Architecture Home Page
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The four year Bachelor of Science in Architecture is a pre-professional degree, qualifying graduates to apply for admission to the two-year professionally accredited Master of Architecture program, required for professional registration. The first two years of the degree are common to the BS Facility Management and the BS Architectural Preservation. Students undertake general university education, study architectural visualization techniques, foundation design, introduction to the built environment and architectural history.

Access to the BS Architecture is competitive and based on a portfolio submitted in the spring of the sophomore year. In the junior year, architecture majors begin more intensive architecture design studios, with a focus on the house, sustainability and urban design. Studios run in parallel with technical courses and architectural history and theory.

Study abroad at either Temple Japan or Temple Rome is encouraged in either the spring of the junior year or the fall of the senior year. The degree culminates in a semester long capstone architecture design studio.

Architecture Home Page
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Architecture Website

The four year Bachelor of Science in Architectural Preservation focuses on the application of architectural and historical knowledge to the existing built environment. In Philadelphia, where historic preservation and adaptive re-use of buildings is common and in increasing demand, and where historical preservation is a known field of professional specialization, these skills are frequently required by architectural practices, historical preservation societies and the like. The program focuses on the preservation of modernist buildings.

Its first two years are common to the BS Architecture and the BS Facility Management. In the junior and senior years, students study architectural preservation and its research methods, the history of modern and American architecture and undertake technical courses including one chemistry lab. Elective credits enable students to graduate with a minor in another discipline such as art history. Study abroad at Temple Japan or Temple Rome in the spring of the junior year is strongly encouraged. The degree culminates in a semester long capstone research seminar.

Graduates of the program will be equipped to work under the supervision of an architect or an architectural historian to document historical buildings, undertake archival research or other more general aspects of architectural practice, or to study further at a graduate level. The program is guaranteed to undergraduate students in the Architecture Department in good standing in the University at the end of their sophomore year.

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Architecture Website

Facility Management is a growing and lucrative field. It has evolved from building maintenance and janitorial services to a more complex profession involving real estate and capital asset development and management. The four year Bachelor of Science in Facility Management at Temple University has been developed in collaboration with the Fox School of Business and Management.

Its first two years are common to the BS Architecture and the BS Architectural Preservation. In the junior and senior years, students undertake study in both the Architecture Department and the Fox School of Business and Management. This includes subjects such as project planning and programming, real estate, financial accounting, the law of contracts, operations management, research methods for facility managers, etc. Study abroad at Temple Japan or Temple Rome is encouraged. The degree culminates in a semester long capstone research seminar.

The Department will apply for accreditation of the degree by the International Facilities Management Association, so that recipients may become registered facility managers. The program is guaranteed to undergraduate students in the Architecture Department in good standing in the University at the end of their second year.

Art & Art Education Home Page
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The Art Education department at Tyler serves and celebrates the community that surrounds it. Its programs send talented teachers into neighborhood schools, enliven the visual landscape with inspiring public artwork, and enrich the cultural climate of the city by sponsoring multi-media and performing arts collaborations that build dynamic new relationships within and among the neighborhoods of North Philadelphia.

"The program in art education has grown tremendously over the past 10-15 years," says Department Chair Dr. Jo-Anna Moore. "Our community arts program is our newest venture and, thanks to the vision of artists like faculty members Billy Yalowitz and Pepon Osorio, it's adding energy and excitement to the whole campus."

A major component of the department is the BS in Art Education with teaching certification, which prepares students to qualify for the Pennsylvania Teaching Certification in Art, for grades K-12.* The program marries a liberal arts perspective on art with top-notch teacher training to create flexible, well-rounded instructors. The degree accomplishes this goal by combining a rigorous course of study in studio art,** art history, art education, education and Temple's General Education Curriculum, with a real-world series of field placements in Philadelphia schools, at all grade levels, that allows students to pinpoint their interests and teaching capabilities.

