Art, BFA

Program Description

The curriculum for the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is designed to provide professional development at the undergraduate level in the visual arts, through in-depth study in studio art. The degree requires a minimum of 75 semester hours in art, at least 36 of which must be in upper-division coursework.

Admission to the BFA is by special application. Such application can be made upon completion of 30 semester hours of art coursework, and must be made before completion of 48 semester hours of art coursework. A portfolio consisting of ten to fifteen works representing a variety of media must be submitted in addition to the application form. Copies of specific BFA admission policies and instructions for submitting an application to the BFA program are available from the Department of Art website. Completed BFA applications should be submitted to the office of the Department Chair.

The purposes of the art curriculum are:

  1. To provide a general program that allows students access to a variety of art media, studio techniques, and instruction;
  2. To provide students with opportunities to study past and present forms of art and to understand the function of art in society;
  3. To provide courses that will help expand the knowledge and interest of non-majors in the area of art; and
  4. To contribute to the cultural life of the University and the community by presenting quality art exhibitions in the Weil Gallery.

Students can major in art in either the Bachelor of Arts (BA) or the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree programs. Students in the BFA have the option through electives to develop an emphasis beyond the general degree program in Printmaking, Painting, Sculpture, Ceramics, Photography, Drawing, or Art History.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts leading to all-level Teacher Certification is available.

Two minors are also available. The minor in Studio Art is 21 semester hours and will allow a student to concentrate in one studio area. The minor in Art History is 18 semester hours. Interested students should contact the department academic advisor.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students will have:

  • A comprehensive level of professional development in the visual arts in preparation for specific careers;
  • proficiency in studio processes and the understanding of conceptual theories and histories as evidenced in their graduating senior exhibitions;
  • demonstrated expertise in their specific area of concentration.

General Requirements

Specific Degree Requirements
All art majors must meet all general University and College graduation requirements, including First Year Seminars, regardless of the following specific degree requirements, unless specifically excused. All art degrees require ARTS 1303 Art History Survey I (3 sch), which also meets the Core Curriculum Program Fine Arts requirement. All and only coursework with the prefix ARTS will be included in the grade point average for the students declared major field of study.

Requirements Credit Hours
Core Curriculum Program (includes ARTS 1303 and 1304) 42
First-Year Seminars (when applicable)1 0-2
Art Major Requirements 72
University Electives 6
Total Credit Hours 120-122
1

First-Year Seminars or Electives

Full-time, first time in college students are required to take the first-year seminars.

Program Requirements

Full-time, First-year Students
UNIV 1101University Seminar I1
UNIV 1102University Seminar II1
Core Curriculum Program
University Core Curriculum42
Note: ARTS 1303 and 1304 need to be taken as part of the University Core Curriculum. Both are required for the BFA in Art degree.
Art Major Requirements
ARTS 1311Design I3
ARTS 1312Design II3
ARTS 1316Drawing I3
ARTS 1317Drawing II3
ARTS 2316Painting I3
ARTS 2326Sculpture I3
ARTS 2333Printmaking I3
ARTS 2346Ceramics I3
ARTS 2356Photography I3
ARTS 3301Life Drawing3
ARTS 3311Color Theory3
ARTS 3367Digital Design Tools and Applications3
ARTS 3303Intermediate Painting3
or ARTS 3313 Figure Painting
ARTS 3302Screen Printing3
or ARTS 3307 Lithography and Planographic Process
ARTS 3324Wheel Throwing3
or ARTS 3325 Handbuilt Ceramic Techniques
Select one of the following:3
Fabrication Sculpture
Mold Making and Casting Sculpture
Figurative Sculpture
Art History
ARTS 3352Modern Art3
ARTS 3353Art Since 19453
Select one of the following:3
Art of the United States
Pre-Columbian Art of Mesoamerica
Modern Art of Mexico
Global Currents in Contemporary Art
Contemporary Art Since 1980
Topics in Art History
Art Electives
Select 15 hours of upper division ARTS electives15
Capstone
This course must be taken in your final semester before graduation.
ARTS 4085Senior Capstone0
University Electives
Select 6 hours of university electives.6
Total Hours122

Note:

A senior project is required of the BFA art major during the final semester as an undergraduate student. The student, with minimum assistance from the supervising faculty member, is expected to organize an exhibition of his or her work completed while a student at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The student must be registered in a related course with the faculty advisor during the semester in which the project is presented. Students in the BFA art program are expected to spend one additional hour per week in the studio for each semester hour of studio enrollment.

