The Department of Art in the Claire Trevor School of the Arts takes a wide-ranging, interdisciplinary view of contemporary art practice. With an emphasis on experimentation and innovation, the Department of Art is viewed as a leader in genres addressing cultural identity and emerging technologies. The Department provides students a solid theoretical and technical foundation from which to approach art making as both process and product. Each student is encouraged to develop an individual, disciplined direction approach to media, materials, and techniques. To this end, the curriculum provides studio experiences in drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, digital imaging, video, performance art, and new media. Visiting artists, theorists, curators, and other arts professionals are an integral part of the program.
The Art Culture Technology (ACT) building houses the ROOM Gallery, CATALYST student gallery, undergraduate honors studios, the Digital Filmmaking Studio, department administrative offices, faculty studios, and graduate student studios. The University Art Gallery provides a venue for student shows as well as faculty and guest artist presentations. The original Art buildings have been seismically retro-fitted and extensively remodeled and renovated.