Students who are prospective elementary school teachers may take courses in multidisciplinary arts as well as Community Arts that are offered at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Tyler's Community Arts Program works in partnership with community organizations, schools, and artists in North Philadelphia to develop and deliver university courses, after-school workshops, school residencies, intergenerational forums, and critically-acclaimed inter-disciplinary exhibitions and performances that are based on the lives and stories of North Philadelphia.

Field internships and involvement with community arts projects give BS candidates the opportunity to be real collaborators who make a positive impact on urban communities even as undergraduates, a factor which has contributed significantly to the program's excellent placement rate for graduating students.

Facilities on campus include studios for painting, drawing, basic design, and printmaking, as well as well-equipped 3-dimensional design, photography, and digital imaging labs staffed by talented graduate technical assistants. Computer imaging and digital photo students can also take advantage of state-of-the-art facilities in the Tuttleman Learning Center, and the new Student Tech Center. Students are encouraged to explore the many resources available to them off campus in Philadelphia's myriad museums and galleries, as well as further afield at the Temple Rome program, the Tyler Art Workshop in England/Scotland, and Temple University in Japan.

* Students may earn their BS in Art Education with faculty approval after successfully completing 122 credits of coursework with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0. However, Pennsylvania certification standards require that students maintain a 3.0 average overall and achieve passing scores in national certification tests.

Anyone interested in PA Teaching Certification needs a Permanent Resident Visa (green card) in order to file a "Declaration of Intent to become a US citizen".  This would allow them to receive what PDE calls a "Foreign Alien" Certificate valid for 5 years from date of issuance. In that time period, they need to get their US Citizenship.  

Download Portfolio Requirements Sheet *.pdf

Art & Art Education Home Page
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The Bachelor of Arts in Visual Studies enables students to organize multiple approaches to visual thinking that cut across various disciplines into a logical whole.  Students in this major analyze visual communication from a variety of aesthetic, theoretical, scientific, sociological, and historical viewpoints. Students learn to consider medium, its impact on the image and message of a piece, and the work's social and cultural context. The major is comprised of a stimulating blend of studio and academic courses that provide graduates with a sound basis for pursuing graduate study in art history, art theory and criticism, or visual anthropology.

Students in the Visual Studies program have the curricular flexibility to do a double major in art history, or to pursue other minors or extracurricular activities with greater intensity, as well as to pursue explorations in the theoretical and technical aspects of art making outside the traditional restrictions of the single studio programs.

The BA degree in Visual Studies is ideal for students who want to utilize the resources of a larger university and the excellence of Tyler School of Art’s studio traditions in order to build a practice that incorporates multiple methods of studio production.

Graduates of the Visual Studies Program are well prepared for careers in traditional areas of artistic culture— as a practicing studio artist, museums and galleries, arts journalism, government agencies, and art organizations—as well as in interior design, retail, marketing, advertising, and other fields that involve crafting lifestyle experiences with visual expertise.

Download Portfolio Requirements Sheet *.pdf

Art History Home Page
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Tyler's Art History program has a unique point of view. From its uncommon position in one of the country's top art schools, its students have access to outstanding research resources, studio work, and travel opportunities that create an exceptionally three dimensional undergraduate experience. There are other benefits as well; as Department Chair Dr. Gerald Silk points out, "We know our students well. They receive individual attention, and there's a strong community spirit."

The program is also known for its state-of-the-art digital resources. Pioneering the move to digitization, the department's extensive slide library has been converted to a database of more than 35,000 digital images. This treasure trove is complemented by membership in the image library ARTstor, which provides students and faculty access to more than one million additional images, encompassing every period, genre, and category of world art. Instructors prepare lectures digitally and students can access them via Blackboard, an online course management resource, allowing students to learn and review class material anywhere, anytime.

