university of kansas department of visual art mfa … · 2019-12-23 · university of kansas / mfa...

UNIVERSITY OF KANSASDEPARTMENT OF VISUAL ART

MFA PROGRAM

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS / MFA PROGRAM

The MFA program is Interdisciplinary in its approachAnd grads work with all faculty in the program amongseven studio areas:

CeramicsExpanded MediaMetalsmithing and JewelryPainting and DrawingPrintmakingSculptureTextiles and Fibers


The MFA program Application is due February 1, 2020

The application includes both an onlineapplication via the University of Kansas,and a portfolio submission on SlideRoom

Items include:•Application for Admission•Application Fee Payment•Three Letters of Recommendation•Official Transcript(s) copies submitted online and official transcripts sent

directly to the Office of Admissions.•Statement of Purpose•Resume or CV

Portfolio: Submitted online via SlideRoom.


The MFA program is three years and fully funded (tuition and fees)

Students receive a combination ofscholarship funding and

Graduate Teaching Assistantshipsover the course of the three years.

Scholarships are also available from The University of Kansas for Veterans,low-income students and for other specific groups.

The MFA program DOES NOT ACCEPT a student if we can’t fund them!


Graduate Students spend their first two years taking an interdisciplinary graduateseminar comprised of first and second year grad students, and take electives in theDepartment of Visual Art and University.

They also work independently with faculty in their chosendiscipline and within the Department of Visual Art,Spencer Museum of Art, and Affiliated Faculty.

After the successful completion of two reviews (first and second year), third yearstudents spend their entire third year on their thesis work.


Students in the MFA program receive generous private/semi-private studiosappropriate to their work for the entire duration of the program.

In addition to their individual studios,Graduate Students have access to theentire Department of Visual Art facilityincluding equipment, tools, staff resources,workspaces, computer production labs,and shops.

Graduate Students also have access to theresources of a major research universityincluding libraries, the Spencer Museum of Art,the Biodiversity Institute, and various research labs.


Students in the MFA program are eligibleand often receive grant fundingfrom multiple agencies on campusand outside for complex projects,travel, and study abroad experiences.


Faculty in the MFA program are working artists with international practices.

Faculty in the program exhibit theirwork all over the world, and are present

in important collections around theworld including the Nelson-Atkins

Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago,and the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Graduate Students build strong and lastingrelationships with faculty that continue

well beyond the end of graduate school.

YOONMI NAM // PROFESSOR IN PRINTMAKING


Faculty work with a range of studentsregardless of discipline or material interests.

All faculty participate as critics in theinterdisciplinary graduate seminar

Graduate students select any faculty they want from the departmentfor their thesis committees, and often include outside members.

NORMAN AKERS // ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR IN PAINTING


Students are exposed to visiting critics from the Hashinger HallArtists-in-Residence Program.

LYNDON BARROIS JR. // HASHINGER HALL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE FY 17-18


These residentsbring new perspectives,

courses, and conversationsinto the mix, and develop

relationships with grad studentsthat last beyond the residency.

ADDOLEY DZEGEDE // HASHINGER HALL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE FY 17-18


The residents also hold anexhibition in the art and design gallery,

which brings their work back intothe space for conversation.

KEVIN BROPHY// HASHINGER HALL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE FY 18-19


Our newest Hashinger Hall Artist-in-Residence.

AMBRIN LING // HASHINGER HALL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE FY 19-20


In 2020 we started a brand new residency incollaboration with the Earth, Energy and Environment

Center to host another artist who is focused on theInterest between science/ecology and art.

BRANDI LEE COOPER // EEEC ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE FY 19-20


In addition to these residents, every semester a new visiting critic is broughtto graduate seminar to conduct formal crits with all of the first and second year

graduate students.

STEFANIE KAE DLUGOSZ-ACTON// Assistant Curator, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art


Generally these critics are curators or artists in the region, who maintain contactwith our graduate students after their time at KU.

JADE POWERS// Assistant Curator, Kemper Museum of Art


Others are temporary members of the community who leave and become contactsfor our grad students when they leave.

LYNNETTE MIRANDA// US ARTISTS GRANT


Through these critiques, students experience a range of perspectives outside of theFaculty in the department of Visual Art.

FATIMAH TUGGAR // ARTIST


During Graduate Seminar, students also get to experience our bi-annual BlitzCritz,where they receive rapid fire studio visits with curators,

artists and gallerists in the region.

JENNIFER BAKER (JE BAKER) // ARTIST AND CURATOR

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS / MFA PROGRAM (Grads in their Studios)


Jennifer Baker, AKA JE Baker, will also serve as our inaugural critic-in-residence,and will write short essays on the work of all of our graduate

students’ thesis work!

This is a brand new program that will continue everyyear with a different writer, curator, or critic.

JENNIFER BAKER (JE BAKER) // ARTIST AND CURATOR


Students are also exposed to tons of visitng artists and critics that come through the program to speak and to give critiques to our grad students.

