New PhD programs in Visual Studies, Theory and Practice

[Chombo]

I'm interested in finding out more about the emerging PhD programs out there that are trying to bridge the gaps between practice and theory in an art-making and art historical contexts.

So far the programs that I've found that seem interesting include UC San Diego's PhD program in Art History, Theory and Criticism, and the University of Buffalo PhD Program in Media Study--both of which are geared for practicing artists. Then there is the PhD in Visual Studies at UC Irvine which seems more on the Art History/Theory side of things rather than practice, although several of their current PhD candidates have MFA backgrounds and are practicing artists.

If anyone else out there is interested in similar programs and/or has any information about these or other programs like them I'd greatly appreciate hearing from you. Thanks.

[cameronas]

Hey Chombo. I've done a lot of research along the same lines as you in looking for PhD art practice programs. A great book on the subject is "Artists with PhD's" by James Elkins from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. He and many others in the book talk about what a potential PhD in studio might look like in America. The end of the book has a few dissertations by studio artists completing their PhD's.

Here some school information that I've found:

University of Rochester: PhD in Visual and Cultural Studies. MFA students entering the program teach studio classes. One foreign language requirement. Full tuition remission and stipend. Also, the individual who started the program at Rochester is now the art department chair at UC San Diego.

Texas Tech University: PhD in Art Practice. This sounds similar to the UC San Diego program. There's a strong studio component.

Institute for Doctoral Studies in Visual Art (IDSVA) : PhD in Philosophy and Art Theory. For practicing artists. This is basically a distance program. You meet with a cohort for three years in January and in July. You study in New York, Italy, Venice Biennale and France. They currently have candidate status for accreditation. The presidentm, George Smith, is an Ivy League PhD and taught at art institutes for years.

Stanford University: PhD in Art History. The only reason I mention this school is because at least one of their PhD candidates is an MFA holder who also teaches studio classes.

UC Irvine: I mention this school because they admit students who hold MFA degree's.

Hope this helps! Please let us know if you find out any more information.

I'm interested in finding out more about the emerging PhD programs out there that are trying to bridge the gaps between practice and theory in an art-making and art historical contexts.

So far the programs that I've found that seem interesting include UC San Diego's PhD program in Art History, Theory and Criticism, and the University of Buffalo PhD Program in Media Study--both of which are geared for practicing artists. Then there is the PhD in Visual Studies at UC Irvine which seems more on the Art History/Theory side of things rather than practice, although several of their current PhD candidates have MFA backgrounds and are practicing artists.

If anyone else out there is interested in similar programs and/or has any information about these or other programs like them I'd greatly appreciate hearing from you. Thanks.

[Chombo]

Thanks for the information.

Good to know that some Art History departments are warming up to practicing artists.

--And I can't believe I forgot to put it into the original post, but of course there is also the PhD in Media Arts and Sciences at MIT.

Edited July 13, 2011 by Chombo

[losemygrip]

The Rochester program is primarily Theory, with a capital "T." It's not particularly groundbreaking or interdisciplinary from what I can tell from its graduates. They're all theory mavens.

[cameronas]

The thing I did find appealing about Rochester though is that they let the MFA holders in their PhD program teach studio arts classes...according to their website. Not sure if I would want to live in Rochester though. I'm pretty fond of the West Coast.

The Rochester program is primarily Theory, with a capital "T." It's not particularly groundbreaking or interdisciplinary from what I can tell from its graduates. They're all theory mavens.