At the Art Academy of Cincinnati, we are the new generation of boundary-breakers. The imaginative radicals who are changing the face of art as we know it. The luminous visionaries who are creating a newer, brighter, more radiant world.
The art and design of the future starts here. It starts with you.
The Art Academy's major-fluid programs give you the freedom to explore across disciplines. You’ll have the power to customize your education, so it fits your vision. In our hands-on studio classes, you'll work side by side with faculty and classmates that will become your greatest supporters. Our liberal arts courses instill curiosity by exposing students to the diverse artistic practices and theories that shape our contemporary world.
Pursue a BFA, your way. We offer professional accredited Bachelor of Fine Arts Degrees in:
CREATIVE WRITING
Explore and exploit the possibilities inherent in the collision of language and visual expression. Come face to face with the strange power of words to literally and literarily re-make the world, as we know it. Engage with language as a material, artistic medium, and discover its narrative and poetic possibilities.
DESIGN
An integrated education, Design is a fusion of fine art studio practices and liberal arts experiences all through a contemporary design lens. Discover how to refine the process of inquiry that leads to creative solutions for a variety of visual communication problems and gain the intellectual and technical skills needed to achieve success as design professional.
ILLUSTRATION
Illustrators are excited by the surprising unpredictability of contemporary imagery in our media-driven world. Learn the language of visual communication while engaging in relentless experimentation. Study drawing, painting, photography and digital media to find your voice -- creating a personal body of work that reflects your individual vision. Complimenting the Illustration major, the AAC also offers a suite of Animation courses that can be taken as studio electives.
PAINTING + DRAWING
Immerse yourself in an environment that encourages an innovative definition of Painting and Drawing. Explore this dynamic, eclectic practice through realistic, abstract and/or non-objective subject matter. Deepen your cultural and intellectual understanding of the contemporary art world and learn to navigate the complexities of being an artist today.
SCULPTURE
Sculpture is a sensory experience. It can be touched, heard, smelled, tasted and even seen. Learn extraordinary processes that range from traditional casting, carving, and construction to the most radical contemporary spatial practices and interventionist strategies.
PRINT MEDIA
Print Media balances traditional approaches that have been invigorated by new technologies. Express your creativity through a full range of techniques, including screen printing, monoprints, relief, intaglio, letterpress, book arts, and lithography.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Study a unique breadth of traditional and cutting-edge photographic processes while diving into a blend of theoretical and real-world instruction. Learn about 35mm, digital, medium-and large-format cameras, black and white printing, digital output, color shooting, experimental photography, and digital video.
ANIMATION MINOR
Animation at the Art Academy empowers students to understand tools, competencies, and processes to work in pre-production and production in both 2D and 3D animation. Students gain the skills to communicate with clients and creatives through the articulation of concepts and the ability to ideate.
Students graduate with a 21st-century skill set that includes creative and critical thinking, collaboration, verbal, visual, cultural and digital literacy that prepares them for work in the animation industry.
ART HISTORY MINOR
Art History isn’t the study of something long gone and finished, it’s the study of the ways that the art of the past ripples through the present to the next big thing. The Art History Minor combines the study of art history and contemporary studio practice with a foundation in academic research and art historical methodologies.
FILM VIDEO & AUDIO MINOR
Learn essential technical and creative aspects of video production, all while immersed in the stunning backdrop of one of the Midwest’s most beautiful downtown historic districts. Receive the technical and artistic grounding necessary to bring your own cinematic visions to life.
*All majors can also be minors.
