Close-up of posters at the Visual Arts Center.

Major, Minor

Art Apply For Free

Small class sizes and one-on-one teaching allows dedicated instructors to work alongside their students to maximize their education. There is a focus on strong foundation courses that are essential to a traditional studio art education as well as access to digital art making methods. The Blackburn Art Department is fully committed to helping students achieve their goals, earn their degree, and embark on a career in the Fine Arts.

The Visual Arts Center houses a state-of-the-art graphics lab as well as a fully functional photography studio and darkroom.  Eighteen iMacs support the entire Adobe Creative Cloud as well as several Autodesk applications and Blender. Printers include wide format, hi-res photo and 3D capabilities.  

Art Major

At Blackburn, earning  a B.A. in Art means fully understanding traditional methods and mediums, gaining respect for the historical lineage of art, articulating ideas and criticisms clearly, and creating quality work within a contemporary context. On-campus gallery, that would rival many fine arts venues, allows students to showcase and discuss their work in a professional setting.

Graphic Design Major/Minor

Blackburn offers 3 levels of graphic design courses as well as options for hands on publication design.   All Graphic Design majors produce no less than 20 outstanding pieces for their professional portfolio, as well as hold two on-campus exhibitions in junior and senior seminar. Graphic Design majors are capable of creating and organizing highly complex digital creations for use in print, web, social media, and digital delivery systems. Students study a wide variety of design challenges, addressing subjects that include visual literacy, typography, layout, and digital illustration. The graphic art major prepares students to immediately join the profession.

Studio Art Minor

Studio Art students to follow their passions while receiving direct instruction and close attention from dedicated artists and designers who very much want to see them succeed. Students will take courses such as drawing, painting, ceramics, production and publication, non-Western Art History, and Women in Art History. Blackburn has a large amount of space and equipment that is comparable to departments in much bigger universities.  All of the professors in the department stay current within their own discipline and exhibit their work on both a national and international level. The department is always growing and keeping an eye on the changes in the art and design world. The goal of everyone teaching in the department is to allow students to develop and hone their skills while experimenting with and transforming ideas with new technologies.

Connected Majors/Minors

  • Art
  • Graphic Design
  • Art History
  • Studio Art

Work Program Connections

Our Work Program provides students an opportunity to:

  • Grow and gain experience in the workforce
  • Work in positions that support their area of academic interest
  • Be a contributing member of the community
Work Program