The-Fourth-Dimension

Oh-Fasho!!! I stand with the geriatric crew. Higher education is for EVERYONE, and should NEVER be viewed as something only for the very young. That is a totally capitalist/industrialist perspective that relegates human beings to a net-worth commodity. I can see how that could be a thing because the American education system relies HEAVILY on corporate contributions to push students into corporate fields. I think that is wholly unethical. This board has pretty interesting people. I worked as a stagehand/audiovisual tech for most of my life. When the the banks, Wall Street criminals, realty corporations, and ultra-wealthy collapsed the economy in 2008, I lost a lot of work. By 2013 I had cashed out my annuity, maxxed out my credit cards, and spent all my savings trying to maintain the same lifestyle I had before the TOTALLY avoidable, Great Recession. As an older student, I ended up attending community college courses just for the FAFSA awards so I wouldn't be on the streets in a cardboard box. Before I knew it, I had three AA degrees and qualified for the CSU and UC. I applied at both, got into all of the programs I wanted, chose one, and completed it. Now I'm on my way to an MFA, and already accepted to one program. I want to be a professor in the Chicano Community. Just being in college has put me into positions to meet people who have helped elevate my practice to a level where I can now sustain my life, almost entirely with art. Thank you to the students, staff, and faculty who comprise the unbeatable California Ed System. No matter what your age, higher EDU is vital. It's not about sitting there and memorizing rote lectures, or mastering the perfect brush stroke. You should be reading art history and mastering the FUNDAMENTALS of art on your OWN. If you don't know art history or work on the fundamentals, the "ELEMENTS OF ART," you shouldn't call yourself an artist. Just like if you don't know your way around an engine or how it was developed, you shouldn't call yourself a mechanic. If you want to be an artistic success and higher education is your thing, the reality about university is that it's about making connections with like-minded individuals who are doing the same thing you are, and elevating your institution and community, no matter WHAT your age.

You're welcome. Did you get to the "Virtual Fairs Map View?" There's a list of the programs from Physical Sciences though Business. "School of the Arts" is at the bottom of the first list on the left. When you click on it, tho, you get the crummy red interdictory circle with a statement, "Find Your Future at UCI! fair has not started yet. It will start on Wed, Nov 3 at 10:00am." It's a map tease! That's messed up because the map looks fun. Guess we'll just have to tune in tomorrow to find out. Wonder if they'll provide refreshments and snax via email. Other than the fact it's in Orange County, I wouldn't mind going to UCI at all. I'm applying to every U.C., even Merced. Time to get that MFA no matter what! I'm glad you're going! You'll prob recognize me on Zoom. I'll be the guy in the pink leisure suit, riding a unicycle, juggling water balloons, and throwing up gang-member signs. Here's a link to the UCI MFA site. University of California, Irvine | Graduate | MFA Program | UCI Department of Art

I MEAN NOVEMBER 3RD!!! What is with this site that you can't edit your past posts or delete them if you wrote something in error??? TOMORROW, Wednesday November 3rd, and Thursday November 4th are the open house sessions at UCI. Sorry about that.

Good afternoon, If anyone is applying to the UC Irvine MFA program, there is a virtual open house coming up tomorrow, November 2nd. I'm getting updates from schools a day before the events. The link posted below is to the sign-up page. See you at the info session! UCI - University of California at Irvine, Virtual Open House

I did the UC Berkeley MFA orientation, today, and it waz aight. Probably going to apply there because they offer full tuition to all accepted MFA candidates and an O.K. stipend. The reality is that I will consider ANY California Art School as long as they are covering tuition and offer decent stipends of some sort. If I was applying back in 2019-2020, before COVID, I would consider attending an institution if the financial burden fell on me a little. But even though I've been able to keep my head above water as a practicing and producing artist, I am in NO way NEAR the same situation, financially, as I was two years ago. Right now is no time to be taking out sizable loans for an MFA that will follow you around for the rest of your life. The U.S. economy has been in the crapper for nearly two decades due to ongoing wars, arrogant employers who want to pay people as LITTLE as possible, and the GOP/Republicans tightening their grip on the working class and destroying art is the schools. Don't pay for that MFA.

Huh, I thought USC was 3 years. I thought an MFA in general was 3 years and that is why it's an MFA. Good luck to you, too.