The curriculum spans the global history of art from Ancient to Contemporary and the Department is strongest in the Western tradition with relatively equal distribution of focus on Ancient/ Medieval, Renaissance/Baroque, and Modern/Contemporary. There is particular strength in the Mediterranean region with specialists in Bronze Age Aegean, Ancient Roman, Medieval Byzantine and Coptic, Italian and Spanish Renaissance and Baroque, and Modern Italy and France. In addition to these courses, students are encouraged to study abroad, spending a semester or year at Temple's campuses in either Tokyo or Rome. Several undergraduates are also often accepted into a summer Roman excavation project in Javols, France. In addition to these opportunities, internships at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Fabric Workshop and Museum, the Print Center, and other local and regional cultural institutions provide hands-on learning experiences.

Several Art History majors have participated in the Diamond Peer Teaching and Scholars program, which comes with a stipend and partial tuition remission, affording undergraduates the exciting opportunity to assist in teaching classes or engage in ambitious, supervised research projects.

Students completing the Art History major at Tyler are well prepared whether they wish to pursue graduate work in the field, write professionally, launch careers in museums or auction houses, or embark on any other path that requires broad liberal arts experience and a strong background interpreting the images that color the world around them.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts program at Tyler is designed for students who want to build life-long, professional careers in the visual arts. The program is intense, comprehensive, and fueled by the energy of talented students who are passionate about exploring and stretching the boundaries of their disciplines. The rigorous intellectual and artistic atmosphere is both challenging and open with abundant latitude for exploration and experimentation in many directions. Students are immersed in studio practice while gaining a firm grounding in the liberal arts through Temple's General Education Curriculum.

The program teaches BFA candidates how to develop and nurture a personal artistic vision, how to thoughtfully critique their work and the work of other artists, how to thoroughly research the concepts that inspire them, how to build a supportive network of artistic peers and mentors, and how to make an economically viable place for themselves in the art world after graduation.

BFA students are guided through this process by exceptional faculty who are all practicing artists themselves, and who bring the same level of dedication to their students that they bring to their own work. The activity of faculty members outside the classroom studio keeps Tyler's curriculum contemporary, links students to the external art community, and gives students a real-world view of what a professional artist's life is like.

The BFA's concentrated studio experience is complemented by the academic breadth and rigor of the General Education Curriculum, a series of courses for all undergraduates that provides a strong interdisciplinary background for any field of study. Gen Ed is an important component of all undergraduate programs at Tyler and underscores the School's belief that artists should be grounded in a broad base of knowledge, and comfortable drawing inspiration from many different spheres.

Download Portfolio Requirements Sheet *.pdf

The Foundation Year
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Students begin their Tyler careers with a yearlong immersion in the school's comprehensive Foundation program. Foundation is an intensive and highly structured series of courses that form the fundamental basis for studio practice, critical thinking, and the knowledge and implementation of principles of visual art expression. In every drawing, 2D, 3D or computer class, students are challenged to expand beyond preconceived notions about art and art making.

Foundation year projects are demanding and absorbing. From larger than life self-portraits, to handmade books with pages exploring new concepts added each week to sculpture created from found objects, assignments are designed to help students synthesize a range of skills and concepts, and gives emerging artists the chance to explore images and ideas from the moment they arrive.

The program also hosts the weekly Foundation Lecture Series, which welcomes an impressive array of artists, designers, and thinkers from around the university and throughout the Philadelphia cultural community. Each fall, the Series focuses on a trans-disciplinary issue facing contemporary art and design. In the second semester, the Series features faculty members from the upper level majors who present each Tyler studio in detail. The Series exposes students to the issues and ideas that define contemporary visual culture and prepares them to select a major in which to further their study.

Unpredictability is a fact of the creative life, and the Foundation program prepares students for whatever may come their way by emphasizing fundamental skills applicable across a wide range of disciplines. Such breadth prepares Foundation students to follow wherever their developing interests lead. A student may come in certain that he wants to be a graphic designer and discover how valuable paper sculpture techniques learned in Foundation 3D can be to developing innovative package design.

The Foundation year is intensive, exciting, and challenging, and through it each student begins to find and define a distinctive visual voice. At the end of the year, students are well prepared to enter the all-elective sophomore year.

