University of the Arts (Philadelphia)
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| Established | 1985, 1877, 1870 |
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| Faculty | 114 full time, 420 part time |
| Location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | http://www.uarts.edu |
The University of the Arts (UArts) is the nation’s first and only university dedicated to the visual, performing and communication arts. Its 2,300 students are enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs on its campus in the heart of Center City Philadelphia. Its history as a leader in educating creative individuals spans more than 130 years. Composed of the College of Art and Design, the College of Performing Arts and the College of Media and Communication, UArts offers a unique environment where students from many disciplines can interact and grow in a vibrant community of creativity.
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[edit] History
The University has evolved from two century-old institutions: the Philadelphia College of Art (PCA) and the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts (PCPA).
The PCA was founded as the Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art in 1876. In 1964 it became independent as the Philadelphia College of Art.
The PCPA, which was founded as the Philadelphia Musical Academy in 1870 became an independent college of music in 1950. In 1976, PCPA became the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts and acquired the former Philadelphia Dance Academy. After establishing a School of Theater in 1983, the institution became the first performing arts college in Pennsylvania to offer a comprehensive range of majors in music, dance and theater.
In 1985, PCA and PCPA joined to become the Philadelphia College of the Arts. With its inauguration in 1987, The University of the Arts became the largest comprehensive educational institution of its kind in the nation, preparing students for professional careers in art and design and performing arts. In 1997 the University added the College of Media and Communication, offering degrees in communication, writing for film and television, and multimedia.
| Year | History |
|---|---|
| 1870 | Philadelphia Musical Academy founded |
| 1876 | Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Art (PaMSIA) founded |
| 1877 | Philadelphia Conservatory of Music founded |
| 1893 | PaMSIA moves into Broad and Pine streets building designed by John Haviland in 1824 |
| 1938 | PaMSIA becomes the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art (PhMSIA) and begins to grant academic degrees |
| 1918 | The Shubert Theater opens on South Broad |
| 1947 | Philadelphia Dance Academy founded |
| 1949 | PhMSIA becomes the Philadelphia Museum School of Art |
| 1950 | Philadelphia Musical Academy begins to grant Bachelor of Music degrees |
| 1959 | Philadelphia Museum School of Art receives accreditation and becomes the Philadelphia Museum College of Art |
| 1962 | Philadelphia Musical Academy merges with Philadelphia Conservatory of Music and continues under the name of the Philadelphia Musical Academy |
| 1964 | Philadelphia Museum College of Art separates from the Museum to become the Philadelphia College of Art (PCA) |
| 1972 | Philadelphia Musical Academy acquires Broad Street’s Shubert Theater |
| 1976 | Philadelphia Musical Academy becomes the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts (PCPA) |
| 1977 | Philadelphia Dance Academy joins PCPA and becomes the School of Dance |
| 1983 | PCPA introduces School of Theater Arts |
| 1985 | PCA and PCPA join to become the Philadelphia Colleges of the Arts |
| 1987 | Philadelphia Colleges of the Arts is granted university status by the Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Thomas Gilhool and becomes The University of the Arts; Peter Solmssen named first president |
| 1991 | The Shubert Theater renamed Merriam Theater |
| 1994 | The University opens the Philadelphia Arts Bank Theater |
| 1996 | Haviland Hall is renamed Dorrance Hamilton Hall |
| 1996 | The College of Media and Communication is founded |
| 1998 | The University purchases the 211 South Broad Street Building and dedicates it to Ambassador Daniel J. Terra |
| 2000 | Miguel Angel Corzo inaugurated as University’s second president |
| 2005 | The University of the Arts Center for the Creative Economy established |
[edit] Academic divisions
College of Art and Design
Majors: Animation, Crafts, Film/Animation, Film/Digital Video, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Painting/Drawing. Photography, Printmaking/Book Arts and Sculpture Minors: Animation, Book Arts, Figurative Illustration, Film/Digital Video, Narrative Video, Photography, Studio Photography and Typography Concentrations: Digital Fine Arts, Art Education Pre-Certification and Art Therapy
College of Media and Communication
Majors: Communication, Multimedia and Writing for Film & Television
Minors: Documentary Video, E-Music, E-Publishing, Game Design, Information Architecture, Multimedia, Narrative Video, Screenwriting, Strategic Advertising, Web Design, Web Drama
College of Performing Arts
Majors: Dance, Music and Theater Arts
Minors: Music Education and E-Music
Division of Liberal Arts
In addition to the major requirements for earning a bachelor's degree at UArts, all undergraduate students are required to complete approximately one-third of their studies in the liberal arts.
