | 3 | ARTS 451 | 4 |
| ARTS 455 | 3 | Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 |
| Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 | Additional ARTS 300-400 level course | 3 |
| General Education course | 3 | General Education course | 3 |
| General Education course | 3 | Free Elective course | 3 |
| 15 | 16 | ||
| Total Hours 122 | |||
for the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art Major in Studio Art, Painting Concentration
BFASA Studio Art:
- Students will understand and be able to apply basic principles of visual and material communication, including two-dimensional pictorial concepts, three-dimensional formal and spatial concepts, and a wide variety of media and formats for artistic production, and possess the ability to apply them to a specific aesthetic intent.
- Students will demonstrate an ability and willingness to experiment and explore the expressive possibilities of various media, and artistic and creative strategies for self-directed art-making, and investigate the diverse activities and conceptual modes available to the contemporary artist, including work that directly addresses or engages with recent developments in the field of fine art as well as broader social questions and challenges. Students are trained in the production and critique of artworks that explore forms and technologies identified as new or emerging.
- Students will gain knowledge of, understand, and be able to apply concepts of visual rhetoric in the development of content, and be able to recognize and critically analyze an evolving variety of communicative practices in art and visual culture, including those that represent diverse cultures and sociopolitical positions, and to demonstrate openness to new social possibilities and a critical empathy towards both audiences and culture producers of differing histories, origins and identities.
- Students will develop an innovative, imaginative, and entrepreneurial self-directed studio practice, will gain a deep understanding of their own creativity, be able to apply it in any context, and will learn to independently generate thematic investigation and implementation of research in a broad variety of social locations, including art and educational institutions, activist forums, and cyberspace.
- Students will be willing and able to investigate and accommodate broad-ranging types of knowledge and artistic strategies for the purpose of synthesizing diverse and even disparate ideas in order to create sophisticated, unique works of art, participate in new types of collaboration, and to make innovative statements and hypotheses, or propose creative solutions to social, organizational and societal problems using aesthetic strategies.
- While pursuing a BFASA, students prepare for work as artists at a time when artists are employed in a variety of spheres: artistic direction, project management, education, research, fine art, curation, performance, non-profit work, activism, advertising, and many others. As digital medias evolve, our graduates will be flexible, able to understand the best use of emerging technologies while crafting new economic and social connections.
- Students will produce an integrated, cohesive, critically informed body of work for a thesis exhibition, supported by a written thesis document that serves to position their artistic practice within the broader sphere of contemporary art practices, exhibition strategies, audiences, and economies.
In addition, each concentration has discipline specific learning outcomes:
Painting Concentration:
- Students concentrating in Painting attain a functional knowledge of the traditions, conventions, and evolutions of the discipline as related to issues of representation, illusion, and meaning.
- Students concentrating in Painting understand and utilize the diverse conceptual modes available to the painter. This may deal with direct observational painting strategies or with alternative approaches to the making of traditional or innovative two- and, at times, three-dimensional images.
for the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art Major in Studio Art, Painting Concentration
School of Art & Design
School of Art & Design
Art & Design Faculty
Academic Coordinator of Undergraduate Academic Affairs: Michael Foellmer
143 Art and Design Building, Champaign, IL 61820
(217) 244-8462
Academic Coordinator of Undergraduate Academic Affairs email
College of Fine & Applied Arts
Fine & Applied Arts
Admissions
University of Illinois Undergrad Admissions
FAA Undergraduate Advising
Undergrad Admissions email