During the freshman year, students are enrolled in required survey courses, which introduce the architecture, sculpture and painting of the Western world from ancient times to the present. Completion of the freshman survey enables students to next select classes from
an inviting menu of upper-level art history courses including those relating to non-Western cultures as well as to the studio disciplines of film, photography, crafts, decorative arts, design, and architecture.

The Sophomore Year
During the sophomore year, students are enrolled in three studio electives each semester and may select from introductory courses offered in any of the eight majors—Ceramics/Glass, Fibers, Graphic and Interactive Design, Metals/Jewelry/CAD-CAM, Painting and Drawing, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture—enabling them to explore many distinct major fields. This experience provides the necessary background to make an informed selection of a major at the beginning of the junior year and adds to the overall breadth of the educational experience. One or two sophomore studio pre-requisites in the intended major are required.

The Junior and Senior Years
At this stage, students begin a required two-year concentration in one of the eight studio majors. The major requires two courses each semester for four semesters. Teaching in the major is highly individualized and stresses the development of a personal idiom and preparation for the professional world. Because of Tyler's emphasis on interdisciplinary work and the exciting creative fusion that can be discovered while working in disparate fields, a substantial amount of studio work outside the major is allowed and encouraged.

Digital Imaging Concentration
As a BFA major, a student may also complete a concentration in Digital Imaging, designed to complement studies in the chosen major. This option provides students access to a broad range of fine arts applications for digital technology and introduces ways in which new technologies can enhance artistic production and self-promotion.

Teaching Certification
This program prepares BFA students, with an approved course of study, to qualify for Pennsylvania Teaching Certification in Art, kindergarten through twelfth grade. Students must complete the BFA requirements along with 32 credit hours in education, art education, and specified liberal arts courses. Education-related studies begin in the sophomore year. Students generally take 4.5 to 5 years to fulfill all requirements. All candidates for Pennsylvania Teaching Certificate in Art, K-12
must earn passing scores in the Praxis I and II National Teacher Examinations, Elementary Education: General Knowledge, and the Art Education Examinations.

Students interested in pursuing teaching certification should contact the Art Education coordinator during priority registration of the second semester of the freshman year in order the plan the sequence of requirements.

During the semester prior to registration, students must complete an application for the field experiences that accompany their program.

A B-grade or better must be earned in all Art Education courses. BFA students are required to take a specified variety of six studio courses, including one painting (plus an additional Painting/Drawing/ Sculpture course), one printmaking (plus an additional Graphic Arts and Design course), and one ceramics (plus an additional Crafts course). These studio courses can be part of the student's BFA major. A cumulative average of 3.0 must be maintained in order to enter the program. Pennsylvania Education Standards require that a 3.0 average must be earned in order to enter Student Teaching and to graduate.

Anyone interested in PA Teaching Certification needs a Permanent Resident Visa (green card) in order to file a "Declaration of Intent to become a US citizen".  This would allow them to receive what PDE calls a "Foreign Alien" Certificate valid for 5 years from date of issuance. In that time period, they need to get their US Citizenship.  

Foundations Home Page
Course Descriptions
Students begin their Tyler careers with a yearlong immersion in the school's comprehensive Foundation program. Foundation is an intensive and highly structured series of courses that form the fundamental basis for studio practice, critical thinking, and the knowledge and implementation of principles of visual art expression. In every drawing, 2D, 3D or computer class, students are challenged to expand beyond preconceived notions about art and art making.

Foundation year projects are demanding and absorbing. From larger than life self-portraits, to handmade books with pages exploring new concepts added each week to sculpture created from found objects, assignments are designed to help students synthesize a range of skills and concepts, and gives emerging artists the chance to explore images and ideas from the moment they arrive.

The program also hosts the weekly Foundation Lecture Series, which welcomes an impressive array of artists, designers, and thinkers from around the university and throughout the Philadelphia cultural community. Each fall, the Series focuses on a trans-disciplinary issue facing contemporary art and design. In the second semester, the Series features faculty members from the upper level majors who present each Tyler studio in detail. The Series exposes students to the issues and ideas that define contemporary visual culture and prepares them to select a major in which to further their study.