All art majors must meet all general University and College graduation requirements, including First Year Seminars, regardless of the following specific degree requirements, unless specifically excused. All art degrees require ARTS 1303 Art History Survey I (3 sch), which also meets the Core Curriculum Program Fine Arts requirement.  All and only coursework with the prefix ARTS will be included in the grade point average for the students declared major field of study.

All students graduating with a Bachelor of  Fine Arts Degree with Teachers Certification are required to submit an exit portfolio. The portfolio consists of 20 .jpg images that best represent their most successful coursework during their educational careers in the Department of Art. A written formal discussion of some aspect of their work  is also required.

The senior capstone class sets the standards and format and format for these materials and coordinates the collection of the materials. These materials are due on or before the last class day of the semester in which the students plan to graduate.

Course Sequencing

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
FallHours
ARTS 1311
Design I
or Design II
3
ARTS 1316 Drawing I 3
ARTS 1303 Art History Survey I 3
UNIV 1101 University Seminar I 1
ENGL 1301 Writing and Rhetoric I 3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours16
Spring
ARTS 1311
Design I
or Design II
3
ARTS 1317 Drawing II 3
ARTS 1304 Art History Survey II 3
UNIV 1102 University Seminar II 1
ENGL 1302
Writing and Rhetoric II
or Foundation of Communication
3
MATH 1332
Contemporary Mathematics
or Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking
3
 Hours16
Second Year
Fall
2000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
2000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours18
Spring
2000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
2000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
2000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours18
Third Year
Fall
ARTS 3311
Color Theory
or Digital Design Tools and Applications
or Life Drawing
3
ARTS 3311
Color Theory
or Digital Design Tools and Applications
or Life Drawing
3
3000 Level Painting, Sculpture, Printmaking or Ceramics 3
ARTS 3352
Modern Art
or Art Since 1945
3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours15
Spring
ARTS 3311
Color Theory
or Digital Design Tools and Applications
or Life Drawing
3
3000 Level Painting, Sculpture, Printmaking or Ceramics 3
3000 Level Painting, Sculpture, Printmaking or Ceramics 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours15
Fourth Year
Fall
3000 or 4000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
3000 or 4000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
3000 or 4000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
Upper Division Art History Elective 3
Upper Division Elective 3
 Hours15
Spring
ARTS 4085 Senior Capstone 0
3000 or 4000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
3000 or 4000 Level ARTS Studio Course 3
Upper Division Elective 3
 Hours9
 Total Hours122

Courses

ARTS 1301  Art and Society  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Designated for non-art majors. Establishes a working vocabulary for evaluating works of art in various media. Objects are interpreted in terms of their specific historical contexts and the changing relationships between art and society. This course does not fulfill the art history requirement for art majors.

TCCNS: ARTS 1301  
ARTS 1303  Art History Survey I  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

An examination of painting, sculpture, architecture, and other arts from the ancient through medieval periods.

TCCNS: ARTS 1303  
ARTS 1304  Art History Survey II  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A further examination of painting, sculpture, architecture, and other arts from the Renaissance through Modern periods. This course satisfies the university core curriculum requirement in fine arts.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1303.

TCCNS: ARTS 1304  
ARTS 1311  Design I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A studio course concerning the fundamentals of art with emphasis on two-dimensional concepts.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 1311  
ARTS 1312  Design II  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A studio course concerning the fundamentals of art with emphasis on three-dimensional concepts.  This 3D foundations course utilizes creative problem-solving strategies and basic sculpture tools to explore spatial relationships and to create sculptural forms in space.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 1312  
ARTS 1316  Drawing I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A studio course investigating a variety of media techniques, including their descriptive and expressive possibilities.

TCCNS: ARTS 1316  
ARTS 1317  Drawing II  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A further investigation of media techniques explored in Drawing I, including their descriptive and expressive possibilities.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 1317  
ARTS 2316  Painting I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A studio course exploring the potentials of painting media.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 2316  
ARTS 2326  Sculpture I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An introductory studio course exploring sculptural approaches, materials, concepts, and technical processes. Materials include wood, plaster, steel, and plastics.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 2326  
ARTS 2333  Printmaking I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An introductory studio course in basic printmaking processes and techniques.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1316 or 1311.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 2333  
ARTS 2346  Ceramics I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An introductory studio course in basic ceramic processes.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
TCCNS: ARTS 2346  
ARTS 2356  Photography I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course is an introduction to digital photography capture, processing, and basic editing software. While focusing on the fundamentals of digital photography and printing techniques, it will introduce students to the theory and practice of photography and assist them in producing a conceptually devised and technically consistent portfolio.

