BA in Art

Units required for Major: 48
Total units required for BA: 120

Program Description

The Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art is a four-year program that gives students a foundation to pursue a broad range of careers in the arts. The B.A. program provides students with an overview of the fine art areas of ceramics, drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, interdisciplinary and new media art. The studio curriculum of the B.A. program emphasizes breadth of experience alongside technical competence and creative experimentation and prepares students for a variety of post-graduate pursuits. The curriculum also provides a foundation in visual art thinking, contemporary art history and critical theory through a global lens. The degree is designed for undergraduate students who want to combine broad and innovative studio art practice with an outstanding education in the liberal arts.

Courses, programs, and exhibitions sponsored by the Art Department serve to engage students in the visual arts within a liberal arts context and to promote appreciation of the fine arts in the general student population. Fieldwork experiences can be arranged with the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission, and other public and private art institutions and galleries in the Capital region. Opportunities to study art and art history abroad are available through the Office of International Programs and Global Engagement at Sacramento State and the California State University International Program. University credit can be obtained for a semester to a year of study at college and international centers in Britain, Europe, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Australia.

California State University, Sacramento is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD).

Minimum Grade Requirements

A minimum grade of "C" is required in all courses applied to the BA in Studio Art.

Notes:

  • Whenever possible, classes should be selected in consultation with a faculty advisor.
  • It is recommended that students complete a minimum of 75% of the lower division requirements (20 units) before enrolling in upper division courses while recognizing and following prerequisite requirements.
  • Lower division prerequisites for some courses may be waived on the advisement of an Art instructor and a portfolio review.

