alizarin

I'm waitlisted too They didn't even call me. I'm not sure if they called my home phone (I've been out of town for a few days). I had to call to find out. Oh well, I guess more waiting then. I've already made a new school list for next year.

Hey guys, I noticed the same trend from last year as well (that they were called a day or two after the interview). Anyway, at my interview, they said they will let me know in 2 weeks. So far it's been a long week. What did they tell you guys? What day did you interview?

Wow, from what I've read about Yale interviews, it sounds like many of the current MFA student interviewers are sooo full of themselves. Don't worry, it should be the faculty interview that really matters. The students probably think the have a huge say on who gets in but why should your future rest on these MFA students' opinions?

Hey guys, I had my interview at RISD the other day. I don't really know what to think of my interview, at first I thought it went well. When it was over, I felt relieved and happy. But then after, I kept playing it over and over in my head and started to think of things that weren't good. Now, I feel like I might have done bad.. So I don't really know anymore..They said I'll find out in 2 weeks.. @Sophia, congrats for your acceptance! That's amazing! Now you don't have to settle for CCA!

Thank you for your words of encouragement I think it's supposed to rain less tomorrow. But you're right, I'll just see what happens.. @Sophia, thanks for the restaurant tips. I was just thinking of what to get for dinner. I've only been here once (went to an info session at RISD last November) and so I'm not really familiar with Providence. I can't believe I'm here.. @Littlenova, thanks! Hope it works out..*crossing fingers*

Wow, congrats Sophia! That's a late notice. Congrats to everyone getting good news. I wish I had good news to share too. Oh well, there's still next year. I'm in Providence right now for an interview at RISD tomorrow (wish it would stop raining). I'm sooo nervous! This is my last shot (I got rejected to all the other schools I applied to, and I'm not holding out my breath for Columbia). Good luck everyone!

Good point on the distance comparison. At least SFAI's undergrad and grad are in THE SAME CITY, whereas CCA's undergrad campus is in Oakland (a far more dangerous area with multiple shootings, robberies reported on the news every day). About safety, CCA's grad location is not in a safe area too, especially in the afternoons when the high school nearby lets out their students. There are plenty of thugs, fights, etc. I was scared waiting at the bus stop thinking I would get mugged at around 4pm. Usually, it shouldn't get scary until night time. Though I felt like SFAI's grad center might not be safe as well when I went there at night (nothing happened to me). It just looks like it, dark, quiet, and scary. But I asked a lot of painting grad students what they thought about safety and all the ones I talked to said it was pretty safe. If you don't want to go out late at night, you can sleep in the studios (as many do). I don't know why they would have to lie to me about that so I believe them.

AGAIN, about the numbers for CCA painters. I said "AROUND 50," it was an estimate the grad program coordinator (Noel Dahl) told me off the top of his head over the phone when I asked. It was an ESTIMATE. I NEVER CLAIMED IT WAS THE EXACT ACCURATE NUMBER. I multiplied it by 2 since there are first and second years and came up with the ESTIMATE of 100. By any means, I am not trying to "make anything up," nor do I see any point in doing so. Also, SF has MANY art galleries, museums, and art organizations (both profit and non-profit). Therefore, SF is actually a pretty big art world (not as big as NY or London or Paris, considering SF is a small city). I've lived here for almost 10 years so I'm not just saying that.

I agree the methodology is flawed. But this is not a bad piece of information to look at when you start researching schools. I used this as a guide when I researched schools I was interested in. At the same time, I visited some schools, looked at the faculty and alumni work, asked a bunch of questions, met the grad students and looked at their studios, etc.

Hey Sophia, just curious, what are the top 11-15 for painting (if you don't mind sharing)? I know you already said SFAI & CCA are tied at 14. Thanks

About the number of students for CCA, that was just an estimate that their grad coordinator told me. He said painting is their biggest department. That's why I said "around 50" per year. I did not say it was an accurate number. @Sophia, I agree it's important to pick the place where you and your work fit. Hopefully when you visit these schools, you'll find out. @Fauxtog, a professor told me that when SFAI sold the original grad studios, they didn't know the Academy of Art University was buying it. I don't know how it worked but the Academy of Art did something sneaky so SFAI didn't know.

