Program Website: Art and Design – Hiram College
Introduction
The art and design program strives to engage students in the expressive and communicative power of visual language. Hiram’s art and design program emphasizes inquiry and experimentation, critical evaluation, personal reflection, collaborative dialogue, and engagement with the larger world. Whether working with time-honored traditional media or with ever-evolving digital technologies, the program encourages interdisciplinary exploration and connectedness with ideas and approaches from other disciplines. As part of a larger liberal arts curriculum, the art and design major provides a foundation upon which students can build rewarding careers. Students are encouraged to complement their studies in art and design with other fields of study, such as performing arts, creative writing, psychology, communication, environmental science, management, and many others.
The program offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in art and design. A sequence of foundations courses prepares all students for the technical, formal, and conceptual skills necessary for a well-rounded creative thinker and visual problem-solver. Upper-level students can pursue one of three pathways: studio art (painting/drawing/mixed media), photography/film, or digital design studies. Exploring these pathways, students immerse themselves in upper-level courses in their chosen area, culminating in a capstone experience – the presentation of a technically proficient and conceptually cohesive visual portfolio.
In a climate of art-making where boundaries delineating media, techniques, and tools have faded, students are encouraged to take courses across all three pathways to strengthen their technical and conceptual skills. Students may also choose to supplement their studies with electives associated with the communication or computer science major, or the film studies minor.
An Optimal Learning Environment
- The Gelbke Fine Arts Center is a repurposed factory with 26,000 square feet of studio, classroom, and lab space.
- Equipped with updated Apple projection & digital sharing technology, our 70 seat auditorium is ideally suited for presentations and films.
- Majors receive spacious individual studios in order to develop their ideas and work without interruption. These individual work spaces, as well studios and digital lab, remain open for student use around the clock, seven days a week.
- With intimate class sizes, students receive considerable attention, and enjoy close interaction with art and design faculty and fellow art and design students.
Gelbke Fine Arts Center Gallery
Described by one visitor as “a cultural jewel set in a beautiful rural landscape,” our gallery offers opportunities for students and faculty to exhibit their work and to host a regular schedule of exhibitions by regional, national, and international artists. The 1,200 square foot gallery is designed for the display of two and three dimensional artwork, as well as sculptural installations and digital and multi-media projection.
Supporting the educational mission of the program and the college, exhibiting artists are invited to campus to speak and interact with students and the wider community. Students also have the opportunity to network and gain valuable professional experience working as gallery assistants. All Hiram students have the opportunity to exhibit their work in our annual juried student show and compete for a variety of awards.
Senior majors also present their final capstone exhibitions, with department approval, in the final semester of their senior year.
Hiram & Beyond
In addition to opportunities to gain professional experience working as art gallery or studio assistants, Hiram students can explore travel experiences either overseas or within the U.S. Art and design students can also apply for internships at area arts institutions. Students have participated in internships at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, and with other non-profit or commercial arts institutions. Hiram graduates have gone on to find success in fields such as architecture, advertising, commercial photography, graphic design, media relations, medical illustration, journalism, education, and art law.
Faculty
Christopher T Ryan, (2003) Associate Professor of Art
B.A., John Caroll University;
M.A., University of Virginia;
M.F.A., Bowling Green State University
ryanct@hiram.edu
Sheila Hart, (2020) Adjunct Instructor of Art & Design
B.A., University of Cincinnati;
M.A., Kent State University
hartsk@hiram.edu
Cynthia L Penter, (2017) Adjunct Instructor of Art & Design
B.A., M.F.A., Kent State University
penterc1@hiram.edu
David A Thomas, (1989) Adjunct Instructor of Art & Design
B.A., State University of New York;
M.F.A., Indiana State University
thomasda@hiram.edu