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Home › Prospective Students › Areas of Study › Art & Visual Culture Education

Art & Visual Culture Education

The Division of Art & Visual Culture Education (AVCE) offers undergraduate and advanced degrees: we offer a BFA degree with 2 track options (Community & Museums, and Teaching), as well as an MA degree in Art Education with 3 track options (Art & Visual Culture Education, Community & Museums, and Teaching), and a PhD degree in Art History and Education. These are integral parts of the comprehensive art programs offered by the School of Art.

The AVCE programs are intended to meet the needs of students who wish for professional understanding within the field of Art and Visual Culture Education. Students may pursue a BFA and an MA in AVCE, or pursue a concentration in community and museums, or earn their teaching certification. In the graduate programs, students develop their own focus in conjunction with an AVCE faculty member. MA students may choose to submit a theoretical Thesis or practice-based Report to complete their degree requirements.

The PhD degree is a highly tailored degree meant to build expertise to enter contemporary arenas of art and visual culture education as a researcher, teacher, and leader. PhD students must defend and submit a Dissertation to complete their degree requirements.

The mission and strength of the program and its faculty is to promote an understanding of social justice, multiculturalism and globalization issues in AVCE theory and practice.

AVCE FACULTY RECOGNIZED WITH SEVERAL AWARDS

Resources & Facilities

Students at the UA School of Art have exceptional resources available to them, besides mentorship by an international faculty with strong reputations in research and practice. The University houses several museums, including The University of Arizona Museum of Art, the Center for Creative Photography (one of the world’s leading photography archives and exhibition centers), the Arizona State Museum, and the Joseph Gross, Lionel Rombach, and Student Union art galleries. The University Library has an extensive collection of books, periodicals, and media and is ranked seventeenth among research libraries in the United States. In addition, the School and Division facilitate internships, work-study, and other learning opportunities with various organizations across the city, including the Center for Creative Photography, the University of Arizona Museum of Art, the School of Art galleries, Tucson Museum of Art, and many community organizations.

Excellent multimedia facilities are available to students, including OSCR labs located at various locations around campus. The School of Art’s Visual Resource Center (slides and digital images) contains over 200,000 slides and a large digital image bank. Take virtual tours of the campus, artworks on campus, and Tucson. The city is rich in arts and cultural resources and was recently named as 15th in the nation for its public arts.

If you would like to visit our campus and our faculty, please contact us.

Visit the Resources & Facilities page to learn more.

Clubs, Professional Opportunities & Outreach

The Art & Visual Culture Education Division engages in a number of professional activities and outreach programs:

WILDCAT ART

Wildcat Art is an eight week long Saturday art program offered every spring by the University of Arizona School of Art. Wildcat Art classes are structured to encourage students to explore ideas and issues through contemporary and traditional art media & practices. Experiences are designed specifically for students at each age/grade level from kindergarten through adolescence (K-12). Classes are taught by advanced and graduate art and visual culture education students, in collaboration with art and visual culture education faculty.

Our curriculum has included experiences in movement and contemporary dance, narrative and storytelling, calligraphic printing, cyanotype photography, post-modern architecture, clay, stop-frame animation, and other art-making processes. A recent theme explored was Identity: Your Interconnected Worlds, which included personal geographies, diversity, our desert environment and sustainability, community, collaboration, and identity. Another recent theme was Sustainable Art Practice. Each year we visit on-campus museums as part of the program and invite local artists to talk to participating children and youth.

Wildcat Art is a non-profit program that serves the Tucson community while providing hands-on teaching experience for advanced undergraduate and graduate art and visual culture education students.

Our annual exhibition is held at the University of Arizona Union Gallery for students and their families. While serving the larger Tucson community, this program also serves as a lab school for students in the program, an exciting opportunity for teachers-in-training.

Current information about the program can be found at http://wildcatart.class.arizona.edu/.

COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

The School of Art and its Division of Art and Visual Culture Education is very much a part of the heart of the greater Tucson community. Through internships, volunteer opportunities, work-study programs, learning-centered collaborations, and placement of our graduates, we have built strong relationships with community organizations and institutions within and outside of the University of Arizona. Some of the organizations with whom our students have had the opportunity to learn and work with in recent years include:

  • The University of Arizona Museum of Art
  • The Tucson Museum of Art
  • The Tucson Museum of Contemporary Art
  • The Mini Time Machine: Tucson Museum of Miniatures
  • The Center for Creative Photography
  • The University of Arizona Union Galleries
  • Conrad Wilde Gallery
  • Barbara Grygutis Sculpture LLC
  • The Gloo Factory
  • The Boys and Girls Club of Tucson
  • BICAS (Bicycle Inter-Community Action and Salvage)
  • ArtWorks
  • La Pilita Musuem
  • The Smithsonian Institution

PLACEMENTS

Graduates of Art and Visual Culture Education at the University of Arizona are well placed in the world of Art and Visual Culture Education. A few of the places our graduates are working include:

  • Many schools across Arizona, the southwest and the nation
  • University of Dayton OH
  • Antioch College, Seattle WA
  • Cochise College, Cochise Count, AZ
  • Pima Community College, Tucson AZ
  • Cloud State University, MN
  • Bowling Green State University, OH
  • The Pablove Foundation, Los Angeles CA
  • The Museum of the African Diaspora, San Francisco CA
  • Apple Computers
  • Perpich Center for Arts Education, Minneapolis MN
  • University of Advancing Technology, Phoenix AZ
  • Rosseter House, Phoenix AZ

ALUMNI

We want to keep in touch! If you are an AVCE alumnus, please be part of our network; we’d love to know where you are and what you are doing.

Please join us on Facebook
Email us at: avcealum@gmail.com
or drop us a postcard at:

The Division of Art and Visual Culture Education,
School of Art, University of Arizona
P.O. Box 210002
Tucson, AZ 85721-0007

All students, whether post-baccalaureate certification, masters or doctoral level, are invited to begin their professional lives while students at the University.

NAEA STUDENT CHAPTER

We boast a vibrant and active student chapter of the National Art Education Association. University of Arizona students have a strong record of presenting at national and regional conferences, as well as serving on the organization’s boards and issues groups. Student members not only build a strong collegiality, but also benefit from professional development, networking, and funding opportunities.

The University of Arizona NAEA Student Chapter also organizes the Emerging Conversations Symposium. The symposium offers a space for undergraduate and graduate students, scholars in related fields, and community members to participate in research presentations, conversations about them, and dialogues regarding learning and activism in Art and Visual Culture Education.

Please visit the UA Student Chapter facebook page.

The parent organization of the UA’s student chapter is the National Art Education Association, whose mission is to promote art education through professional development, service, advancement of knowledge, and leadership.

ARIZONA ART EDUCATION ASSOCIATION (AAEA)

AAEA is the state affiliate of the NAEA. AAEA holds an annual fall conference and invites your participation in the conference or in organizational meetings held throughout the year. The website provides information about the organization, news, conferences, advocacy, as well as art teaching resources: http://www.azaea.org

Arizona teachers academy

If selected, the scholarship will pay your tuition for the duration of your enrollment in participating teacher certification programs at the University of Arizona. In return, you agree to teach in any public or charter school in Arizona for as many years as you received the scholarship. You may apply for the scholarship before you are accepted into a participating program, but you will not receive the award until you are accepted into that program. https://new.coe.arizona.edu/arizona-teachers-academy

Degrees in Art & Visual Culture Education

  • Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art & Visual Culture Education, Community & Museums or Teaching Emphasis
  • Master of Arts in Art & Visual Culture Education, Art & Visual Culture Studies; Community & Museums; or Teaching Certification Emphasis
  • Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Art History and Education, Art & Visual Culture Education Track
  • Minor in Art Education

Contact an academic advisor or set up an advising appointment to learn more about School of Art programs and admissions.

