Art

Andrew O’Brien, Interim Head

Mission:

The Department of Art is committed to providing high quality undergraduate education in the visual arts in each of our three degree programs and to provide instruction to non-art majors in support of the university’s liberal arts heritage. Quality teaching is enhanced by the creative research endeavors of the faculty who work closely with students to stimulate aesthetic and intellectual inquiry in both theory and application. Student majors are prepared to become practicing artists and art educators who are technically skilled, visually literate, orally competent, culturally aware, and adept at creative problem solving. As an integral extension of this core commitment, the department strives to maintain a vital partnership/outreach effort that locates us as an essential component of the Chattanooga arts community.

Overview

With its emphasis on critical and visual thinking, students enrolled in the Department of Art will demonstrate competency in writing and speaking about visual phenomena and in formal, technical, and conceptual aspects of art/design, appropriate to the degree program chosen, and in conformance with the standards established by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. The department is committed to preparing its students for entry into an arts related profession or a graduate program in the arts and seeks to provide its students with a positive and rewarding educational experience.

The Department of Art, an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, enrolls students in one of three four-year degree options:

Bachelor of Fine Arts with concentrations in Graphic Design, Painting and Drawing, Photography and Media Art, or Sculpture
Bachelor of Arts with concentrations in Studio Art, Art History, and Art Education.

Selection of an area of study is based on an individual’s professional objectives; however, each program in the department follows a carefully structured and sequential curriculum. It is the intent of the department to have available facilities and resources appropriate for the level of professional preparation of its degree options.

The department also offers a minor in Art History, opportunities for study abroad through CCSA, and an M.B.A. prep Business Minor.

The Art Department reserves the right to keep one example of the work of each student in each course.

Admission to the Art Program

To be considered for full admission into the B.F.A. program, students must have a 2.5 GPA for all art courses completed at UTC as determined at the close of the fall semester prior to review, and must enroll in ART 2900r , Sophomore Review. It should not be assumed that a high grade point average in the major itself assures a satisfactory grade for ART 2900r .

Sophomore Review

ART 2900r , Sophomore Review, is required of all B.F.A. candidates and takes place in the spring semester of the sophomore year of a student’s matriculation within the program. The review is a formal assessment of the student’s studio performance and oral competency as it pertains to the student’s designated degree and concentration. It is intended to provide students with an assessment of their potential for success in the intended area of study early enough to allow them to make a program change should that be advisable. In addition to the portfolio review, the student’s overall academic record will be evaluated for quality and seriousness of purpose. A history of excessive absences, significant lack of participation, withdrawals, or incompletes may result in denial of progression. Students will receive a Satisfactory or No Credit grade for ART 2900r at the determination of the Sophomore Review Committee.

Students who do not satisfactorily complete the review will be unable to enroll in upper division course work (3000 and 4000 level) in the department except by special permission of the Department Head. Students will have only one opportunity to reapply for admission into the B.F.A. in a chosen concentration by retaking ART 2900r .

Prerequisites for enrollment in ART 2900r , Sophomore Review, are ART 1010 , ART 1020 , ART 1050 and ART 1060 and:

for admission into the B.F.A. Graphic Design: ART 2601
for admission into the B.F.A. Photography and Media Art: ART 2810
for admission into the B.F.A. Painting and Drawing: ART 2070
for admission into the B.F.A. Sculpture: ART 2330

Corequisites for enrollment in ART 2900r , Sophomore Review, are

for admission into the B.F.A. Graphic Design: ART 2611
for admission into the B.F.A. Painting and Drawing: ART 2080
for admission into the B.F.A. Photography and Media Art: ART 2820
for admission into the B.F.A. Sculpture: ART 3360

Students who successfully pass the review must maintain continuous enrollment. Otherwise the department cannot guarantee reentry into the program. A reassessment of the student’s portfolio will be required for consideration of readmission.

Transfer Students

In order to be fully admitted into the B.F.A., students transferring from another institution must take or have equivalent credit for ART 1010 , ART 1020 , ART 1050 and ART 1060 , and must complete ART 2900r at UTC. Except by special permission of the Department Head, transfer credits will not be accepted for the following courses (students must enroll in the following courses at UTC as pre- and co-requisites for the Sophomore Review):

for admission into the B.F.A. Graphic Design: ART 2601 and ART 2611
for admission into the B.F.A. Painting and Drawing: ART 2070 and ART 2080
for admission into the B.F.A. Photography and Media Art: ART 2810 and ART 2820
for admission into the B.F.A. Sculpture: ART 2330 and ART 3360

Independent Study

Opportunities for students seeking credit for independent study courses exist among the University’s various departments; however, in conformance with published standards by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, UTC’s Department of Art outlines the following criteria for such course credit:

Courses listed as ART 4998r - Individual Studies are those that specify independent study credit, and are conducted on a tutorial basis between a faculty director and a student.
Registration for these courses requires, as a prerequisite to registration, the completion of the University’s Individual Studies/Research Contract, drawn up and signed by the student and faculty director, approved by the department head, and submitted to the Office of the University Registrar. This contract outlines objectives, content and scope; specific requirements; grading criteria; and frequency of meetings between student and faculty director.
Only on rare occasion does the department allow for substitution of independent study courses for required course work. In such instances, these courses must follow the content, scope, depth, and learning expectations of the courses for which substitution is anticipated.