Graduate Studies
Majors: Art Education/Teaching, Book Arts/Printmaking, Ceramics, Crafts Post-Baccalaureate, Industrial Design, Jazz Studies, Museum Studies, Music Education, Painting and Sculpture
Continuing Studies
Pre-College Studies
[edit] Faciltities
The University's campus is located in Center City Philadelphia's Avenue of the Arts cultural district and is comprised of 10 buildings with more than 850,000 square feet. UArts campus is composed of dynamic, state-of-the-art facilities that serve as a living laboratory for the study of the visual, performing and media and communication arts. The wealth of museums, galleries, concert halls, theaters, fairs and festivals provides opportunities for extending interests into other arts and activities.
UArts offers four residence halls with studio and apartment style accommodations, all furnished with bathrooms and kitchen facilities in addition to on-site security and laundry facilities. Resident students can receive help from Resident Assistants trained in peer advising, crisis intervention and assisting students in their adjustment to college life in the city. UArts features two eateries, the Cantina and the Cantina Express.
The Albert M. Greenfield Library houses 152,067 bound volumes, 6,936 CDs, 14,901 periodicals, 16,820 scores and 1965 videos and DVDs; The Music Library collection holds approximately 20,000 scores, 15,000 books, 10,000 LP discs, and 5,000 CDs; Visual resources collection includes 175,000 slides. Other learning resources include:
University Archives
Picture File
Book Arts and Textile Collections
Drawing Resource Center
UArts has 10 galleries, including which feature rotating displays in a variety of media by emerging artists, students, alumni, faculty and staff, as well as nationally and internationally recognized artists. Recent exhibitions include: Vito Acconci, Rosalyn Drexler, April Gornik, Alex Grey, James Hyde, Jon Kessler, Donald Lipski, Robert Motherwell, Stuart Netsky, Irving Penn, Jack Pierson, Anne and Patrick Poirer, Yvonne Rainer and Andy Warhol.
UArts theaters include: Merriam Theater (seats 1,840), Levitt Auditorium (seats 850), Black Box Theater (seating varies) and the Arts Bank (seats 239).
[edit] Notable Alumni
Irene Bedard: Actress who played the model and voice of Disney's animated movie Pocahontas; has appeared in over 30 television and movie productions
Janice and Stanley Berenstain: Authors and illustrators of the children’s books The Berenstain Bears
Ken Carbone and Leslie Smolan: Partners in their New York City strategic graphic design firm whose clients have included include the Louvre, Tiffany, Christie’s
Stanley Clarke: Emmy and Grammy-winning jazz bassist
Heather Donahue: Star of the groundbreaking independent film The Blair Witch Project
David Ewing: Emmy and HUGO award winner
Wharton Eschrick: Dean of American Craftsmen
Judith Jamison: Dancer, choreographer; artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; studied with Marion Cuyjet, discovered by Agnes de Mille and made her New York debut with American Ballet Theatre in 1964; Kennedy Center Honors recipient.
Rick Kidney: Produced Hollywood blockbusters Forrest Gump and Goodfellas.
Noel Mayo: Industrial design pioneer, founder and president of Noel Mayo Associates, whose clients include NASA, IBM, the U.S. departments of Commerce and Agriculture, Black and Decker, the Museum of American Jewish History and the Philadelphia International Airport.
Irving Penn: Leading American celebrity portraitist and fashion photographer; photographed over 100 covers of Vogue magazine; portraits include Martha Graham, Marcel Duchamp and Georgia O'Keeffe.
Florence Quivar: International mezzo soprano opera singer with New York’s Metropolitan Opera; has won critical acclaim for her performances in Dialogues of the Carmelites, Oedipus Rex, L’italiana in Algeri and Le prophète and as Serena in the Met’s historic first production of Porgy and Bess.
Arnold Roth: Cartoonist who worked for Time, The New Yorker, Sports Illustrated and Playboy.
LaChanze: Broadway actress who won a Tony Award for her lead role in Oprah Winfrey’s production of A Color Purple.
[edit] External links
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| Northeast U.S. Art Colleges |
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| AIB • Cooper Union • FIT • MECA • MICA • MassArt • Parsons • Pratt • SMFA • SVA • RISD • UArts |
