Courses

Required

• Graduate Seminar

  Schedule: Year 1 Fall and Spring; Year 2 Fall
  Credits: 4

  Description

  This seminar is dedicated to the discussion and critique of texts and art practices to be explored in relation to the student’s work. Students will be introduced to a diverse range of theoretical and philosophical positions and approaches and key thinkers from a global perspective. Students will be required to articulate their ideas and processes within their practices through visual presentations and ongoing peer-to-peer dialog while developing a robust artistic research agenda and methodology and written research papers. The seminars will focus on Contemporary Theory, Art Eco-Systems, and Research Methodologies.

• Individual Studio Critique and Review

  Schedule: Year 1 Fall and Spring; Year 2 Fall
  Credits: 4

  Description

  These course focuses on the development of the MFA student’s individual art practice, establishing a general framework for the direction of their work and research, and developing a sustained and imaginative experimental approach. Students will meet regularly with their faculty advisor, providing a platform to present work, discuss the aesthetic, technical, and expressive concepts underlying it, and receive extensive, rigorous feedback. Students will also have opportunities for studio visits with external visitors, including artists, curators, and art historians, and periodically participate in group critiques with their MFA peers. Students will develop the ability to analyze, interpret, and critically reflect upon their work and others', in order to continually develop ideas and recognize opportunities during the work process.

• Mid-Program Review

  Schedule: Year 2 Spring
  Credits: 0

  Description

  The review consists of a presentation of the student’s work from that semester, a verbal and written presentation by the student, and a question-and-answer period led by their Critique Committee. The mid-program review is considered a candidacy review, and thus, the student must pass this review to move into the second and final year of study.

• Writing for Artists

  Schedule: Year 2 Fall
  Credits: 4

  Description

  In this workshop-based course, students are introduced to and practice the skills of argumentation, research, and clarity of expression. In the first half of the class, students learn the craft of artistic writing, from the ground up — constructing one analytic piece in increments. The second part of the semester is devoted to putting these skills into professional practice, as students write artist statements, reviews of current work, personal essays, creative pieces, and more. Students read top critics in their fields as well as writers from the canon particularly relevant to their own work.

   

• Special Topics in Art and Media

  Schedule: Year 1 Spring, Year 2 Fall
  Credits: 4

  Description

  Special Topics courses will cover a variety of historical, emerging, and interdisciplinary approaches to art and media practices. These courses follow a “praxis” model that combines theory and practice with an integrated format of reading, writing, and making.

• MFA Thesis Project and Exhibition

  Schedule: Year 2 Spring
  Credits: 8

  Description

  During the spring semester of their second year, MFA students will mount a public presentation of artworks, demonstrating the achievements in the student’s area of specialization in the form of a curated the exhibition. Students will produce a written research paper (5,000-8,000 words). The research paper will include a discussion of the methods, media, and format used and research both theoretical and material that has informed their art practice. While the final semester is devoted to solving the installation challenges of a student’s work, the entirety of the degree builds up to this moment when a student has made a sufficient body of work to show as a thesis project, or has conducted enough experiments that will lead to a final project. The Thesis Project and Exhibition is accompanied by a 90-minute oral defense in the gallery before a faculty panel.

   

• MFA Thesis Defense

  Schedule: Year 2 Spring;
  Credits: 0

  Description

  The MFA Thesis experience will culminate with a 90-minute oral defense in the gallery before a faculty panel.

   

Electives

Studio Electives can be chosen from any of the following courses depending on specialization and interest.

• Studio Electives and Special Topics
  • An Explorative Grammar for Sculpture
  • Text-Image / Image-Text
  • Photography — Alternative Processes
  • Repetition, Degeneration and Imprint
  • Teaching, Learning and Pedagogy for the Arts
  • Textility and the Textile Imaginary
  • Art Practice in the Anthropocene
  • Archives, Methods, Screens
  • Documentary Forms in Visual Art, Video, and Short Film
  • The Observer
  • Frantz Fanon and Edouard Glissant: On Art and Decolonization
  • Social Public Works
• J-Term Elective (optional)

  Credits: 4 per term

  Students have the option (through advisement) to complete one of their five elective courses during NYU’s J-Terms, either at NYUAD or at one of NYU’s study away sites. The January Term offers a distinctive learning experience, different from what can be offered during the fall and spring semesters. Students take one course full-time for approximately three weeks. The courses are designed as immersive experiences: they intensify the student’s focus; reach beyond the classroom to incorporate experiential learning; and are often site-specific, connecting students to the place where they study. Taking a single course during January Term gives students more time for concentrated reflection on a dedicated topic than is the case during the semester when students must split their time between several courses. The intensity of the shared experience also forges an unusually strong bond between the students and their professor. Although January Term is short, it has significant impact because of its immersive character and integration of theoretical and experiential learning.

  January Term courses are taught by renowned visiting scholars, writers, artists, journalists, and policy analysts from institutions around the world, as well as distinguished professors from NYU Abu Dhabi and NYU New York. January Term also features pre-professional courses taught by faculty from NYU's professional schools.

  Students are encouraged to study at NYU’s sites with an art focus (NYU New York, NYU Abu Dhabi, and NYU Berlin) though they may elect to complete coursework at NYU’s other academic sites based on their research interests.