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Foundations Program

Prepare for your successful creative course of study

Prior to choosing an area of concentration, all incoming students pursuing the B.F.A. in Studio Art, Graphic + Interactive Design (in-person program) and the B.F.A. in Studio Art, Interdisciplinary Studio Arts degrees take the same rigorous core courses within the Foundations Program. The goal of the first-year studio courses is to establish a common core of knowledge, vocabulary, technical, critical, and creative thinking skills in a variety of media, providing students with the necessary tools for success and personal expression as they move through their subsequent studio concentrations. 

The Foundations Program is a freshman prerequisite for all areas of study. A Foundation Portfolio Review (ART 1503) is required of all art majors as part of the First-Year Studio Core.

 

Foundation Portfolio Review

Upon successful completion of Foundation coursework, a Foundation Portfolio Review is required of all art majors. This portfolio is different from the end-of-semester portfolios required by individual instructors. When preparing for the Foundation Portfolio Review, it is the student’s responsibility to carefully read and follow the guidelines of the review. To better select work for their portfolio, students should refer to the assessment categories on the sample Portfolio Evaluation Form. If students have questions concerning these guidelines, they should seek advisement from their Foundation faculty before submitting their portfolio. To continue in the program and before they may register for further studio art courses, students must pass the Foundation Portfolio Review course (ART 1503). 

 

Explore + expand your interests

 

Take Foundations courses during your first year of study

All Studio Art majors—students pursuing our Interdisciplinary Arts and in-person Graphic + Interactive Design programs—are required to take foundations courses. For a full list of requirements, check the Catalog.

 

ART 1501: The fundamental ideas and principles of 2-dimensional form. Emphasis on basic design concepts, pictorial composition, color theory, vocabulary, media, and processes. Slide lectures, directed readings, and studio problems.

ART 1502: Investigation of the interactions between line, plane, mass, and space. Emphasis on basic 3D concepts, color theory, vocabulary, media, and techniques. Slide lectures, directed readings, writings, and studio problems. Prerequisite: ART 1501.

ART 1521: An introduction to basic drawing concepts, materials, and methods. Emphasis on observational drawing. Concepts including the effective use of line, mass, volume, composition, space, and the formal principles of design.

ART 1522: A continuation of ART 1521 with greater emphasis on process, technique, spatial organization, and the development of pictorial content. Various topics are explored, including figure drawing and the use of color. Prerequisites: ART 1501 & ART 1521.

A mandatory Foundation Portfolio Review of work must be completed in the freshman Foundation Studio courses for students seeking the BFA in Studio Art degree. Students both complete the work in the seminar and pass the review to pass the course and continue in the program. Prerequesites: Enrollment in or passing grade in ART 1501, ART 1502, and ART 1522.

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CLIFFE COLLEGE OF CREATIVE ARTS | DEPARTMENT OF ART