I would like to add that the way you paint hair and eyes are really beautiful. To me, these parts don't look like it's from a photo. But the skin tone looks monochromatic, so I would suggest exploring color a lot more. Do many experiments organizing your palette and mixing colors. The skin has different colors, and there's also reflective light. I commend you for painting the piece with the figure looking into broken pieces of a mirror. That is very ambitious. I actually like this piece. It could mean many different things, especially if the hands were more interactive with the mirror, instead of just placed there. You could show some tension just by curling the fingers or making the hands grasp something. I think the hands and the fabrics (clothing) need a lot more work. Your foreshortening could also use more work, the sense of space and depth. The way you use color will fix this. I understand your paintings are really monumental, maybe it doesn't need to be that large. You can pick a focal point in your piece and make that more rendered/contrasted than the other parts. If you work on these more, the image could be more believable. I would also suggest adding a lot of tension to your images to really grasp the viewers and evoke some feelings from them.

I've wondered the same thing for a while too. About the ranking, I think CCA ranks higher in overall fine arts than SFAI because they have one of the best programs in fiber, glass, metal, ceramics, and design (SFAI ranks higher in photo). When I visited CCA, I saw they had a crazy archive of different kinds of materials. They have a small office/library where they keep their samples, and if something you want isn't there, they try to get it. But this strength does not necessarily translate in their painting department. If you look up the top 10 in painting, CCA is not there. I think for painting, I consider SFAI to be a better program because: 1. CCA has a much larger painting program consisted of around 50 painters (overall a hundred, including 1st & 2nd years). I view this as a negative because there are just so much people that you might lack the attention you want from the faculty. They have a nice building for their studios, but I noticed the studios are VERY tiny (I guess to accommodate the number of students they have). I was not impressed with their studio size, they're much smaller compared to SFAI's studios. I love CCA's facilities, but the location is in a bad area. 2. The work coming out from their MFA painting are not overwhelmingly impressive (based on their final MFA shows). On the other hand, SFAI's Vermissage (their MFA show at the end of the school year) shows much more impressive work. 3. Space to show your work: I was under the impression that there is only 1 gallery in CCA's grad campus where grad students can show their work. It was closed though when I visited. The student showing me around said it's not open all the time. So I don't know what to think of that. SFAI has 2 galleries where grad students can show their work. They have their own gallery in the grad building (I forget the name of it right now, I showed my work there in a group exhibition before with some of the grad students). They also show their work in the Diego Rivera gallery in the main campus, where there's also a historical Diego Rivera mural (I had work there at the BFA Spring Show last year). Among students, it's a pretty big deal if you have a show there. 4. SFAI has a smaller painting program. I think they have around 25 students per year (around 40-50 overall). Therefore, they get more attention with the faculty (can easily develop relationships with them) and one-one time with all the visiting artists at the school. They also have more opportunities to TA on their second year. Their studios are nice, even though it's located in a "weird" area, the industrial part of SF. It's easily accessed by the underground train though, but if you drive there's parking. And if you happen to TA your second year, the undergrad campus is really beautiful. The school even gets rented sometimes over the weekends for weddings, or to shoot ads for magazines. 5. Faculty: I looked up all of the grad painting faculty from CCA and from my opinion, I am more impressed by SFAI's faculty. In addition to art, SFAI has a strong academic background as well. I hope this gave you some insight.

I applied there because I liked their facilities, reputation, and I spoke with a professor from printmedia a couple of times last year and the year before and he was very positive about my work. I also went to a couple of SAIC event days and had positive experiences. The only thing I realize now is my work does not fit in with the painting department. I do representational work (that is full of ideas and concept I developed over a few years) and I get the feeling they're not into that. They seem to be only into conceptual art (I would like conceptual art if the aesthetics is also there, not just the concept itself). I was not informed this at all from all those times I talked to SAIC people. Every time I asked if they promoted or favored a specific style in art, they always denied it, stating that they don't sway a student's individual style. So that's why I applied. I overlooked the fact that I don't recall seeing anything interesting from the grad painting studios. Now it all makes sense to me. If I could undo my application, I would. Would've saved the money and all the time I spent with my application there. But it's done. So whatever. I learned my lesson. I will never apply there again.

