Artists Tim Green and Oliver Stern (both B.F.A. '24) draw on canvas lining the walls of the Olive Tjaden Gallery during a five-day live drawing performance and exhibition titled Cave Painting 2. Anson Wigner / AAP
Start on your path to the study and practice of art at Cornell.
"Cornell was absolutely eye-opening, and I learned so many things. I especially loved getting a taste of college life; I love independence and responsibility. Professor Grimm was awesome, and I could tell he really loved what he was doing/teaching."
— Zixin, Summer Program Student
Explore new media, and engage the world beyond the studio.
Art as Experience is for high school students seeking inspiration, mentorship, and an artistic community open to anyone, anywhere. Taught entirely online, this intensive curriculum connects the next generation of emerging artists from around the world to leading faculty who introduce students to a wide range of artistic media as they deepen critical engagement with the world and the endless realm of possibility opened by art making.
Summer program studios at Cornell are credit-bearing, giving students a jump start on their college education. All students receive close instruction and thoughtful critique as they develop a unique body of work suitable for application portfolios, and ultimately come to a deeper understanding of fine arts education and creative practice.
Application Deadlines
Applications for the high school art summer program are due May–June.
Online Courses
ART 1101 Art as Experience
Art as Experience is an introductory course that expands a student’s understanding of the ideas and practices of art today. Studio projects will introduce a broad range of mediums from drawing and collage to digital photography and video installation. Students will explore and respond to resources at Cornell University and the course will be supplemented with readings, critiques, and guest lectures and visits, and will culminate in a creation of a portfolio.
ART 1102 Art as Experience: TransMedia
Working with cameras, audio recorders, physical computing boards and computer software, this course introduces students to digital art creation, manipulation, and theory. Students will have hands on experience with digital image acquisition, recording and editing video and sound, and computer programming for interactive media-based applications. Learning will be fun, challenging, exciting, and will open the student to new possibilities for creating dynamic media art.
ART 1103 Art as Experience: Sculpture
The course introduces the medium of sculpture through the exploration of a spectrum of traditional and non-traditional materials, techniques, and work methods. One of the primary goals of the course is the effective expression of ideas. The course challenges students to consider the ever-changing medium broadly and through a critical-interdisciplinary lens.
ART 1104 Art as Experience: Photography
Art as Experience: Photography is a beginning-level studio course that introduces students to the aesthetic, technical and conceptual aspects of photography. This course will expand your understanding of the ideas and practices of contemporary photography. Students will work with digital photographic processes and learn the principles of capturing images, managing and editing digital files. Students will learn the fundamentals of seeing and articulating their vision to produce well-crafted images in imaginative and thoughtful ways. Class sessions include critiques, lectures, demonstrations, reading discussions, and visiting artists/critics. We will have daily virtual "lab days", several prompts for creating work, and in-class exercises.
ART 1500 Summer Drawing I
General course introduces students to principles and techniques of representation. Emphasis is on creating the illusion of space and form through line, the rendering of light and shade, and studies in perspective. Students have the opportunity to explore various media such as charcoal, chalk, pencil, pen, ink, and wash.
ART 1503 Summer Drawing II
General course in drawing that builds on the foundation of ART 1500 and focuses on developing further conceptual and technical skills. Students will explore a variety of traditional and non-traditional drawing media and approaches.
In-Person Courses
Local high school students can apply to take the following AAP courses on campus this summer as commuters. To apply, follow the instructions for local studentsOpens a Cornell link.
Instructors
Instructor, Art 1102 Art as Experience: Transmedia
Instructor, ART 2301 Print Media: Cultures of Print and ART 3399 Print Media: Special Topics
Instructor, Art 1101 Art as Experience
Instructor, Art 1500 Summer Drawing I and Art 1503 Summer Drawing II
Instructor, ART 1103 Art as Experience: Sculpture
Expand your practice. Explore new ideas. Open possibilities.
College students the world over have the opportunity to enroll in summer intensive studios at Cornell. Leading faculty in the Department of Art teach studios for art students from any institution who come together to deepen their knowledge of a chosen medium or to explore new ways of thinking and art making. On-campus studios offer in-person guidance and critique from faculty, exchange with fellow artists, and cutting-edge workspace, while online options provide close instruction and a global community of artists who learn to establish their own studio practice while using the latest virtual teaching tools to collaborate across projects and platforms.
Students in all studios receive thoughtful critique as they develop a unique body of work suitable for application portfolios, and ultimately come to a deeper understanding of fine arts education and creative practice.
Application Deadlines
Applications for college students enrolling in the art summer studios are due May–June.
ART 2301 Print Media: Cultures of Print
This course offers an expanded study of traditional printmaking processes through experimental print media. Students will explore a comprehensive range of technical, aesthetic, and strategic approaches including the art work as multiple, and digital and cultural production. Special attention will be paid to aesthetic and technical challenges as well as the role and modes of producing art as well as its impact on society. This critical discourse will challenge traditional definitions of intaglio, lithography, relief, screen-printing, digital printmaking, and laser-cutting technology.
ART 3399 Print Media: Special Topics
This course challenges students to expand their creative and technical mastery of printmaking by exploring advanced techniques in intaglio, lithography, relief, screen printing, and experimental print methods. Emphasizing independent project development, students will integrate conceptual thinking with craftsmanship to produce a cohesive body of work.
Instructors
Instructor, ART 2301 Print Media: Cultures of Print and ART 3399 Print Media: Special Topics
Studio Spaces
Tjaden Hall
Print Media Studio
Painting Studio