Apply Now!

Ready to join our community of dedicated artists, educators and scholars? Visit our Admissions page to start your application.

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Areas of Study

  • 2D Studies
  • 3D & Extended Media
  • Art History
  • Art & Visual Culture Education
  • First Year Experience
  • Illustration, Design, and Animation
  • Photography | Video | Imaging
  • Interdisciplinary Practice (MFA Only)

Art and Visual Culture Education

Carissa Maria DiCindio Assistant Professor, Art
Assistant Professor, Applied Intercultural Arts Research - GIDP
cdicindio@email.arizona.edu Art Bldg, Room 110
520-621-7570
Profile
Amelia (Amy) Kraehe, Ph.D. Associate Vice President, Equity in the Arts
Associate Professor, Art
akraehe@email.arizona.edu Art Bldg, Room 136
520-621-7570
Profile
Ryan Shin, Ph.D. Professor, Art
shin@email.arizona.edu Art Bldg, Room 136
520-621-1253
Profile
gloria j. wilson Assistant Professor, Art
gjwilson@email.arizona.edu Art Bldg, Room 132
520-621-7570
Profile

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University of Arizona School of Art with Arizona Arts at University of Arizona School of Art.
2 weeks ago
University of Arizona School of Art

We're so proud of all of our 2022 graduates! This one holds a special spot in our hearts. ❤️

Lauren Paun is graduating with her BFA in Art & Visual Culture Education (emphasis on Community and Museums) and 3D Art. She has been a student employee in the School of Art for two years, working with our social media accounts. You might have talked to her about being featured here! Lauren has been an integral part of our team, doing a lot of heavy lifting to find the fabulous work y'all are creating and sharing it here.

"I would just like to say how grateful I am for the opportunity to have had such an incredible position within the School of Art; I loved supporting and promoting the amazing artists that attend this school and feel so lucky to be able to learn and create beside them. I have loved every minute working here for the past two years and we'll miss it terribly-- but I am so excited to continue my journey and pursue my career in museums. A special thank you to my friends, family, professors, and supervisors for the constant love and support!!"

We could fill encyclopedias with praise for Lauren but hopefully this small note of gratitude can be enough. Good luck!! 🥺😭
... See MoreSee Less

Were so proud of all of our 2022 graduates! This one holds a special spot in our hearts. ❤️

Lauren Paun is graduating with her BFA in Art & Visual Culture Education (emphasis on Community and Museums) and 3D Art. She has been a student employee in the School of Art for two years, working with our social media accounts. You might have talked to her about being featured here! Lauren has been an integral part of our team, doing a lot of heavy lifting to find the fabulous work yall are creating and sharing it here. 

I would just like to say how grateful I am for the opportunity to have had such an incredible position within the School of Art; I loved supporting and promoting the amazing artists that attend this school and feel so lucky to be able to learn and create beside them. I have loved every minute working here for the past two years and well miss it terribly-- but I am so excited to continue my journey and pursue my career in museums. A special thank you to my friends, family, professors, and supervisors for the constant love and support!!

We could fill encyclopedias with praise for Lauren but hopefully this small note of gratitude can be enough. Good luck!! 🥺😭Image attachmentImage attachment+4Image attachment
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Congrats, Lauren!! 🙌💐

Congratulations on a job well done. 👏Very proud of you and your accomplishments.

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University of Arizona School of Art with Arizona Arts at University of Arizona School of Art.
2 weeks ago
University of Arizona School of Art

Graduation celebrations continue! Let's hear it for one of our newest PhDs, Kasey Stuart! 🎓

"I'm Kasey Stuart and I am graduating with my PhD in Art History and Education. My research explores and questions preservice teachers' reliance upon social media as a resource for lesson plans. Currently, I am developing a program to help art educators critically analyze and amend lesson plans found online before they have brought into K-12 classrooms."

