FINE ARTS haverford.edu/finearts In the Fine Arts Department, the focus is on the CURRICULUM individual. Studio classes are small, and students Disciplines from beginners to majors receive individual The fine arts program at Haverford centers instruction. around five disciplines: drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, and sculpture. Every student is encouraged to develop the physical and critical skills necessary to create art. Each discipline is offered at both the introductory The philosophy of the department is that and advanced levels, exposing students to the observational skills are the cornerstone of all rigors and processes of each medium. Students visual art disciplines. Cognition and processing get the benefit of learning about the tradition and information are key skills for any discipline—in the practice in the introductory courses, and then the humanities or the sciences—and for this utilize and alter those ideas and tools in the reason art at Haverford is specifically geared advanced courses. towards enhancing visual perception. Such finely tuned skills can benefit anyone professionally and Students are encouraged to channel multi- personally. disciplinary interests and ideas in their work, and to find an identity and voice through the medium, The fine arts courses offered by the department as well as producing work that is relevant to are structured to accomplish the following: them. • For students not majoring in fine arts: to • Drawing is typically viewed as practice or a develop a visual perception of form and to preparatory exercise for a more “finalized” present knowledge and understanding of it in project (i.e. painting, sculpture, printmaking, works of art. installation), and as the definition of art • For students intending to major or to minor becomes ever-changing, drawing by in fine arts: beyond the foregoing, to promote contemporary standards includes sketches thinking in visual terms and to foster the and everything in between as final works. skills needed to give expression to these in a Especially with the influx of street art and coherent body of art works. illustration, sketches, lists, and doodles are taken both seriously and as final art forms. About 20 percent of Haverford students take fine Drawing at Haverford introduces and expands arts courses while enrolled in the College. The the traditional drawing practice to working students who major in fine arts and wish to self-sufficiently and exploring aesthetic continue their education are usually accepted at notions in a variety of mediums: ink, pencil, the professional graduate art school of their charcoal, pen, pastel, markers, mixed media, choice. Our alumni are distinguished etc. professionals, active in the visual creative arts and allied fields. • Traditionally rooted in narration, religion, and history the practice of painting is a LEARNING GOALS mode of expression using different styles and All fine arts studio courses are designed for mediums. Oil, acrylic, ink and mixed media students to obtain motor skills, theoretical and are the tools to experiment with different critical thinking, and problem solving necessary painting styles and compositions. Painting at to create art to the student’s fullest ability along Haverford aims to guide students through the with developing their own original ideas and formative practices as well as encouraging concepts. Students achieve these goals in exploration. The painting program is rigorous individual interactions such as critiques and with intensive work and weekly student hands-on instruction in small classroom settings. critiques. Students have classroom These educational goals are augmented by opportunity to work figuratively and paint outside speakers, visiting artists, exhibitions and from live models, work within the elements non-studio courses in visual culture sponsored by outside in Haverford’s sprawling landscape, the department or taught by its faculty. and also encouraged to challenge and take Haverford College Catalog 2017-2018 187 FINE ARTS ideas further conceptually. With distinguished photography. The photography book guest artists and lecturers visiting from other collection in Magill Library is one of the finest academic institutions, students are exposed to in the country. The photographic print many views and interpretations of art making, collection contains over 5,000 original inspiration, and the painting process. photographs. It is encyclopedic and contains works from Hill and Adamson at the dawn of • Printmaking is an interdisciplinary art form the beginning of photography to that has its own unique style as intaglio, contemporary works by Andres Serrano and lithography, relief, monotype, and silkscreen. Laurie Simmons. These exceptional resources Digital printmaking in lithography, intaglio, support small classes that allow for personal and silkscreen are taught along with attention and instruction from the professor traditional methods. Students are encouraged and staff. to combine printmaking with other mediums and extend their ideas from 2D to 3D • The sculpture concentration at Haverford including installation. Multi-media offers students the opportunity to explore the approaches are strongly recommended in three-dimensional media with a broad range advanced levels. of materials and processes. Classes are designed to engage the visual language Printmaking requires an intensive discipline. through a process of critical analysis and Patience is essential. Focus and attention are discovery while providing a structured unavoidable. It is an art form based on environment that allows students to acquire chemistry and math. It has a long history that dexterity with a comprehensive set of three- they must be aware of in order to create their dimensional skills. At the introductory level own works. Furthermore, it is visual. No students are introduced to fundamental three- thoughts or philosophy can “be” a print even dimensional techniques and through though it requires them all. Regardless of sequential classes they gain proficiency in a level, students are individual artists; they are skill set that culminates with sophisticated respected to create their own work with an sculptural concepts and fabrication methods excellence in commitment that leads them to at the advanced level. great achievements. The sculpture facilities include a wood shop, • The purpose of photography instruction at metal fabrication equipment, and a large- Haverford is to allow students to develop a scale foundry for bronze casting. Students are personal body of work using photographic introduced to wood and metal working materials. techniques, modeling and casting skills, and digital fabrication methods. The sculpture A sequence of courses is offered from concentration’s focus on conceptual Foundation Photography for students with investigation and in-depth technical little or no knowledge to Advanced education, in conjunction with well-equipped Photography in which students produce books foundry facilities, provides students the and exhibitions. Emphasis is placed on setting to foster creativity and work through producing photographs, which express both artistic curiosity. form and emotion through mastery of materials and acquisition of the intellectual Coursework and Studio Work and critical traditions of photography. The The 100-level “Introductory or Foundation” former is accomplished by technical critiques courses consist of half-semester courses. of student work in negative, digital and print Although one half-semester is not sufficient for a formats. The latter is accomplished through beginning student to master a given medium, it reading and studying of the history of offers ample time for acquiring a medium’s basic photography, theory and criticism, skills. In each discipline, the student learns to see photographic monographs and original prints. and to coordinate their increasing skills of interpretation and expression to create individual The facilities for the study of photography art works. include up-to-date and well-equipped darkrooms for chemical and digital The 200-level courses are “Materials and 188 Haverford College Catalog 2017-2018 FINE ARTS Techniques” courses. Having gained a solid basis Studies (ARTSH 499A and 499B, prerequisite from the foundation courses, the student chooses 300 course in student’s concentration such as a medium to pursue in depth for a semester. At drawing, painting, photography, printmaking, or this level, we encourage the student to explore the sculpture) on a weekly basis. This two-semester, various materials and their uses to create a two-credit course provides students with a refined and distinctive body of work. In the 300- structured environment to develop a body of level “Experimental Studio” courses, the student work that is presented in the form of an uses the acquired knowledge of materials and exhibition at the Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery. The techniques to further express and broaden their scope of the senior thesis exhibition artistic vision and ideas. accomplishes the process of selecting works to be included in the exhibition, determining the We encourage students to spend time on their layout of the works, and installing the works in own work outside of class in the fine arts the Cantor Fitzgerald Gallery. Students building. Adjacent faculty studios encourage this participate in the planning of the opening informal contact, which is invaluable in learning reception for their thesis exhibition, which is the discipline of creating