About the program

The fine arts program is designed to develop the student of art into a professional working artist or designer. With the degree, depending on the student's area of emphasis, the student may pursue a career in areas such as painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, digital design or illustration. We offer two degree programs: the bachelor of arts in art with a required minor and the bachelor of fine arts in visual art studio.

The student's education is founded on a wide range of study, including studio drawing, painting, art history, visual aesthetics, design and color theory. Elective courses may be selected from areas including printmaking, ceramics, photography, computer graphics, watercolor, and art history. Our bachelor of fine arts degree in visual arts studio affords the students opportunity for focused preparation for their careers or graduate school. See the BFA Visual Arts Studio course chart pdf to see the course options. Students who want to major in visual arts studio must fill out the BFA application Form pdf at the time of their sophomore portfolio review.

Sophomore Portfolio Review is for art students who have completed (including current classes) 15 credit hours of art coursework. The review is intended to provide students with feedback on their artistic growth. Some things we will be assessing at the review include: drawing and compositional skills, students’ ability to speak about their work, and their level of knowledge about current professional activity in their respective program areas.

Student-presenters are required to wear professional, interview-appropriate clothing and are to be prepared to answer questions about their art and design work, their professional goals and their creative influences.

Present 8-10 of your strongest projects. All students are to include examples of drawing skills. Sketchbooks may be presented in addition to your 8-10 projects. Preparatory sketches for several of your projects are also recommended.

Academic advising is a crucial part of getting the most from your time as a fine arts major at Harding. Plan to schedule an appointment with one of the fine art advisors a minimum of two-weeks prior to registration week in both fall and spring semesters. Students must make sure to check for holds on their accounts that might delay registering for classes. Registering as early as each classification allows ensures that students get the best schedule. Classes fill up fast, so it is recommended that students register quickly.

Academic Advisors

John Keller, Ph.D. - Professor of Art
jkeller@harding.edu

Steven Choate, Ph.D. - Associate Professor of Art
schoate@harding.edu

Greg Clayton, M.F.A. - Associate Professor of Art
gclayton@harding.edu

Beverly Austin, M.A. - Assistant Professor of Art
baustin@harding.edu

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