SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS IN DESIGN
AT KU
DESIGN
photography
_ Mariah Seifert
photography The University of Kansas (KU) offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Design with a major area of study in Photography, a program dedicated to evaluating and innovating the practice of photography and related media. We offer in-depth instruction in a range of analog and digital, still and moving, lens-based techniques within a rigorous intellectual and creative environment. Our students develop the distinct technical, conceptual and critical thinking skills, and personal vision vital to success as contemporary photographers and professional practitioners.
Community The Photography program is situated in KU’s School of Architecture and Design, a small-school community within a major research university. Facilities are housed in Chalmers Hall, a supportive and inspiring creative unit of art and design students. Most major-area studios are limited to under twenty students, fostering close relationships and individual attention from faculty and classmates. Simultaneously, students draw upon a network of prominent campus resources like the Spencer Museum of Art, the Murphy Art & Architecture Library, the Spencer Research Library, and other archives and schools. The program is home to a number of clubs and social events, including the student-run Jayhawk Photo Group (JPG), afterschool film screenings, pop-up shows, and print shares. Photo students are also invited to participate in regional and national Society for Photographic Education (SPE) conferences.
Curriculum The Photography program includes over 40 credit hours of dedicated photography classes, including digital and darkroom, lighting and moving image, alternative and experimental processes, theory, and professional practices. The rigorous studio and critique environment engages students in a sophisticated visual conversation where technique and craft are mastered in service of personal vision and voice. Photography studies are supported by a complement of foundation courses in design, additional studio electives in arts and media, and art history courses. Students also choose an outside concentration—a self-selected sequence of three classes in a myriad of content areas across campus—to help inform their practice. Study abroad and internships are critical components of student growth and professional development. Photography majors participate in international faculty-led workshops and apprentice in galleries, museums, studios, and media organizations across campus and in the greater Kansas City area. A fully rounded creative, academic, and practical curriculum aims to develop thoughtful visionaries using photography as an expressive, communicative, and investigative medium. Studies culminate in a refined portfolio of work that demonstrates a student’s conceptual vision and skill.
Facilites Students enjoy unique access to state-of-the-art facilities, including cutting-edge digital imaging labs with flatbed and virtual drum scanners and large format inkjet printers, a spacious and fully-equipped lighting studio, a traditional wet darkroom with twenty enlarging stations, a dedicated alternative processes lab, and an expansive collection of camera, video, and sound equipment available for student check-out. Additionally, the student-run Corridor Gallery offers tangible experience in developing, curating, and installing gallery exhibitions.
Student Work
_ Myles Dunigan for Experimental Processes
_ Cassoday Harder for Photo Seminar
_ Ally Gillam for Photo 1: View Camera
More student work at www.behance.net/KU-Photography
_ Abby Liudahl for Lighting Studio
Faculty Photography faculty are Guggenheim and Fulbright award-winning researchers and practitioners, with national and international exhibition records and extensive experience in fine art, media, and commercial photography. Clients, publications, and collections include: Architect Magazine, Discovery Channel, Harper’s Magazine, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, National Geographic, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, The New York Times, Time Magazine, and VICE. In addition, the program engages a renowned roster of Hallmark-endowed lecturers and visiting artists. Past speakers and guest critics have included: David Emitt Adams, David Hilliard, Justin Kimball, Natalie Krick, Deborah Luster, Rania Matar, Arno Minkkinen, Lori Nix, RaMell Ross, and Alec Soth.
Careers Photography graduates work as artists and entrepreneurs, photographers, cinematographers, editors, assistants, coordinators, archivists, technicians, designers, account executives, and art directors in a wide range of visual fields, including arts organizations, galleries and museums, advertising firms, marketing and communications, media, editorial, and publishing. You can find our alumni across the country, including at studios in Kansas City, ad agencies in Texas, Steve McCurry Studio in Philadelphia, Milk Studios, Christie’s, Gagosian Gallery, and Aperture Foundation in New York, and making content for Daily Front Row, A&E, PBS, and Discovery Channel.
_ Hayden Parks
_ Michelle Lopez
_ Owen VanWyck
Learn more Email: design@ku.edu Web: design.ku.edu/overview-photo-media Instagram: @kansas_photo Student work: www.behance.net/KU-Photography Admission requirements: design.ku.edu/admission-requirements Visit: design.ku.edu/visit
The University of Kansas Department of Design is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design.
The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race,
Department of Design
color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability,
Marvin Hall 200
status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status,
1465 Jayhawk Blvd.
gender identity, gender expression and genetic information in the
Lawrence, KS 66045
University’s programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies: Director of the Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access, IOA@ku.edu, 1246 W. Campus Road, Room 153A, Lawrence, KS, 66045, (785) 864-6414, 711 TTY.
Email: design@ku.edu Web: design.ku.edu