TCCNS: ARTS 2356  
ARTS 2367  Watercolor  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A studio course exploring techniques in water-base media.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3301  Life Drawing  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Drawing from the model using a variety of techniques and media.

Prerequisite: (ARTS 1317).

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3302  Screen Printing  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Traditional printmaking processes will be explored using black and white and color techniques, including but not limited to screenprinting.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1311 or 1316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3303  Intermediate Painting  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Explores the issues of content, imagery, application, and influences of master artists.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3304  Fabrication Sculpture  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Building upon introductory skills, this course explores construction and fabrication in sculpture focusing on a primary material for the semester and applying advanced techniques and processes for this material. Through this material and techniques, students begin defining and developing their visual vocabulary relative to art history and contemporary sculptural issues.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2326.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3305  Mold Making and Casting Sculpture  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course is designed to build upon the fundamental principles of mold making and casting while exploring more complex concepts, materials, and techniques.  Creating multi-part molds, flexible molds, and investment molds, the project assignments incorporate the unique versatility of mold making and casting for exchanging media and making a series of multiples.  In addition to making casts, students compare methods for assembling cast forms together to create larger sculptural artworks and installations.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3306  Figurative Sculpture  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A study of the human figure from an anatomical and artistic perspective. Examines the skeletal and muscular components of the figure in order to create lifelike and emotive sculptures. Discussion of the figure in both classical and contemporary art. Working with armature and modeling clay.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3307  Lithography and Planographic Process  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Traditional printmaking processes will be explored using black and white and color techniques, including but not limited to lithography and monoprinting.

Prerequisite: ARTS 3311 or 1316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3311  Color Theory  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course develops an understanding of color properties and relationships through formal exercises, research and creative thinking. Students build a vocabulary for analyzing and identifying color and color phenomena. Concepts of color theorists and color use in a variety of fields are examined to understand the application of color theory.  Students will investigate the use of color in their own work and in the work of others to understand the conceptual and aesthetic application of color.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1311.

ARTS 3313  Figure Painting  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course addresses the structure and anatomy of the human figure using oil paint. Painting techniques and color theory exercises will familiarize students with tradition painting methods. Students will render proportions, balance, form and mass of the human figure. Research and discussions will address the human form throughout history as well as in the contemporary context. Image presentations, critiques and live model sessions will supplement studio work.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2316.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3316  Art Activities I  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Practical experience with basic design, drawing, painting, and sculpture, along with a study of art history and criticism. Includes a consideration of how these experiences relate to art curricula in the elementary school.

ARTS 3322  Art Activities II  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Practical experiences with basic design, drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and crafts, along with a study of art history and criticism. Includes a consideration of how these experiences relate to art curricula in the secondary school.

ARTS 3324  Wheel Throwing  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Covers wheel-thrown ceramics (other production techniques may be included), basic glazemaking, and an introduction to kiln firing and loading.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2346.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3325  Handbuilt Ceramic Techniques  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course is a continuation of hand-building covered in Ceramics I ARTS 2346.  The course will cover more advanced forming techniques such as extrusion, hump, slump, and press molds, and slip-casting. New surface and firing techniques will include more advanced techniques such as underglazes, onglaze techniques such as majolica, fired decal application, raku, and an introduction to low fire glazes and surfaces.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2346.

ARTS 3350  Art of the United States  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A survey of the major developments in the art of North America from Pre-Columbian times to the modern era

ARTS 3352  Modern Art  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A survey of the major movements of 20th century art and aesthetics, which developed primarily in Europe. Includes a review of late 19th century modernist antecedents with emphasis placed on the principal movements of the early 20th century: Fauvism, German Expressionism, Cubism, Futurism, Abstract Art, Dada, and Surrealism.

ARTS 3353  Art Since 1945  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

An examination of the dispersal of European artists and Modernism, primarily to America, as a result of World War II. Examines the development of Abstract Expressionism in New York in the 1940s and 50s, followed by a survey of recent trends in contemporary art to the present day.

ARTS 3365  Photography II  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An intermediate studio course using digital cameras and image manipulation software. Prior completion of ARTS 2356 is required.  This course will enhance and expand skills developed in Photography I. It is geared toward informing students in the many ways we can make photographs; by seeking them out, framing them, forming them, extracting them, building them, and finally sequencing and presenting them. Students will engage in the theory and practice of photography, refine their photographic technique, and create a conceptually devised and technically consistent portfolio. Emphasis is placed on the development of a strong conceptual foundation from which to approach the making and understanding of photography as an art form. This knowledge will be achieved through photographic assignments, slide lectures of relevant works, and in-class critiques. It can be repeated twice for credit.