Thanks, Michael. That certainly helps a lot. Congrats on your acceptances!

Hi guys, I have some questions to those who have an amount of experience interviewing: Is it bad to be confident during your interview (will this be seen as being too arrogant, as if you're assuming you're already "in")? And if you're not confident, will this be seen as a weakness? Also, is it bad if you defend your work in a diplomatic way (not indignant or irrational)? Will they take this as not being able to accept criticism? And if you don't defend your work much (in fear of being perceived as not taking criticisms well), will they see this in a bad light? Should I just think of an interview as a critique? Last question, is it okay to wear jeans and tennis shoes? Or should I dress up a little? Thanks, any advice will help

Hi there, just curious. How did your RISD interview go? Did you do it over the phone or were you granted an early interview in person? What is it very intense? Did they ask a lot of questions or mostly talked about your work? Please share your experience, if you don't mind. Thanks

Congrats, Michelle! Wish I applied to SFAI instead of CCA..Oh well..Good luck, I'm sure you'll love it

I visited SAIC a couple of years ago and I agree, their facilities are top-notch. I went to a painting grad tour. I don't recall seeing anything fantastic. Honestly, I can't even remember any of their work. Must have been not too memorable..

Hi there, I am facing the same thing. I am straight out of undergrad last year. My overall undergrad GPA is 3.83, I feel very confident with my statement, my recommendation letters, and my CV are solid. Having to support myself all throughout undergrad, I worked while in school, did volunteer work and an internship at a non-profit art org and got an award for it (community art fellowship). However, I feel like most adcoms probably don't even care about these things. I think they just mostly care about your portfolio. Isn't that the first thing they go through to eliminate applicants? It would be nice though if they actually read my supporting documents but I doubt they did that. To be honest, I just started painting in late 2006. I found out this passion very late. So while in undergrad, I had to work very hard and play a lot of catch-up. I also did a lot of research and tried to solidify my concept as well as the technical aspect. Given the time I had, I feel about 70-80% happy with my portfolio. Honestly, I'm not satisfied with my undergrad work (25% went into my portfolio anyway because I didn't have enough time to replace that with new work). 75% of my portfolio are work I did after graduation (which was May of last year)....I've been working my butt off but it still somehow feels not enough. I realize I probably just need more time, do more research, more experiments, gather more resource materials, etc. I have been rejected to 5 schools so far (I've only applied to 7). 2 of those schools were supposed to be my "back-up schools." Thinking about it now, I don't even really want to go to those "back-up" schools. I think I owe it to myself to strive for better schools than just to go to a school I consider a "back-up." Anyway, I only have one thing going for me right now (an interview with RISD) next week. Even though I've been pretty depressed lately about my rejections, I finally started working again. I want to make my portfolio stronger. I also feel like I learned a lot from this application process. Rejections will only make us stronger.. I agree with littlenova about thinking deeper about your concept, and finding different ways of expressing it. Also exploring different media might help. I am an oil painter as well and most of the time I feel schools look down on this medium because it is more traditional..You can also keep editing your statement to make it stronger (I've edited mine for a year and a half..) Over time, your work changes and develops, so your statement should too. Unfortunately, the being out of undergrad plays as a disadvantage for us. I also think representational work is not "in fashion" right now. It's unfortunate but I think being "in fashion" affects the decisions we get. But I think the best thing to do is to stay true to ourselves, and never change our style to be "in fashion."

Yup, I got my BFA there. I was thinking of applying there for the MFA but decided against it. I kind of want a new experience for the MFA.

He's one of my favorite instructors I worked with there! Everyone loves him, he's awesome He knows a lot of techniques with acrylic and would probably work very well with you. I know you work with gouache (from your website). But they're pretty related (both water soluble). Seriously, he's like the king of acrylic painting!

I think so..that's why every year, there's a visiting artist awarded the Diebenkorn fellowship to teach for one year. Also, you guys probably already know, Ansel Adams founded the photography department in SFAI.

Congrats, Sophia! Curious who interviewed you?

So here's my update so far: Rejected: Yale SAIC UC Berkeley (wish I didn't apply there, could've saved $80) Interview: RISD Waiting: UCLA Columbia CCA