Wednesday, November 6, 2013, 7pm
California College of the Arts
1111 Eighth Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
MFA students at California College of the Arts in San Francisco can choose to focus on social practice instead of a traditional studio discipline. The social practice emphasis is designed to support artists whose working methods cross the boundaries between contemporary art and the public realm, for instance in long-term research, site- and community-specific strategies, and political engagement.
Inaugurated in 2005, this program at CCA was the first of its kind, and since then the field has continued to evolve and expand. Students focus on questions of aesthetics, politics, the economy, environmental ethics, embodiment, decolonization, collaboration, and activism. Because much of their work potentially involves public commissions, long-term residencies, or the creation of alternative institutions or collectives, students gain experience conceiving complex projects, articulating narratives that support them, and cultivating a network of fellow practitioners and supporting institutions.
Prospective MFA social practice students are invited to CCA’s San Francisco campus for an info session on Wednesday, November 6 at 7pm. Program chair Ted Purves will present the curriculum, requirements for admission, and what to expect as a graduate student at CCA. He will also discuss the evolution of the program and the discipline.
For more information, or to RSVP for the info night, visit the event page or contact CCA’s Graduate Admissions Office at [email protected].
Applications for all of CCA’s graduate programs become available starting November 1, 2013 at cca.edu. The priority deadline for students entering in fall 2014 is January 5, 2014.
CCA’s Social Practice Curriculum
The first year is an intensive studio/practicum course led by resident faculty members in coordination with national and international visiting artists and theorists. The second-year curriculum is designed to support an individual final project that can be carried out in the Bay Area or farther afield.
Students working in social practice also participate in the broader curriculum of CCA’s Graduate Program in Fine Arts. They take graduate-level critique and theory seminars alongside students concentrating in studio disciplines, and they can enroll in electives offered by CCA’s other graduate programs. This interdisciplinary approach opens up a variety of fields and discourses for productive inquiry.
Resident CCA Social Practice Faculty 2013–14
Amy Balkin
David Burns
Susanne Cockrell
Ranu Mukherjee
Ted Purves
More Upcoming Events
Committed Cinema: In Conversation with Paul Chan and Ted Purves
Tuesday, October 22, 7pm
Berkeley Art Museum
Lecture by Hito Steyerl
Tuesday, November 19, 7pm
CCA San Francisco campus
About California College of the Arts
Founded in 1907, California College of the Arts (CCA) offers 22 undergraduate and 12 graduate programs in the areas of fine arts, architecture, design, and writing. The college offers BFA, BA, MFA, MA, MBA, BArch, MArch, and MAAD degrees. It has campuses in San Francisco and Oakland, and currently enrolls 1,950 full-time students. CCA students are encouraged to work in an interdisciplinary manner, undertaking projects and collaborations with students in other majors and engaging with outside communities.
Noted alumni include the artists Nathan Oliveira, Jules de Balincourt, Robert Arneson, Robert Bechtle, Viola Frey, and Peter Voulkos; the Oscar-winning filmmaker Audrey Marrs; the illustrator Tomie de Paola; the conceptual artists Harrell Fletcher, David Ireland, and Dennis Oppenheim; and the designers Lucille Tenazas, Michael Vanderbyl, and Gary Hutton. For more information about CCA, visit cca.edu.