What will I learn?
Develop the practical skills, critical understanding, and industry-related knowledge necessary to succeed as a professional artist with UFV's Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA). Fine-tune your BFA to best match your educational and career goals as an emerging artist, designer, performer, writer, or critic. Earn a BFA by choosing a Visual Arts major, or by selecting a Visual Arts extended minor and an additional extended minor in Art History, Creative Writing, Fashion Design, Graphic Design, Media & Communications Studies, or Theatre.Visual Arts major:In your first year of a Visual Arts major, you lay the groundwork for mastering artistic skills in Foundation studio courses. Through study in drawing, material process, video production, photography, and space, form and time, you build a repertoire of technique and experience that prepares you for more advanced course work. After mastering the basics, you specialize in three studio disciplines chosen from painting and drawing, sculpture, print media, new media, and photography.You grow your command of art history through the critical study of modern and contemporary pieces, ranging from Indigenous art to Renaissance classics. Near the end of your studies, senior seminar courses challenge you to develop a comprehensive understanding, while senior studio courses allow you to flex your newly minted artistic skill on self-directed projects. Your work is showcased to UFV alumni and the general public with a BFA graduation exhibition.CAREER EXPECTATIONSFor creative individuals, a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is the perfect way to explore the possibilities of careers in the fine arts. In this four-year program, you gain an understanding of how creative practice and academic theory complement each other in today's artistic landscape. A BFA will prepare you to not only produce cultural commodities, but also to understand the complex and critical relationships between creative practices, the creative economy, and contemporary culture. Depending on how you structure your UFV BFA, you can find employment with a range of employers, including:Design agenciesK-12 schoolsPost-secondary institutionsGalleries and museumsPara-arts organizationsMarketing agenciesPhotography studiosCopywriting firmsCommunity organizationsPrint or online publicationsProduction companiesLEARNING OUTCOMESUpon successful completion of the Visual Arts major:students are flexible and conscientious thinkers, able to respect diverse ways of thinking and working, while expressing themselves as capable risk-takers.students are open-minded and value traditional methods as well as contemporary practices.students have respect for collaborative and communal working environments.students can participate in respectful dialogue about controversial issues.students are ethical thinkers, considerate of personal and global connections and able to express issues such as difference, community, and ecology.students are advocates for the importance of cultural production who contribute positively to community.students recognize opportunity even in challenging circumstances, and nurture and enjoy their practice.KnowledgeUpon successful completion of the Visual Arts major:students comprehend historical and contemporary cultural contexts, and connect art historical knowledge with movements in world history.students are critical thinkers who engage in visual culture with sensory and aesthetic awareness.students integrate creative thinking across disciplines.students exhibit ingenuity and self-sufficiency in accessing resources to support any creative, academic or personal inquiry.