Thank you for doing this critical work that keeps teachers relevant to their students, while also making sure they are intentional and accurate!
... See MoreSee Less

Graduation celebrations continue! Lets hear it for one of our newest PhDs, Kasey Stuart! 🎓

Im Kasey Stuart and I am graduating with my PhD in Art History and Education. My research explores and questions preservice teachers reliance upon social media as a resource for lesson plans. Currently, I am developing a program to help art educators critically analyze and amend lesson plans found online before they have brought into K-12 classrooms.

Thank you for doing this critical work that keeps teachers relevant to their students, while also making sure they are intentional and accurate!Image attachment
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Congrats to Kasey!

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University of Arizona School of Art is at University of Arizona School of Art.
3 weeks ago
University of Arizona School of Art

We are so glad to see everyone enjoying the incredible work done by our MFA graduates in the 2022 MFA Show! Featured in the @uazmuseumofart is Venessa Ball and her intricate project titled Crosscut: Mining and domesticity, creating a life in spite of and because of the mine.

“As a mining state, Arizona is among the leading producers of copper in the United States.
These large operations required an extensive workforce, from laborers, to geologists, engineers, and company representatives. The mine would often provide housing, schoolhouses and
gathering spaces in the surrounding area, creating an entire town owned by the company itself. Like so many other small communities in America these “boomtown” economies were built on what they believed to be stable and consistent growth. Should the ore deposit run out or the company no longer have the funds to dig any deeper, what then happens to the community? What should also happen if the very commodity the mine needs to keep going just happens to be right under the ground on which they built the town? If you ask the former townspeople of Ray-Sonora, AZ… there is no more town. In 1966, their town was demolished to continue the mine operations.
Thirty years after Ray-Sonora was removed from the map, in 1996, the Magma Copper mine where my father and grandfather worked for decades—and that had provided so much stability for my family—officially closed, because it was deemed too costly to continue operations.
The only way my father could continue his career in mining was to relocate his family to another mining town. This wouldn’t be the last time this happened in my childhood. Chasing the ore was my father’s way of ensuring our family always had a stable and comfortable life.
The delicate patterns cut from family and historical photographs highlight the tension often felt by my family and so many mining families as they attempted to build a life in the shadow of a brutal and unstable industry, dependent on an unsympathetic capitalist economy.” - @venessaball
... See MoreSee Less

We are so glad to see everyone enjoying the incredible work done by our MFA graduates in the 2022 MFA Show! Featured in the @uazmuseumofart is Venessa Ball and her intricate project titled Crosscut: Mining and domesticity, creating a life in spite of and because of the mine.

“As a mining state, Arizona is among the leading producers of copper in the United States. 
These large operations required an extensive workforce, from laborers, to geologists, engineers, and company representatives. The mine would often provide housing, schoolhouses and
gathering spaces in the surrounding area, creating an entire town owned by the company itself. Like so many other small communities in America these “boomtown” economies were built on what they believed to be stable and consistent growth. Should the ore deposit run out or the company no longer have the funds to dig any deeper, what then happens to the community? What should also happen if the very commodity the mine needs to keep going just happens to be right under the ground on which they built the town? If you ask the former townspeople of Ray-Sonora, AZ… there is no more town. In 1966, their town was demolished to continue the mine operations. 
Thirty years after Ray-Sonora was removed from the map, in 1996, the Magma Copper mine where my father and grandfather worked for decades—and that had provided so much stability for my family—officially closed, because it was deemed too costly to continue operations. 
The only way my father could continue his career in mining was to relocate his family to another mining town. This wouldn’t be the last time this happened in my childhood. Chasing the ore was my father’s way of ensuring our family always had a stable and comfortable life.
The delicate patterns cut from family and historical photographs highlight the tension often felt by my family and so many mining families as they attempted to build a life in the shadow of a brutal and unstable industry, dependent on an unsympathetic capitalist economy.” - @venessaballImage attachmentImage attachment+6Image attachment
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University of Arizona School of Art is at University of Arizona School of Art.
4 weeks ago
University of Arizona School of Art

“Small. Confused. And in Awe.”