Notable visiting artists include: Edgar Heap of Birds, Shana Moulton, Ann Hamilton, R. Luke Dubois, Vanessa German, Michael Rees, Annie Lapin, Claudia Casarino, Sylvie Fortin, Debora and Jason Bernagozzi, Eric Souther, and many more...

SYLVIE FORTIN// INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED CURATOR


Graduate Students in the MFA program go on to be artists , receive prestigiousawards and residencies, and receive tenure-track and visiting positions.

MATTHEW WILLIE GARCIA // 3rd Year grad in exhibition at the Nerman Museum


JUAN JOSÉ CASTAÑO MÁRQUEZ // MFA EXPANDED MEDIA 2018,Assistant Professor at Nebraska-Wesleyan University (Tenure-Track)


FUKO ITO// MFA PRINTMAKING 2018,Visiting Assistant Professor at the University of Kentucky


RICHARD JAMES // MFA CERAMICS 2016,Assistant Professor at Texas A&M University (tenure-track)


GINA ADAMS // MFA PAINTING 2013,Assistant Professor at Emily Carr University (tenure-track)


ELLA WEBER// MFA PRINTMAKING 20162019 PLAYA Art & Science Residency, Artist in Residence, Summer Lake, OR2019 Jentel Artist Residency, Banner, WY2018 Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute Pratt, Printmaker in Residence, Utica, NY2017 Signal Culture, Artist in Residence, Owego, NY


SYDNEY CAMPBELL MAYBRIER BROOKE PURSEL// MFA EXPANDED MEDIA 20172018-2019: White Cloud-Mahaska Community Mural: Charlotte Street FoundationRocket Grant2018: Ucross Fellowship for Native American Visual Artists (Clearmont, WY)2017: Separate and Not Equal; A History of Race and Education in America:Spencer Museum of Art


ALLISON SHELDON // MFA TEXTILES 2019ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE, CHARLOTTE STREET FOUNDATION

So what do we look for in a strong application?

•STRONG work that shows good editing, promise, and an intellectual curiousity.

•Excellent documentation that shows off your work to the best ability.

•A powerful letter of intent that communicates clearly your intentions.

•Letters of Recommendation from people who really know your work.

•A resume/CV that shows off your full experiences.

•Clarity and focus, with a clear desire to succeed.



THE PORTFOLIO

•It is up to you to select the best work that tells both a cohesive story while stillshowing off range, and the possibility for growth. Ask for FEEDBACK on this fromFaculty and peers.

•Your images/media must be prepared excellently and according to the guidelinesset by the institution

•Make sure the work is current and ideally done outside of a classroom.

•Your work should tell us who you are and why you are an asset to a program. Ifyour work requires explanation to understand what is happening be precise andconcise—the committee reviews many applications.


THE LETTER OF INTENT

•Make sure you have done your research and understand the program well. WHYare you applying to THIS program, and what do you see as its strengths for you?

•WHAT do YOU bring to the program and to the community? Don’t undersellyourself! How will you contribute and make our community stronger and provocative?

•Elaborate deeply on your unique story, but don’t assume we get your references.

•Make sure you have impeccable grammar and are using appropriately descriptiveand evocative language to communicate. We get a lot of boring letters, how is yoursthe spicy moment in the pack?

•Cut the art-school bullshit. It is better to communicate with clarity, than to use wordsyou don’t understand. We know it right away.


THE ARTIST STATEMENT

•Be specific and meaningful in your language.

•Avoid clichés and stick to what is happening in the work, not what you think we want to hear.

•Be passionate and honest about what you are compelled by in the work.

•Be concise, and give us references to specific works that you think articulate whatyou mean.


THE LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION

•Choose writers that you trust, and who know your work well.

•Make sure at least two of your referees are people who know how you are asa student. Non-academic references should be professional, and preferably arts-professionals, curators, etc. who can speak to the potential of your work.

•Be organized and ask your writers well in advance for letters, providing them aspreadsheet with links, dates, and your application materials. Be gracious to them.


VISITING THE PROGRAM

•Upon acceptance, we recommend visiting the program when making your decision.

•Prior to applications, we hold an OPEN HOUSE that students can attend, or theycan make arrangements to visit.

•International prospective students are encouraged to reach out earlier rather thanlater.

•All KU faculty emails are available on the art.ku.edu website, and you should feelfree to ask them questions for discipline-specific issues.

BENJAMIN ROSENTHALwww.benjaminrosenthal.com

Associate ProfessorDirector of Graduate Studiesart.ku.edu

[email protected]

http://www.benjaminrosenthal.com/

JULIA REILLYhttps://coga.ku.edu/julia-reilly

Graduate Academic AdvisorSchool of the Arts

She/her/hers

[email protected]

https://coga.ku.edu/julia-reilly

THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST IN OUR PROGRAM

ALL WORK SHOWN IS OF GRADUATE MFA STUDENTSOR ALUMNAE OF THE KU MFA PROGRAM

university of kansas department of visual art mfa … · 2019-12-23 · university of kansas / mfa...

Documents