Unpredictability is a fact of the creative life, and the Foundation program prepares students for whatever may come their way by emphasizing fundamental skills applicable across a wide range of disciplines. Such breadth prepares Foundation students to follow wherever their developing interests lead. A student may come in certain that he wants to be a graphic designer and discover how valuable paper sculpture techniques learned in Foundation 3D can be to developing innovative package design.

The Foundation year is intensive, exciting, and challenging, and through it each student begins to find and define a distinctive visual voice. At the end of the year, students are well prepared to enter the all-elective sophomore year.

During the freshman year, students are enrolled in required survey courses, which introduce the architecture, sculpture and painting of the Western world from ancient times to the present. Completion of the freshman survey enables students to next select classes from an inviting menu of upper-level art history courses including those relating to non-Western cultures as well as to the studio disciplines of film, photography, crafts, decorative arts, design, and architecture.

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"We're not interested in creating artists in our own image," comments Ceramics program Head and Crafts Department Chair Nicholas Kripal. "We love that we draw students who are pushing the boundaries of the medium, students who want to be challenged."

Students' exploration of the craft can take many forms. There is equipment available for wheel work, mold making, and slip casting projects, as well as large kilns for hand-building and sculpture. Students are encouraged to investigate a wide range of processes, from wood firing, raku, and salt glazing, to stoneware and porcelain, as they develop their own personal visions.

Separate studio space is available for junior and senior ceramics majors, and students are encouraged to reach outside their own spheres for inspiration and ideas.

As Kripal comments, "So many of our students are interested in interdisciplinary work. Using computers to make phototransfers so images can be transferred onto surfaces. Taking what is interesting about industrial design and pushing it into the fine arts perspective, making hybrid things. The fusion of ceramics with the performing arts is another stand-out example. We're so excited about the opportunities that are available on the Main Campus"”being side by side with film, dance, media arts, being able to get lighting advice from the theater department"”there's a great new synergy here."

The program makes a point of drawing on the energy and resources of the city as well. Students attend lectures and exhibitions at museums, galleries and other cultural institutions all over town, and have participated in public art works such as a recent collaboration with Philadelphia's Mural Arts Project at the Ramonita de Rodriguez branch of the Philadelphia Free Library.

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Fibers majors in Tyler's BFA program examine every aspect of their field, studying the history and technology, aesthetics, and processes of their craft.

"Our undergraduates begin by learning to weave, and to dye and print cloth, and then they are ready to explore the areas that intrigue them most," explains Fibers program Head Rebecca Medel. "Some students love to work sculpturally, on and off-loom, some are fascinated by quilting, painting, and creating patterns on cloth, many are drawn to working with non-traditional materials such as Tyvek, latex, or even newspaper. Our program definitely has an interdisciplinary approach, and by their junior year, we really encourage our majors to develop their own vision and learn to express it effectively, to extend their ideas as far as they possibly can, and to create a solid body of work in the process."

The program introduces the history of textile structure and design, emphasizing both traditional methods of working with fibers, and the use of contemporary, innovative processes. The Fibers program houses a computerized loom, as well as a small lab for digital printing with a large-format printer that can print on cloth of any type.

Because of the program's unique tools and resources, majors are often joined in classes by non-majors, adding a strong interdisciplinary element to the program. The faculty is a well-balanced blend of emerging artists and instructors with long experience in the field. Lectures and critiques by visiting artists, demonstrations, and field trips to relevant exhibitions complement work in the classroom and lab.

"We're a small program and highly competitive," says Medel. "Our students are all highly motivated and consistently successful at winning both school and University prizes, awards, and grants."

Students also have a successful track record after leaving Tyler. Some go on to MFA programs, or graduate programs in commercial design, some enjoy teaching in elementary and secondary schools, some have pursued museum careers, and others have moved into costume design and fabrication.

