Art and Media
Fine Arts Major at Florham Campus
The Studio Art Major offers a program of study for students interested in careers in the fine arts and related fields, such as art education, art therapy, and museum studies.
Dedicated and exhibiting artists and professors teach a wide range of subjects in beginning through advanced-level studio art classes, including technical Studio Art production. Museum and gallery visits, coupled with studio lectures, demonstrations, and critiques, allow students to learn to integrate historical and cultural knowledge from Art History into their own Studio Art practice. Students will be able to perform Studio Art skills required to express ideas and concepts using professional Fine Art language in the production of visual arts. Graduates will be able to apply knowledge of professional Studio Art practices in the creation and exhibition of artworks. Students will also learn to express themselves orally on a range of visual art concepts, principles, and practices.
Our innovative approach to the studio arts matches courses across disciplines: from the unique Art of the Graphic Novel and Ceramic Character Sculpture to the traditional Life Drawing and Life Sculpture.
The program offers many opportunities for learning beyond the classroom, including:
- Annual student fine art exhibitions
- Class trips to NYC museums, galleries, and artist studios each semester
- Creative internships and career workshops
- Internationally recognized visiting artists (recently Nari Ward, Rina Peleg, Howard Cruse)
- Faculty-guided experiential learning /exhibition opportunities
- Student/faculty research projects with academic credit
- Regular contact with art alum keeps former students connected to our current students and activities, receptions, and trips
- Support for alum exhibitions at FDU and external venues
Exploring NYC: Trips to NYC Museums, Galleries, and Artist Studios
Each semester includes a trip to see the latest art exhibitions in NYC, area museums, and galleries. Art professors provide guided opportunities to view art, from ancient to contemporary, in Chelsea galleries, The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other museums. Recent excursions have included MoMA’s PS1, The Guggenheim Museum, The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Museum of Art and Design (MAD), as well as visits to site-specific art installations and artist studios. Interdisciplinary learning opportunities have included visits to the NYC Central Park Zoo.
The Fine Art Studios on Florham Campus are located on the picturesque Frederick Law Olmstead (designer of NYC’s Central Park) grounds, providing a backdrop and subject for art students and classes.
We provide a strong foundation program where each student is individually encouraged to develop their own artistic voice in an interdisciplinary approach. Knowledge of traditional skills is emphasized along with contemporary art and ideas. Offerings include a wide range of classes at multiple levels in Drawing, Painting, Ceramics, Sculpture, Photography, Two- and Three-Dimensional Design, Color Theory, Printmaking, Computer Graphics, and Art History. Students from across the FDU community may explore their own creativity in studio classes while fulfilling university requirements for graduation.
Classes average 12 students per class, with some of the advanced classes having smaller enrollments, allowing for the optimum learning experience. Independent Studies, Internships, and Research Assistantships are available for additional advanced-level studies.
Fine Arts Major at Metro Campus
The Metro art program emphasizes critical thinking as well as the integration of research and knowledge into practical and applied visual language. Students may select a focus on one of our concentrations (studio art, computer graphic arts, or arts management) or a more general degree by choosing among all areas. It provides an excellent grounding for professions as diverse as law, medicine, and business. In addition, the major prepares students for advanced graduate study in art history, architecture, and cultural studies. It also serves as the foundation for careers in teaching, arts administration, museums, galleries, historic preservation, art libraries, publishing, journalism, advertising, art conservation, and art investment. As the world becomes increasingly flooded with images, critical visual “reading” and “producing” skills become more and more important for a wide variety of careers.
Studio course offerings include:
- Painting and Drawing allow students to approach the discipline as a language and to explore issues of media and content.
- Printmaking offers students an opportunity to think of images in terms of multiples and emphasizes skill and technique.
- Sculpture and ceramics introduce students to 3-dimensional thought processes and concepts.
Computer Graphic Arts course offerings bring students up to date with new computer and networking technology. We emphasize design and aesthetic issues for the new media.
- Digital Photography and Video involves students and faculty in a vigorous investigation into the nature and meaning of the art of photography and video in contemporary culture.
- Desktop Publishing offers a unique opportunity to learn print production using design layout programs such as Quark Xpress, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop. It combines design with technical issues such as color space and color systems, separations, and trapping.
- Web and Interactive Design has its focus on the internet as a destination for interactive Websites and CD multimedia projects using Flash and Dreamweaver. It offers a rich multimedia experience with interactivity, video, sound, and animation.