Prerequisite: (ARTS 2356).

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3366  Analogue Photography  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An introductory studio course in analogue photography using film cameras and the silver gelatin darkroom process. While focusing on the fundamentals of black and white, analogue photography and printing techniques this course will assist students in producing a conceptually devised and technically consistent portfolio.

Prerequisite: (ARTS 2356).

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 3367  Digital Design Tools and Applications  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This studio course explores the fundamental principles, standard creative processes and basic digital tools utilized in graphic design. The concepts and software learned are employed in projects specifically targeted to serve the professional and promotional needs of studio artists and design enthusiasts.

ARTS 4085  Senior Capstone  
0 Semester Credit Hours  

Required for all art students in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the BA in Art, BFA in Art studio track and the BFA with Teacher Certification in Art tracks. This course collects capstone materials for ARTS degrees. The course must be taken in the student's final semester before graduation.

ARTS 4301  Advanced Drawing  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Emphasis on the development of content through drawing. Research on contemporary trends and process investigation will aid students in the development of visual ideas and lead to a cohesive body or work. May be taken three times for credit.

Prerequisite: ARTS 1317.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4302  Advanced Printmaking  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Furthers competencies attained in Printmaking I and Intermediate I & II courses. May be taken three times for credit.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2333 and (ARTS 3307 or 3302).

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4303  Advanced Painting  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Assumes competencies attained in ARTS 3303. May be taken three times for credit.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4304  Advanced Sculpture  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

An interdisciplinary course in sculpture. Topics covered may include contemporary and traditional methods of object fabrication in metal, wood and clay, 3D printing, installation, video, performance or sound. Assumes competencies attained in any one of the following: ARTS 2326 or ARTS 3304 or ARTS 3305 or ARTS 3306. May be taken three times for credit.

Prerequisite: ARTS 2326, 3304, 3305 or 3306.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4324  Advanced Ceramics  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Assumes competencies attained in ARTS 3324. May be taken three times for credit.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4350  Pre-Columbian Art of Mesoamerica  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Explores the history of Pre-Columbian art from Mexico and Central America, from the Olmec through the Aztec cultures. May be taken three times for credit.

ARTS 4352  Modern Art of Mexico  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Explores the history of art during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in Mexico. May be taken three times for credit.

ARTS 4354  Global Currents in Contemporary Art  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

The course will cover key developments in contemporary art from the post-World War II era in the Western context to global currents in the present international arena. From a socio-political perspective, artistic tendencies will be considered as part of a trajectory that saw the center of the art world shift from being Euro- and Anglo-centric in the mid-twentieth century, to one without a discernible center in the early twenty-first century. Analysis of artworks from this decentralized cultural climate will focus on the evolution of conceptualism, the persistence of traditional modes of aesthetic practice, the role of the art market, and notions of environmentalism and sustainability as related to these "transnational transition." The course will consider works from Eastern Europe, South and Central America, the Caribbean, East/West/South/Southeast Asia, Oceania, and Africa.

ARTS 4356  Contemporary Art Since 1980  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

The course will examine the evolution of architecture, sculpture, painting, digital media, installation, and interdisciplinary arts in the global context from 1980 to the present, in light of the historical and intellectual background of the period. Topics covered will include the transition from postmodernism to contemporaneity, considering notions of appropriation, commodification, consumerism, memory, history, and globalization. Lectures will be constructed upon thematic analysis of contemporary, primary sources coupled with secondary source material, and complemented by presentation opportunities and class discussion.

ARTS 4365  Advanced Photography  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

Assumes competencies attained in ARTS 3365. Covers content as creative expression in addition to basic photographic skills. May be taken three times for credit.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4390  Topics in Art History  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

May be repeated when topics vary.

ARTS 4391  Topics in Studio Art  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

May be repeated when topics vary.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4396  Directed Individual Study  
1-3 Semester Credit Hours (1-3 Lecture Hours)  

See College description. Offered on application

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4398  Applied Experience  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

See College description. Offered on application.

Co-requisite: SMTE 0097.  
ARTS 4399  Museum and Gallery Studies  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

This course provides the student with a comprehensive practical, conceptual, and methodological introduction to museum and gallery practices. Safety and best practices will be explored in all aspects of contemporary museum and gallery operations, using theoretical and practice-based pedagogical approaches to explore curatorial and preparatory principles.