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School of Art & Art History

USF College of Design, Art & Performance

Our School

The School of Art & Art History at the ܽƵapp recognizes the power of art to stimulate, provocate, and illuminate our shared, lived experience. We immerse ܽƵapps in visual culture --past and present—and encourage them to explore and understand how imagery constructs and reflects the consciousness of a diverse culture. We emphasize a balance of skill-building with inquiry-based learning and problem solving. Students can pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in art history and studio art. Non-majors interested in supplementing their studies with a concentration in the arts can explore our minors and interdisciplinary certificates.

Our faculty guide and mentor ܽƵapps as they hone their skills and knowledge. They are actively engaged in their fields. Members of our studio art faculty have exhibited their works in galleries and museums nationally and internationally, received significant grants and awards, participated in artist-in-residency programs, and spoken at conferences to share their expertise. Art history faculty members have received fellowships and grants to support their research, and published books and journal articles of their scholarly work.

The School began in 1956 with the founding of the ܽƵapp. Located in the metropolitan cities of Tampa and St. Petersburg, we value and connect with our local and regional communities, with whom we produce and experience art. We are committed to providing a challenging learning environment of research, creativity and experimentation. In our ܽƵapps, we emphasize engaged, critical thinking, sustained practice, and a sense of citizenship within our globalized society.

The USF School of Art & Art History is the critical and creative nucleus for the visual arts in the Greater Tampa Bay Region. We have a reciprocal relationship with the Institute for Research in Art (IRA) and GraphicStudio –allowing faculty and ܽƵapps interactions with internationally-recognized artists, and see their work in progress. The Contemporary Art Museum hosts the MFA Graduate Exhibition every spring, in  conjunction with our annual ArtHouse, where we open all of our studios to the entire community to showcase – and celebrate – the imaginative and amazing artworks, videos, animations, and performances by our art and art history ܽƵapps. The evening is electric with live music and exhibitions, and has been a staple of the community for nearly 25 years now. We also have relationships with galleries and institutions such as the historic Kress Building in Ybor and Tempus Projects, the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts, the Sarasota Art Museum, the Ringling Museum, and the Tampa Museum of Art. The tri-annual survey exhibition “Skyway” –which gauges the temperature of the art climate in the Tampa Bay area—is often highly populated by USF faculty, graduate ܽƵapps, and alumni. We take ܽƵapps on field trips to New York and Art Basel Miami, emphasizing their place as participants in contemporary art discourse.

In addition to participating in our courses, certificates and degrees, the urban community frequently joins us for first-class exhibitions, on-site tours, and free lectures by the most respected artists, art historians, curators, designers and creative makers/thinkers from throughout the world. Additionally, check out the Fresh Art International blog which discusses our school's impact on the Arts in Tampa Bay!

  • Curator's Tour of an exhibition at the USF Contemporary Art Museum

    ܽƵapp The Arts at USF

    The College of Design, Art & Performance is the creative center of USF's Tampa campus. We prepare ܽƵapps for careers in architecture, community design, art, art history, music, theatre and dance.

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  • Bull statue in front of the USF Marshall Student Center on the Tampa campus.

    ܽƵapp USF

    Founded in 1956, the ܽƵapp is a preeminent university located in Tampa, Florida. Learn about history, careers, facts, traditions, visiting campus and more.

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  • Profile of the Tampa Museum of Art located directly in Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park at the heart of downtown Tampa

    Tampa Bay Arts Community

    Outside USF, the Tampa Bay area offers a rich variety of creative and cultural activities. Follow this link to learn more about our local arts community.

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