- Alabama School of Fine Arts
- ASFA Visual Arts Department
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Visual Arts at Alabama School of Fine Arts
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Ways of seeing Visual arts students at ASFA find inspiration in their fellow artists and discover new lenses for looking at the world around them. They learn not only how to realize their personal artistic vision, but how to resolve that vision within the context of their local and global communities.
Freedom through technique ASFA visual arts students receive extensive technical instruction in a range of media—including drawing, design, painting, print-making, and sculpture—which enables them to explore and discover their own aesthetic. Through the study of form and unity, line and shape, texture and color, they gain proficiency in languages of creative expression that they can use to make their own bold statements.
Individualized approach Because each artist must be celebrated for their unique approach and point of view, our faculty take an individualized approach to educating visual arts students. At the advanced level, every student has their own studio space where they can feel free to experiment and develop their artistic voice through trial and error. By shaping our curriculum from the student out, we prepare them to tap into creative potential that is unambiguously their own.
Imagining possibilities Students encounter successful artists and their work in an array of different contexts, including their courses in art history, rotating exhibits at the Vulcan Materials Gallery on campus, and in the form of visiting artists who offer insight into the professional creative life. They draw inspiration from faculty members who are accomplished artists in their own right, enabling them to envision their own place in such a world.
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Learn from top talent!
Darius Hill, ASFA Visual Arts Chair, has a BFA in printmaking and MFA in studio art and participates in numerous exhibitions displaying his sculptures, printmaking, and multimedia works. He was commissioned to create a sculpture which stands outside the Birmingham Museum of Art.
Anne Herbert, ASFA Visual Art Instructor and Vulcan Materials Gallery Director, holds her BFA in Painting and her MFA in Studio Art. Anne exhibits regularly throughout the Southeast and received a 2021 residency at Stove Works in Chattanooga, TN and won First Place Prize in the 2019 SECAC Juried Exhibition.
Randy Gachet, BFA in sculpture, is a 3D artist who has received numerous honors and awards such as an Alabama State Council artists grant and a fellowship from the Surdna Foundation and has shown his work in exhibitions across the Southeast
Celeste Pfau, Celeste Amparo Pfau is an interdisciplinary artist who makes fine art as well as interactive public art installations. Her work is often inspired by the diverse natural and human cultural world of Birmingham. She is a graduate of The Cooper Union in NYC.
Learn more about Visual Arts at ASFA
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ASFA Visual Arts Curriciulum
The Visual Arts Department of the Alabama School of Fine Arts offers an advanced course of study in traditional fine art mediums and the history of art. Instruction emphasizes visual awareness, original and creative thinking, critical analysis, and excellence of technique and craftsmanship. Students perform daily studio work including drawing, design, painting, print-making and sculpture. Upon completion of this program, a highly motivated student is prepared for higher educational institutions, universities, and art schools.
Visual Arts Curriculum:
Art Foundation (Grades 7-10) A four-year studio course deals with form and unity in regard to the structural, compositional and proportional organization of line, shape, value, texture and color. These fundamental elements of art are understood and explored through the manipulation of various materials and techniques.
Drawing (Grades 7-11) A six-year course that begins as an introduction to traditional drawing media and their use to achieve proficiency in rendering. The course moves incrementally to drawing as a means of communicating personal content and individual aesthetics in the upper levels.
Art History (Grade 11) One-year chronological survey of World Art History, Pre- history through Contemporary, taught during the junior year. The accompanying text is the university standard Gardner’s Art through the Ages, which is supplemented with additional readings. A requisite course for the visual arts major, it is open as an elective for all others.
Painting I (Grade 9) One-semester course introducing the fundamentals of water based media such as watercolor, India ink and acrylic paints.
Painting II (Grade 10) One-semester introduction into oil painting techniques as a means of investigating color, mark, material, subject matter, and content.
Painting III (Grade 11) One-semester course that emphasizes content, the formal and emotive aspects of painting and the interrelationship of form, matter, and content.
Sculpture I (Grade 9) One-semester course that emphasizes structure and volume through 3-D design.
Sculpture II (Grade 10) One-semester course with emphasis on problem-solving, formal concepts, and construction.
Printmaking (Grade 11) One-semester course that explores traditional and non-traditional materials, and the interrelationship of form, matter, and content.
Studio (Grades 11) Two-semester tutorial class that allows the student to explore and develop a personal aesthetic.
Senior Thesis (Grade 12) Two semesters of independent study. All seniors have the opportunity to explore the creative process, discovering their own artistic sensibilities. The course results in a substantial, cohesive body of work and a senior exhibition at the end of the year.
Admission Criteria:
The Visual Arts department determines an applicant’s eligibility to enroll in the program based on the follow-ing criteria:
- Portfolio, Technical Ability, Technical Versatility, Originality
- Audition Day Drawing, Compositional Awareness, Accuracy of Observation, Aesthetic Sophistication, Assignment Fulfillment
- Audition Day Interview, Responsiveness, Articulation, Self-motivation, Sincerity, Confidence, Respectfulness, Maturity, Independence
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Visual Arts Basic Supply Kit
Visual Arts students should expect to purchase the following supplies as their basic supply kit. If you have some of these items already, do not re-purchase as these supplies can be used for multiple classes. Students should put names on all supplies in permanent marker.
- Graphite Drawing Pencils 6B, 4B, 2B, B, 2H 4H, 6H (Usually comes in a set)
- Compressed Charcoal
- Set of Oil or Chalk pastels – student preference
- Black Drawing Ink
- Ink Pen Introductory set
- Acrylic Paint Set – Black, White, Red, Blue, Yellow, Green Students may purchas other colors but can also mix colors
- Palette Knife – can be plastic
- Disposable palette
- Sketchbook – 11 x 14
- Newsprint Pad 18 x 24”
- Kneaded Eraser
- Gum eraser
- Scissors
- Package of glue gun sticks for small glue gun
- 16 oz container of Modpodge
- 18” Ruler
- Drawing Board
- Package of assorted paint brushes (variations in size and flat vs round)
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ASFA Visual Arts Alumni
Universities/Institutions ASFA Visual Arts alumni are accepted Into:
Atlanta College of Art, Carnegie-Mellon University, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Cooper Union, The Corcoran School of Art, The Kansas City Art Institute, The Maryland Institute-College of Art, The Parsons School of Design, Pratt Institute of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, San Francisco Art Institute, Vassar College, Yale University, as well as numerous state universities and colleges.
Where are ASFA Visual Arts alumni now?
- Terry Beckham: Exhibit Designer at the Birmingham Museum of Art
- Monica Haslip: Arts and technology education advocate, founder Little Black Pearl, and chosen by President Barack Obama as 1 of 12 White House Champions of Change
- Rachel Mohler: New York University MFA candidate in video game design
- Willie Williams: Founder and owner of Birmingham's Studio 2500
- Celeste Pfau: Interdisciplinary artist, Magic City Art Connection’s Emerging Artist
- Kelsey Harrison: Documentary Production Specialist at Alabama Public Television (APT)
- Corey Dunlap: MFA and gallery artist