In case you haven’t had the chance to see it yet, the 2022 MFA Exhibition is featuring this incredible body of work created by Florence Von Grote! The illustrations are based on treasured memories from the places Florence has lived. The little animals are stand-in protagonists inhabiting, exploring and experiencing dream-based worlds.

“Small. Confused. And in Awe. is based on memories of the places I have lived. Events, people, and places are contorted and blended together into a half-imagined/half-remembered architecture. The nod to children’s book illustration invites the viewer to blur the boundaries between animal and human, reality and imagination.” - @flovong

Featured images are:
Traveler
Progress photo
Cartographer
Gardener
Loiterer
Collector

We urge you to check out Florence’s amazing work in the @uazmuseumofart before the show ends on May 14!
... See MoreSee Less

“Small. Confused. And in Awe.” 

In case you haven’t had the chance to see it yet, the 2022 MFA Exhibition is featuring this incredible body of work created by Florence Von Grote! The illustrations are based on treasured memories from the places Florence has lived. The little animals are stand-in protagonists inhabiting, exploring and experiencing dream-based worlds. 

“Small. Confused. And in Awe. is based on memories of the places I have lived. Events, people, and places are contorted and blended together into a half-imagined/half-remembered architecture. The nod to children’s book illustration invites the viewer to blur the boundaries between animal and human, reality and imagination.” - @flovong 

Featured images are:
Traveler
Progress photo
Cartographer
Gardener
Loiterer
Collector

We urge you to check out Florence’s amazing work in the @uazmuseumofart before the show ends on May 14!Image attachmentImage attachment+3Image attachment
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University of Arizona School of Art is at University of Arizona School of Art.
4 weeks ago
University of Arizona School of Art

Need plans for tomorrow? Join us Friday (4/29) from 5-7PM at the Graduate Gallery for The Soft Lines exhibition!

Soft Lines is a class exhibition for Art504 Soft Installation instructed by Angie Zielenski.

See you there!!👋
... See MoreSee Less

Need plans for tomorrow? Join us Friday (4/29) from 5-7PM at the Graduate Gallery for The Soft Lines exhibition! 

Soft Lines is a class exhibition for Art504 Soft Installation instructed by Angie Zielenski. 

See you there!!👋
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University of Arizona School of Art is at University of Arizona School of Art.
1 month ago
University of Arizona School of Art

Our future Art and Visual Culture educators invite you to join them for the 2022 Wildcat Art Exhibition and Reception this coming Saturday (4/30) from 10AM to 12PM in the Lionel Rombach Gallery!🎉

Wildcat Art is a non-profit, student-led program offered by the Art & Visual Culture Education program at the University of Arizona School of Art. Now in its 27th year, Wildcat Art serves the Tucson community while providing hands-on teaching experience for advanced undergraduate and graduate art education students.

The exhibition features selected works by local K-12 students created during art lessons developed and taught by Art & Visual Culture Education undergraduate students. This year’s theme explored the community of Tucson through environmental and cultural history and identity. The exhibition includes paintings, collages, embroidery, clay works, and drawings.🌵

We hope to see you there!!
... See MoreSee Less

Our future Art and Visual Culture educators invite you to join them for the 2022 Wildcat Art Exhibition and Reception this coming Saturday (4/30) from 10AM to 12PM in the Lionel Rombach Gallery!🎉

Wildcat Art is a non-profit, student-led program offered by the Art & Visual Culture Education program at the University of Arizona School of Art. Now in its 27th year, Wildcat Art serves the Tucson community while providing hands-on teaching experience for advanced undergraduate and graduate art education students.

The exhibition features selected works by local K-12 students created during art lessons developed and taught by Art & Visual Culture Education undergraduate students. This year’s theme explored the community of Tucson through environmental and cultural history and identity. The exhibition includes paintings, collages, embroidery, clay works, and drawings.🌵

We hope to see you there!!Image attachmentImage attachment
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Phone: 520.621.7570

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