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M.F.A. Program Overview

Jessica Evett-Miller"Strata 1", 2008.

Earning an M.F.A. degree requires four terms of full-time study, with a minimum of 60 credits. Transfer credit for graduate work done elsewhere or during the summer session is not applicable toward these requirements. In addition students prepare a written thesis, present a thesis exhibition of the studio work completed during residency, and give an oral defense of the written thesis and exhibition. During the final spring semester gallery space is provided for a solo thesis exhibition in Ithaca as well as a group exhibition at the AAP NYC Center in Chelsea.

The curriculum is flexible to accommodate the needs of individual students and enable students to take advantage of Cornell’s vast opportunities. Students may enroll in introductory or advanced courses in any field of study offered at the university. Students complete a minimum of 15 credits each term, including 9 credits in required studio work and 3 credits in a required graduate art seminar. All students work independently with a committee comprised of art faculty with an option to include faculty from non-art disciplines. At least 12 credits must be earned outside the Department of Art during the four-term residency. In addition, students must complete 18 credits in the history of art during the course of their graduate and/or undergraduate study.

The Department of Art has designed its graduate program to ensure full scholarships for all accepted M.F.A. candidates. Graduate teaching assistantships provide full tuition assistance and a cash stipend and require twelve hours of work per week.

Facilities

Master of Fine Arts students each have a private studio space in the Department of Art and enjoy a range of facilities, studios, workshops, and other resources with which to pursue and create their work. Students are given training in safe and efficient use of all facilities. Instructional support staff offer assistance and ensure that students adhere to safe and best practices. The B.F.A. program at Cornell has concentrations in New Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture. These areas are available to all M.F.A. students as well.

Studio Facilities

Multiple photographic darkrooms support camera formats up to 8x10 inches. Color darkrooms feature individual enlarging rooms and a 30-inch color processor. The photographic studio includes seamless backgrounds and tungsten and electronic flashlighting equipment. Professional quality cameras in a variety of formats are available to M.F.A. students for use.

There are studios for etching, lithography, and screen-printing, as well as a graphics darkroom. There are three etching presses (the largest is 40x80 inches) and four lithography presses. The screen-printing area includes a power washout and state-of-the-art exposure unit. A laser cutter is available for precision cutting of paper, wood, and other materials. Expanded print processes are supported in the Advanced Digital Media Lab (see below).

Light-filled and spacious drawing and painting studios offer flexible environments for a wide variety of work and media.

A large studio space, located in the historic Foundry building, includes an extensive wood shop, welding area, bronze-casting area, and a generous assortment of hand and power tools.

A shop, located on the ground floor of nearby Rand Hall, includes standard power tools for wood and metal fabrication, a laser cutter for precision cutting of wood and plastic, and a CNC router table for three-dimensional fabrication in wood and other materials.

Digital Facilities
An Advanced Digital Media Lab (ADML) has Pro Mac computers, large-format archival and medium-format printers, film and flatbed scanners, and video equipment. The ADML is adjacent to a large, general purpose Mac lab with Final Cut Studio Pro, Aperture, Illustrator, Photoshop, and InDesign.

Gallery Spaces

In Tjaden Hall, two galleries are available for students to present work, installations, and pursue collaborative projects. The Hartell Gallery, adjacent to the dean's office in neighboring Sibley Hall, is another exhibition space available to M.F.A. students.

Other Resources

The Fine Arts Library, part of the Cornell University library system, is one of the largest circulating libraries for art, architecture, and planning and design. It includes more than 207,000 books and 1,400 periodicals. The other 19 libraries in the system have books and other reference materials accessible through an online catalog as well as an extensive network of electronic databases.

Admissions

In brief, admission to the M.F.A. program is for the fall semester only. The application deadline is January 15 of the year in which you wish to enter. Applicants must have a bachelors degree or equivalent. GRE test scores are not required. To apply the following materials must be submitted:

An art portfolio
A completed Cornell University graduate application with fee (to be completed online)
Transcripts of all previous course work
Three letters of recommendation with required recommendation form
A self-addressed stamped envelope for return of portfolio materials. (Materials will be returned only if they are submitted with a SASE with adequate U.S. postage attached. Checks, cash, credit card information, or foreign postage are not acceptable and will not be returned.)

Detailed instructions for applying to the M.F.A. program are available by clicking here (PDF).

For information about the Cornell University Graduate School, and instructions for the online application process, please click here.

Graduate Faculty

Presently, Graduate Faculty within the Department of Art are:

Michael Ashkin

Director of Graduate Studies

Assistant Professor

Bob Bertoia

Associate Professor

Renate Ferro

Visiting Assistant Professor

Professor

Associate Professor

Associate Professor

Visiting Assistant Professor

Associate Professor

Assistant Professor

Associate Professor

Interim Chair

Associate Professor

Stan Taft

Associate Professor

Graduate-Affiliate Faculty
In addition to faculty within the Department of Art, faculty members from other university departments also provide their time and expertise to the Fine Arts Graduate Program. Currently these are:

Susan Buck-Morss

Director of Visual Studies, Department of Government

James Cutting

Department of Psychology

Iftikhar Dadi

History of Art Department

Sheila Danko

Chair, Department of Design and Environmental Analysis

Cheryl Finley

History of Art Department

Jeremy Foster

Department of Landscape Architecture