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"Glass is so exciting because the possibilities are endless," says program Head Sharyn O'Mara. "Everyday in our studios we work with this amazing material that has such long and rich history, but we bring it into the context of 21st century contemporary art. We consider glass both a craft and a conceptual medium. There are no limits to what we can accomplish with it."

The glass program combines a contemporary art context with coursework that emphasizes the history, chemistry, and technical aspects of glass production. In addition to learning glass blowing, glass fabrication, glass fusing, glass casting, and kiln work, students are responsible for running the hot and cold studios, and for learning to build the tools they need.

The program also emphasizes the development of a closely-knit artistic community. Having a cohesive group of students is a valued goal, and genuine teamwork is required to make work and run the studios.

"The role students play in overseeing our studios is unique," notes O'Mara. "They have real responsibility here, and the opportunity to see firsthand what a practicing artist's career is really like. They leave here fully prepared to take on their careers."

Tyler also prepares students by making sure they are part of the greater glass community. Through membership in a variety of professional associations, faculty members bring visiting artists, workshops, and guest lecturers to campus. Students tour Philadelphia studios and explore the city's wealth of cultural institutions. Internships, scholarship opportunities for summer study, and a study abroad program round out the curriculum.

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Tyler's internationally recognized Graphic and Interactive Design program is known for producing designers with the ability to handle every phase of the design process, from concept development to finished product. Tyler students produce work that can range from a logo and collateral material for a startup company, to packaging for a new product line, a public service ad campaign, a web site for a music festival, or an interactive storybook. The curriculum stresses creative thinking and professional discipline, preparing undergraduates to take advantage of the many and varied opportunities within the field of design.

"Our goal is to send students into professional practice with the confidence and training to handle whatever challenge is thrown at them," explains GAID undergraduate program Head Alice Drueding.

BFA students work closely with faculty who are practicing professionals with established international reputations in design for print and electronic media. The faculty challenges students to achieve the highest level of excellence in their work, evaluating student efforts, from sophomore through senior year, by the industry's exacting standards.

Tyler students are encouraged to create portfolios that express their unique viewpoints as designers. Courses introduce students to an extensive design vocabulary and provide all the necessary skills for the execution of creative ideas. The computer labs are current with industry standards and allow students to become fluent in the techniques and software applications for both print and interactive media. The curriculum is further enriched by presentations and critiques by visiting designers and illustrators and an exciting range of off-campus opportunities including semester-long internships in design studios and cultural institutions, participation in national and international design competitions and exhibitions, community-oriented work for nonprofit organizations, tours of professional design studios, and portfolio reviews through professional design and advertising organizations.

Senior design students focus on intensive coursework in specific areas of design practice and the development of a strong portfolio. Advanced level courses are offered in a wide range of topics including corporate design, packaging, typography, publication design, advertising, art direction, design authorship, illustration, and interactive design. The exceptional quality and depth of Tyler student portfolios is well known to practitioners and employers across the country. Graduates from the program are highly sought after by top design studios and advertising agencies from coast to coast.

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In Tyler's Metals/Jewelry program, established in 1962 by program Head Stanley Lechtzin, students learn to design jewelry and objects of great beauty and utility using state-of-the-art tools and materials, and they learn how to make a living doing it. Students in the Metals/Jewelry/ CAD-CAM program, using materials ranging from gold, silver, aluminum and bronze to modern titanium and plastics, create rings, pins, earrings, bracelets, furniture, toys, and other functional objects and
product design. The faculty emphasize traditional techniques and their historical significance as well as, in advanced courses, encouraging students to use the latest technologies in the field.

Tyler's is not only the largest Metals/Jewelry program in the country, it is also the only one in the world with an emphasis on CAD-CAM (Computer-Aided Design-Computer-Aided Manufacture) at all degree levels.

