About
Department of Art

The Department of Art houses a multitude of dynamic paths to engage in art making. We are committed to providing students the tools with which they can create work at the highest levels of aesthetic, intellectual, and social/political inquiry. Our flexible curriculum facilitates serious engagement with painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, digital filmmaking, installation, performance, electronic art and design, art writing, critical theory, and curatorial studies within the context of an interdisciplinary approach to the study of contemporary art.

The art faculty is comprised of a group of nationally and internationally recognized artists and scholars who are engaged in their fields and dedicated to sharing their expertise in helping students develop informed approaches to media, materials, and techniques while fostering individual approaches in the students’ overall art practice. We believe that a vital part of artistic development comes from an accessible faculty and regular contact with active practitioners. To that end, alongside a broad and diverse curriculum, the department also invites visiting artists, curators, and critics to our campus to discuss their work and to get to know our students.

Our department attracts gifted and motivated students who thrive in an environment that encourages autonomy and rigor. They are drawn not only to the outstanding creative faculty, the university's resources, and its location in one of the world's leading art centers, but also to a program that encourages their long-term development as artists. The result is a distinguished list of graduates who have made and continue to make significant contributions across the field of art, and who participate in a lasting community of artists from our program and beyond. 

 

University Art Galleries
The University Art Galleries (UAG) serve as a laboratory that presents the creative research of art students and faculty to the public.
Electronic Art & Design
Electronic Art + Design (EAD) embraces a shared emphasis on hybrid methods that integrate computation and custom programming with other media, and that are critically engaged with key cultural issues, especially the space occupied by ideas of technology.
Catalyst Gallery
Catalyst Gallery is an undergraduate art organization and gallery space devoted to curating exhibitions, community outreach and locating students within the larger art context.
UCI Institute and Museum of California Art
The UCI Jack and Shanaz Langson Institute and Museum of California Art (Langson IMCA) serves as an epicenter for California art and artists and engage diverse publics through innovative exhibitions and programs.