The School of Art
Consisting of roughly 200 students and 70 faculty members, the Cooper Union School of Art draws on the creative energy of the East Village to produce some of the most distinguished artists in the world today. The school offers a 4-year program leading to a Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A) degree, which can be extended to 5 years with faculty approval. In addition, students may instead opt to receive a Certificate of Fine Arts degree, which can be completed in two years of study. As a member school of AICAD, School of Art students may participate in exchange programs with the other colleges in the Association, including California Institute of the Arts and Otis College of Art and Design.
The Cooper Union Art program is often referred to as "generalist" or "versatile" when compared to other Fine Arts colleges; incoming students do not choose an academic major within the Fine Arts field, but instead are permitted and encouraged to select courses from any of the School of Art's departments. This approach allows for a personalized curriculum which addresses each student's particular interests, regardless of variation or eclecticism. In addition, the program and curriculum place heavy emphasis on each student's creative and imaginative abilities, rather than technical precision in a specific medium, to develop the social awareness and critical analysis skills relevant to art in the contemporary world.
Notable alumni of the Cooper Union School of Art include Seymour Chwast, Ching Ho Cheng, Milton Glaser, Herb Lubalin, J. Abbott Miller, Lou Dorfsman, Ellen Lupton, Paul Carlos, Joel Peter Witkin, Tom Kluepfel, Stephen Doyle, Alexander Isley, Eva Hesse, Alex Katz and Hans Haacke.
Curator Saskia Bos was appointed Dean of the School of Art in 2005.
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