As Lechtzin points out, "Some of our faculty members have been working with these technologies since their inception. That experience, along with the advantages of our size and facilities, allows us to offer a great deal more diversity in our curriculum, including specialized courses such as Color in Metal, Plastics, Production Processes, and Photo Etching in Jewelry. This variety means our students are prepared for a wider range of work."

The program requires BFA candidates to take a minimum of one year of CAD-CAM work, as well as a Business Practices in Crafts course that explores and prepares students for opportunities in industry, business, and education, and also highlights the skills needed to create a professional visual portfolio and establish an independent studio. The program's many talented and successful alumni have chosen a variety of career paths, including toy design, table-top design, architectural hardware, furniture design, special effects and effects make-up, footwear, fashion and accessory design, as well as fine, commercial, fashion, and studio craft jewelry sold at craft shows, galleries and museum gift shops worldwide.

The facilities in Metals/Jewelry/CAD-CAM are considered the most advanced at any art school. In addition to the outstanding computer resources, the studios include the only completely equipped electroforming lab in the country. For a virtual tour of the facilities available to students, please visit www.temple.edu/crafts.

There is a great deal of interaction between the program's under- graduate and graduate students. Third- and fourth-year BFA students work closely with both faculty and graduate student tutors. Seniors have the opportunity to join the Senior Metals Seminar and acquire a private work space. Students thrive on the opportunity for collaboration within the program and also outside it, through established exchange programs with Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, and
Scotland's Edinburgh School of Art.

As Lechztin sums up the Metals/Jewelry program, "We have a real commitment to staying at the cutting edge of technology, a commitment to preparing students for a successful economic life in art and design, and genuine, strong support for our students' unique artistic visions. The successful marriage of these elements is what sets us apart." The Metals/Jewelry/CAD-CAM program is a founding member of Cad- LabOration which is a consortium of metals/jewelry programs that currently house 3D printing facilities. One of CadLabOration's missions is the sharing of existing technologies among the member programs.

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From day one, students entering Tyler's BFA program in Painting and Drawing become part of the working world of art. Faculty who are all practicing artists, graduate students in the School's top-ranked MFA program, visiting artists, critics, authors, gallery owners, and curators all play a role in exposing the majors to the challenges and rewards of an art career.

"The program is very rigorous and critical but also very nurturing, and the kind of respect that students have for each other is a very consistent, healthy aspect of the department," comments Department Chair of Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture Margo Margolis.

The BFA program focuses on studio practice as a career, and encourages students to explore and hone a variety of techniques while developing their own personal visions. Through both studio and seminar courses, faculty members present a range of skills and concepts essential to
artistic development. Each semester, instructors expose students to a wide variety of contemporary viewpoints complemented by frequent visits to museums and galleries in Philadelphia, New York City, and Washington, D.C.

Tyler's highly regarded Critical Dialogues series provides an added dimension to the undergraduate experience in Painting and Drawing. The series regularly brings nationally known artists, critics, and authors to campus to present their work, lead discussions, and critique student pieces. Students are also encouraged to pursue creative collaborations with faculty and students in other media at Tyler and Temple. Recent interdisciplinary projects have meshed painting and drawing with video, sound, and digital imaging.

In addition to the many opportunities on campus, most Painting and Drawing undergraduates in their junior year also take advantage of the opportunity to study for a semester or year at Temple Rome, Temple's eminent and longstanding program in the Eternal City. All of this activity exposes Tyler undergraduates to the real working world of art and gives them the best foundation possible as they continue to build their careers.

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Photographic images are central in our culture. Photographers are artists, reporters, historians, provocateurs, storytellers, spies, detectives, teachers, explorers. At Tyler, photography majors learn both the art and science of the discipline, preparing themselves to take on any one of these roles or to create their own.

"Our program really emphasizes photographic processes as a fine art medium," explains program Head Martha Madigan. "We were the first art school in the country to offer a BFA and MFA in Photography, and the first place to offer coursework in color photography. Our program has always been a comprehensive blend of the historic processes of photography and an exploration of the most current techniques." The program's historical emphasis gives students the opportunity to perfect alternative techniques, such as hand-applied emulsions that are light sensitive, platinum printing, gum printing, and other historical practices, while at the same time exploring contemporary photo processes in one of the finest digital labs in the Delaware Valley.

