Art, BA

Location(s): Main Campus

The Department of Art and Design provides a creative environment for academic excellence in the areas of drawing, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and graphic design. Students receive rigorous training and individualized attention from faculty who are committed to teaching excellence in traditional practices, expanded media, and transdisciplinary approaches to art. Our curriculum emphasizes experimentation, problem-solving, and collaboration and provides creative learning experiences for liberal arts students who wish to explore studio practices through elective courses. Students can choose to concentrate on drawing, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and graphic design.

The Bachelor of Arts (BA) is a 48-credit degree in fine arts within the liberal arts context. The BA is suited to students who wish to double major or broaden their educational experience with particular skills in studio arts.

Program Requirements

University General Education Requirements

All Binghamton University undergraduate students are required to fulfill this set of university-wide requirements to ensure that every graduate acquires the essential core of a SUNY university undergraduate education. Please refer to the General Education page for more information.

Harpur College Requirements

All students in Harpur College must fulfill additional requirements designated by Harpur College to complement and extend the general education requirements. Please refer to the Harpur College of Arts and Sciences page for more information.

Restrictions on Double Majors

ARTS BA majors may not double major with the ARTS BFA due to considerable overlap in the majors.

Major Requirements

Course Requirements

Students must fulfill the following requirements for the Art and Design major (48 credits total):

One 100-level ARTS course
Three 200-level ARTS courses, including one course in a concentration area and two courses from two other concentration areas**
One 300-level ARTS course in a concentration area
One 400-level ARTS course in concentration area
Three 300- or 400-level ARTS courses, decided in consultation with the major advisor
One 400-level Special Studio Projects course in concentration area
Two art history courses** (Graphic design students may count ARTS 215, History of Graphic Design, toward this requirement)

**Students planning to transfer from a SUNY school to Binghamton University or from Binghamton University to another SUNY school and pursue the SUNY Transfer Path in Art Studio Drawing track should take ARTS 210 (Graphic Design I), ARTS 230 (Sculpture I) and ARTS 271 (Intermediate Drawing) as their three 200-level ARTS courses. Additionally, they should take ARTH 110 (Intro to Art History I) and ARTH 111 (Intro to Art History II) as their two art history courses.

Note: A maximum of six transferred courses may count toward the BA.

Additional Information About the Program

The department requires a grade of C or better in courses counted toward the major and minor. No courses for the major and minor may be taken Pass/Fail. Advanced courses may be repeated for further development, with the approval of the chair. Certain courses can be repeated for credit and may count toward the major.

For more information on the Art BA program, please refer to the Art and Design website. To apply to the Art BA program, please visit the University Admissions website.