Drawing courses are part of the foundation sequence for all art majors, providing a basis for creative visual strategies in all media. Our drawing program builds on a strong foundation in formal and perceptual training, followed by an intense exploration of the diversity of contemporary drawing media and processes. Throughout the program emphasis is placed on developing a solid base of technical skill, while also cultivating creative problem solving skills.
Upper level drawing courses for BFA students and Drawing majors foster the development of a personal vision and strong working habits by emphasizing the exploration of critical and conceptual approaches to drawing. Exposure to issues in contemporary drawing and interdisciplinary collaborative practices encourages students to become aware of the expansive nature of the field. Courses for MFA Drawing students emphasize analyzing one’s studio practice within the larger concerns of contemporary drawing, as well as developing language and better understanding around personal sensibilities and intentions in the studio.
Philosophy
The core drawing activity of making and arranging marks is a foundational activity that guides, or can be thought of as an extension of, all artistic practices. With this in mind, drawing should be positioned as an expansive discipline that permeates and informs many modes of making.
Drawing is to be centered as a sensibility, not as a specific material or process. Drawing needn’t be an area focused on making artifacts we’d recognize and label as “drawings.” It is enough that Drawing addresses the “drawing-ness” within various forms of artmaking.
Perceptual acuity, material-sensitivity, dexterity, composition, mark-making, creativity, verbal ability and critical and analytical skills are core and translatable skills. An appropriate balance must be sought to avoid over-emphasizing only one skill type.
Working from direct perceptual experience is a proven method for learning to understand visual information and intentionally arrange responsive marks to create specific effects (such as illusion).
A perceptual skill-set should be cultivated in concert with implicit challenges to material and process in order to think creatively and expansively about drawing’s potential.
Each artist should be encouraged to build on traditional skill-sets in order to locate their own mode for making that is in conversation with contemporary artistic practice. Success is diversity of approach across the student body. Students should receive exposure to multiple faculty viewpoints in order to arrive at their own considered conclusions about disagreements within the field.
There are countless “right-answers” for what a drawing can be. Drawing can exist in many modes: perceptual, invented, material-centered, analog, digital, technological, interventionist, 3-dimensional, dry, wet, and so on.
Drawing is positioned as an expansive mode including interdisciplinary investigation, ideation and experimentation.
Classroom investigations should be challenging and ambitious, requiring individual rigor, creative problem-solving and allow for a personalized solution. Students’ abilities to meet and overcome challenges should not be underestimated.
Ambitious artistic challenges must be met with clear guidance in order to allow all students to succeed. Each student should see objective improvements in their abilities along with a sense of pride regarding their growth and accomplishment. High expectations coupled with intense support yields high successes.
A diverse, energetic, supportive classroom is key to creating a resilient and collaborative community. Modeling respect, kindness, enthusiasm, positivity and inclusivity is of the utmost importance.
Risks and failures are encouraged. Independent inquiry is the force that establishes a long-term self-sustaining disciplined practice.
Learn more about the Undergraduate Drawing program here: https://fulbright.uark.edu/departments/art/undergraduate/drawing.php
Learn more about the MFA Drawing program here: https://fulbright.uark.edu/departments/art/graduate-program/master-of-fine-arts-1.php