Students graduating from the BFA program pursue a wide range of career options. Some join photo labs or apprentice with commercial photographers to hone their professional skills. Some earn teaching certification and turn their talents to the classroom. Still others work in galleries and museums, enter MFA programs, or open their own studios. Whatever path they choose, the Tyler emphasis on developing both personal artistic vision and technical skill makes them flexible,
adaptable artists for the course of their careers.

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Tyler's undergraduate Printmaking program prepares students to seize opportunities by exposing them to a wide range of concepts and techniques, and by focusing on career development while students are still in school.

The program is housed in large, modern, fully-equipped studios where students first learn the fundamentals of the four printmaking disciplines (relief, intaglio, lithography, and silkscreen) before exploring at least two of these disciplines in depth. Advanced projects include color, photo processes, large-scale printing, installation, and digital printmaking.

Students interact closely with both faculty, who are all practicing artists, and MFA students, who often work side-by-side with BFAs in the group studios. Graduate and undergraduate students alike are inspired by each other's work, and exposure to the MFA experience often gives Printmaking BFA students an unusually sophisticated sensibility. The Printmaking program at Tyler places strong emphasis on interdisciplinary work and students at all levels are encouraged to take advantage of the departments around them, a practice that results in dynamic work stimulated by the fusion of printmaking with fields such as photography, painting, fibers, or sculpture for example.

BFA students are encouraged to delve into Philadelphia's rich cultural resources, as well as to explore the museums, galleries, and art scene in New York City and Washington, D.C. Many students also take advantage of Tyler's outstanding program in Rome during one of their
junior semesters.

The program prepares students for life after graduation through the Art Career Workshop, which provides a practical foundation for a professional career in any of the visual arts, and the Senior Projects Workshop, which focuses on the production of a formally presented print project portfolio.

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Students entering Tyler's BFA program in Sculpture quickly find that they are part of a community of working artists. Faculty who are all practicing artists, graduate students in one of the School's top-ranked MFA programs, visiting artists, critics, authors, gallery owners, and curators all play a significant role in exposing undergraduate sculpture students to the challenges and rewards of an art career. The program takes an open point of view to the practice of sculpture, with a solid emphasis on acquiring the practical skills necessary to build a lifelong career as an artist.

"The openness of our program encourages hybrid interpretations of sculpture,"says program Head Jude Tallichet. "Students work in a variety of media that range from wood and metal to sound, video, and performance. The incredible variety of media and diversity of coursework available to them is inspiring. The field has become more and more interdisciplinary, and through our approach we are preparing our students to enter the field as practicing sculptors."

The rigorous program emphasizes critical thinking in all aspects of the creative process. Through both studio and seminar courses, faculty members present a range of skills and concepts essential to artistic development. Each semester, instructors expose students to a wide variety of contemporary viewpoints complemented by frequent visits to museums and galleries in Philadelphia, New York City, and Washington, D.C.

Tyler's highly regarded Critical Dialogues series provides an added dimension to the undergraduate experience in Sculpture. The series regularly brings nationally known artists, critics, and authors to campus to present their work, lead discussions, and critique student pieces. Students are also encouraged to pursue creative collaborations with faculty and students in other media at Tyler and Temple. Recent interdisciplinary projects have meshed public art with video, sound, and digital imaging.

In addition to the many opportunities on campus, many Sculpture undergraduates also take advantage of the opportunity to study for a semester or year at Temple Rome, Temple's eminent and longstanding program in the Eternal City.

The Sculpture program is housed in a large facility that includes a complete woodshop, metal fabrication shop, plaster and mold-making facilities, and sound, video and projection equipment. Undergraduate majors are provided with semi-private, 24-hour access studios beginning in their junior year.