OH NO WAY! YOU WERE THERE??? HA HA!!! The "art version of the military." You saw my comment about the, "Marines of the art world," LOL!!! I also asked the question if it was okay if our letters of recommendation were from Stanford Graduates. I was the Chicano dude with the shaved head and I was sitting in between my blue keyboard and drum machine with my PC monitor behind me that had colorful shapes cycling around. I had a button-casual shirt with a steel ball necklace and black earrings. Anyway... Yeah, it was pretty informative. I thought it was better than the one we did for USC. I still thought the USC talk was good and helpful, but this one felt really down to Earth. You know what I mean? You don't think you would be a good fit? Why??? You showed me your work on the 2021 thread, but I don't remember. I'm sorry. I want to share my work on this thread, but there's already drama like on the 2021 thread, and I'm not about that. People need to chill. "I'm not really looking for a program that wants to emotionally destroy everyone in it just on principle." I didn't get that at all. I felt it was like the OPPOSITE of that. What from the meeting made you think Stanford was like that??? OH, the funding is freakin FAB! RIGHT? I would TOTALLY go to Stanford and deal with the Bay Area gloom for two years for the funding alone. And the two year MFA is really attractive, too. I would rather do a 2 year at Stanford over the three at USC. Yo! We both got into USC, last round, and USC is one of the premiere art universities in the world, not to mention a top tier research university in general. Let's both get into Stanford, as well! The pool didn't seem that large to me. But the number of admitted MFA's was SO small. Geeeze... I'm starting to get that nervous feeling like last round, like you get in Vegas after a couple good wins! You're right. Palo Alto is pretty well off and crazy expensive. Even Sacramento is way expensive, now. When I moved from San Diego to Sacramento in 2016, the rental cost here was similar to San Diego. I couldn't believe it. There is San Jose, which I checked out when I got into UC Santa Cruz and SJSU. Santa Cruz rent is so crazy. I didn't attend UCSC just because of that. There are places that are more affordable there if you roomie-up. But... but... but... BUUUUT... If it were Stanford, I'd get some flop place in San Jose and just crash on the couch and spend most of my time in the studio at school. I've listened to a lot of advice from people who got their MFA's. The one that stands out to me most is to just NOT WORRY about money or how you are going to live. It will all come together. Let's TOTALLY get admitted to Stanford! ?

Oh-Fasho, Strawberrycat! Looking forward to your point of view and perspective. Did anyone else on the forum attend the Stanford MFA Program meet and greet? If so, what did you think? I've been advised by two Stanford graduates that I would fit in to Stanford pretty well, but as a Southern Californian, the Bay Area feels REALLY cold and rainy and overcast. I live in Sacramento right now, which gets HOT AF! The highest recorded temperature in Sacramento is a million degrees... Literally 1,000,000 degrees, I'm not even joking. Sacramento California is regarded as the hottest place in the known universe. I can deal with heat better than cold, tho. For reference, the coldest recorded place in the known universe is directly in front of the glare of my ex-wife's eyes when she was aiming her chancla at me for staying out too late drinking beer with the homies and not calling home. I was kinda on the fence, but after meeting with some of the Stanford Faculty, (Paul Demarinis, Gail Wright, etc...), and hearing from current MFA Candidates the potential applicants, I feel pretty good about Stanford as an option and I'm definitely going to apply there. The application due date is December 1st.

NEVERMIND! I just got the link. SEE YOU THERE!

I found it. It was right on the Stanford MFA page. It starts tonight at 5pm through 6:30pm. You had to sign up. We missed the first one, unfortunately. And I think we were supposed to sign up for this session the day before, because I signed up for it today, twice, and never received a Zoom link. Maybe they will send it at the last minute? Dang it. Stanford MFA Art Practice Info Session II

Same... I couldn't find it online. HOOK US UP, STRAWBERRY CAT!!!

What a great quote, Strawberrycat!!! (I like your name because I'm one of those crazy cat people that if I was rich I would live in a giant home filled only with stinky cats.) But you're right, and I feel stupid for making that "second best" comment. This past year of writing applications has messed around with my head and made me question so many things in art as to whether or not I even want to be in an art world with so many superficial critics and non-artists that I already deal with on a weekly basis, instead of just being an independent artist, which I enjoy. I've never really felt as jaded as I do right now about the art world until I felt like I was in competition with other decent artists for an MFA program that so many of us are worthy of being in. It isn't healthy. As a matter of fact, It's actively unhealthy. I've read up a lot on the MFA selection process and have spoken to legit friends of mine who are professors at the university level, (I'm an older student, NOT THAT MUCH OLDER,THO)!!! From what I can tell, the faculty tends to want to cultivate a candidate that makes the department look good, or elevated, or seem social justice oriented. They want people who can shock, or be politically obnoxious, or be rock-stars, because the fact of the matter is that skilled artists aren't special and are a dime a dozen. MFA programs seem to want the "bleeding edge," in lieu of competent creatives. From my perspective, a lot of the art coming from the MFA programs at "good schools" is so phony, especially with Postmodernism still being all trendy after so many decades. Like, I've noticed that TONS of these art professors don't even create anything I consider to be artistic, and what they DO create reminds me of the mentality of that kid named Malachi who sat in the back of the class, ate paste, and picked his scabs just to be annoying. Everything is art, right? Or... nothing is art or some boring hidden riddle. "Oh look, I just threw a bunch of rubbish in the corner to make an artistic statement." Dumb, boring, and tired. The Fluxus already did that in the 60s, and the Dada before that... Everyone's done it. I'd like to see artistic exceptionalism in more schools, like the Greeks did, instead of "experimentation." That should be done in the garage at home when I'm drunk. (AGAIN, not criticizing others, just making clear what I'm about). I love ALL art, period. I'm already successful at art, it's how I pay my bills and what I do. I don't need an MFA to create things or to make money or be on the bleeding edge. What I want to do the MOST, is to earn a degree from a big-shot institution so I can teach at a Chicano or inner-city school to thug kids like I was at their age as so they can get down with someone who came from the varrio, got in trouble, but still went on to do big things. I want youth to do it for themselves and their families. I want to be the dude that young creative punks can identify with and be artistic with, instead of messing up on the street and getting in trouble. The funding they were offering at USC for NON-fellowship people wasn't even existent for the first year. Nothing at all. I didn't know we needed to apply for several programs to be competitive, so I only applied to where I wanted to go, USC. But the funding even sucks for fellowship people??? Yeeesh... That's super lame because the endowment per year for USC is like seven billion... SEVEN BILLION... $7,000,000,000... A seven followed by NINE ZEROS, dollars... SEVEN TOIUSAND MILLIONS!!! Yet they can't commit to giving MFA candidates a decent tuition boost? Something is very seriously wrong with that, and I'm really sorry that they didn't hook you up because it seems like you deserved it. I bet you a cool ONE HUNDRED pesos that you get the program you want, this round. I hope you do! ?

Good advice, and thank you! UC Santa Barbara is really beautiful, but I'm trying to say in dense metro areas. It's why I'm applying to Berkeley, UCLA, etc... The reality is that if I get into SDSU, I'll probably just take that and move back home to San Diego, because Sacramento is not really the place to be. UCI might be cool, but I'm not at ALL a fan of Orange County after the past 5 years. Two of my old pals went to UCI and lived in Newport, back in the day and I'd go visit from San Diego and stay in their apt. Non-stop party. Good old days indeed. The Bay Area is pretty expensive, but if I got into Stanford or Berkeley I'd move there in a hot second. I've seen lots of people applying to fine arts universities that are considered to be good schools, but if the school isn't near or around areas with a lot of people and movement then I don't really see the point of studying there for an MFA, since an MFA education is about experimentation and expanding your own knowledge on your own. I get that other applicants see it differently, and I respect that. If I remember, you got into USC, as well, yeah? Was it the cost, too? Congratulations to you, also! I don't think any of the USC admits from the 2021 FOF thread accepted admission to Roski. It kind of makes me think that the people ending up accepting admission were way down the line and second best. USC needs to do better in terms of funding if they want good artists.

Oh, snap! I appreciate you. I remember you from the last round. You're the one who let me know that USC doesn't give full funding foe an MFA. That bummed me out SO bad. I did end up getting admitted to USC Roski. It surprised me because it's the only program I'd applied to and I was super sick for my interview. But the financial/economic cost was just too high, like stratospherically high and completely outside of reason. I tried as hard as I could to justify going to USC because the MFA studios are in SUCH a great place in LA that I'm very familiar with. All the gear you get to work on is new and rad. Plus I really want to work with every one of those professors, especially Nao and Jennifer. I just couldn't. Stanford is more generous with funding, from what I gather. Same with the UC's. Even if I didn't get any kind of funding from the UC it would still be cheaper to get an MFA by hundreds of thousands of dollars. I'm gonna hit up the Stanford session, tomorrow. Thank you again for the information, G.

Sup art PEEEEEEEPS??? I see a few artists here that were on the 2021 FOF thread. Hello, again! It's fantastic to see artists applying for MFA's. I applied for the fall 2021 MFA season at only one school and I got into the exact program I wanted, but it is far too costly for me right now. I decided to take a deferral to fall 2022 in order to save money, but I'm seeing that it might still end up being prohibitively expensive. I am currently applying to more reasonably priced institutions, and I'm applying early this time instead of at the last minute. I received my Bachelors in Fine Art, (concentration in sculpture), from the California State University, Sacramento. Grew up in San Diego, but currently reside in Sacramento. I'm primarily interested in sculpture but I also paint and am very into New Media, digital design, MAX 8, TouchDesigner, Processing 4, and Pure Data. The reason I'm working for an MFA is because I want to teach artwork in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods, and also at the university level. I am applying to: University of California, Berkeley University of California, Los Angeles University of California, San Diego San Diego State University Stanford Maybe a couple of others... Good luck this round, and love to everyone! I hope you all get into the programs you want and deserve.