Program Requirements

Required Lower Division Core Courses27
Global Modern and Contemporary Art 1
Beginning Drawing 1
Intermediate Drawing 1
Beginning Painting
Beginning Printmaking
Beginning Hand-Built Ceramics
Form, Space Vision
Beginning Electronic Art
Select one of the following:
Art, Religions, and Power before 1400
Art, Empires, and Cross-Cultural Exchange, 1400-1800
History of Islamic Art
Traditional Asian Art
Modern and Contemporary Asian Art
European Visual Traditions
Art of the Americas
Required Upper Division Studio Core Courses12
Select four courses from one of the following studio course groups or, in consultation with two faculty members, select four courses from the studio course groups to build an interdisciplinary focus. 3
Drawing Group
Advanced Drawing (may be taken twice for credit)
Figure Drawing (may be taken for credit three times)
Life Studio (may be taken twice for credit)
Collage and Assemblage (may be taken twice for credit)
Painting/Drawing Studio (May be repeated as often as approved by advisor and Department chair.)
Special Problems
Painting Group
Intermediate Painting (may be taken twice for credit)
Advanced Painting (may be taken four times for credit)
Life Painting (may be taken twice for credit)
Life Studio (may be taken twice for credit)
Painting and Drawing in the Field
Collage and Assemblage (may be taken twice for credit)
Painting/Drawing Studio (May be repeated as often as approved by advisor and Department chair)
Special Problems
Printmaking Group
Collage and Assemblage (may be taken twice for credit)
Intermediate Printmaking (may be taken twice for credit)
Digital Printmaking (may be taken twice for credit)
Advanced Printmaking Studio (may be taken twice for credit)
Graphics/Printmaking Studio (may be repeated as often as approved by advisor and department chair)
Special Problems
Sculpture Group
Collage and Assemblage (may be taken twice for credit)
3D Computer Modeling (may be taken twice for credit)
Public Art Processes (may be taken twice for credit)
Public Art Studio (may be taken twice for credit)
Figure Sculpture (may be taken four times for credit)
Intermediate Sculpture (may be taken twice for credit)
Advanced Sculpture (may be taken twice for credit)
Installation and Performance Art (may be taken twice for credit)
Sculpture Studio (May be repeated as often as approved by advisor and Department chair)
Special Problems
Ceramics Group
Advanced Ceramics (may be taken four times for credit)
Hand-Built Ceramic Techniques (may be taken four times for credit)
Ceramics Studio (May be repeated as often as approved by advisor and Department chair)
Figure Sculpture (may be taken four times for credit)
Special Problems
New Media Group
3D Computer Modeling (may be taken twice for credit)
3D Computer Animation
Digital Printmaking (may be taken twice for credit)
Creative Coding
Video Art
Installation and Performance Art (may be taken twice for credit)
Alternative Photographic Processes
Intermediate Electronic Art (may be taken three times for credit)
Advanced Electronic Art (may be taken three times for credit)
Special Problems
Upper Division Art History Elective Requirement3
Select one of the following:
Origins of American Indian Art
Themes in World Art and Visual Culture
Art of the Ancient Mediterranean
Medieval Art
Renaissance Art
Baroque and Rococo Art
19th Century Art
Modern Art
US and Caribbean Art: Race and Representation
Latin American and Latino Art History
Contemporary Art
Asian Art and Mythology
Topics in Early Modern Art
Topics in Asian Art
Topics in Modern and Contemporary Art
Art of India and Southeast Asia
Art of China and Japan
Art of Korea
Modern Architecture
California Architecture and Urban History
Public Art in the Americas
Film as an Art Form
Studio Breadth Elective Requirement3
Select one upper division studio course or one of the lower division studio courses listed below:
Beginning Ceramics
Two-Dimensional Composition
Beginning Sculpture
Digital Photography I
Darkroom Photography
Special Topics in Art Studio
Advanced Drawing
BFA Junior Studio
Intermediate Painting
Advanced Painting
Figure Drawing
Life Painting
Life Studio
Painting and Drawing in the Field
Collage and Assemblage
Painting/Drawing Studio
Intermediate Printmaking
Digital Printmaking
Advanced Printmaking Studio
Graphics/Printmaking Studio
Advanced Ceramics
Hand-Built Ceramic Techniques
Ceramics Studio
Public Art Processes
Public Art Studio
Figure Sculpture
Intermediate Sculpture
Advanced Sculpture
Installation and Performance Art
Sculpture Studio
3D Computer Modeling
3D Computer Animation
Creative Coding
Video Art
Alternative Photographic Processes
Intermediate Electronic Art
Advanced Electronic Art
Special Problems
Upper Division Breadth Elective Requirement3
Select any upper division Art Studio, Art History, or Art Education course
Origins of American Indian Art
Themes in World Art and Visual Culture
Art of the Ancient Mediterranean
Medieval Art
Renaissance Art
Baroque and Rococo Art
19th Century Art
Modern Art
US and Caribbean Art: Race and Representation
Latin American and Latino Art History
Contemporary Art
Asian Art and Mythology
Topics in Early Modern Art
Topics in Asian Art
Topics in Modern and Contemporary Art
Art of India and Southeast Asia
Art of China and Japan
Art of Korea
Modern Architecture
California Architecture and Urban History
Public Art in the Americas
Directed Research in Art History
Advanced Drawing
BFA Junior Studio
Intermediate Painting
Advanced Painting
Figure Drawing
Life Painting
Life Studio
Painting and Drawing in the Field
Collage and Assemblage
Art and the Artist in the Marketplace
Painting/Drawing Studio
Theories in Art Education
Art Education for Children
Interdisciplinary Art
Overview of Secondary Art Education
Art for Exceptional Children
Directed Research in Art Education
Intermediate Printmaking
3D Computer Modeling
3D Computer Animation
Digital Printmaking
Advanced Printmaking Studio
Creative Coding
Video Art
Barrio Art for Ethnic Groups
Graphics/Printmaking Studio
Advanced Ceramics
Hand-Built Ceramic Techniques
Ceramics Studio
Special Topics in Art Studio
Alternative Photographic Processes
Public Art Processes
Public Art Studio
Figure Sculpture
Intermediate Sculpture
Advanced Sculpture
Installation and Performance Art
Sculpture Studio
Film as an Art Form
Senior Seminar in Studio Art
Senior Seminar in Art History
Senior Seminar in Art Education
Curatorial Projects
Introduction to Curatorial Studies
Fieldwork
Experimental Offerings in Art
Protest and Play: Northern California Art of the 1970s
Intermediate Electronic Art
Advanced Electronic Art
Special Problems
Total Units48

General Education Requirements1

Area A: Basic Subjects (9 Units)
A1 - Oral Communication3
A2 - Written Communication3
A3 - Critical Thinking3
Area B: Physical Universe and Its Life Forms (13 Units)
B1 - Physical Science3
B2 - Life Forms3
B3 - Lab (Note: Lab experience to be taken with one of the following: B1, B2 or B5)1
B4 - Math Concepts3
B5 - Additional Course (Any B to reach 12 units) - Take upper-division course to complete Area & upper division requirements.3
Area C: Arts and Humanities (6 Units)
C1 - Arts 20
C2 - Humanities3
C1/C2 - Area C Course 20
C1/C2 - Area C Course - Take upper-division course to complete Area & upper division requirements.3
Area D: The Individual and Society (9 Units)
Area D Course3
Area D Course3
Area D Course - Take upper-division course to complete Area & upper division requirements.3
Area E: Understanding Personal Development (3 Units)
Area E Course3
Area F: Ethnic Studies (3 Units)
Area F Course3
Total Units43

Graduation Requirements1

Graduation Requirements (required by CSU) (9 Units)
American Institutions: U.S. History3
American Institutions: U.S. Constitution & CA Government3
Writing Intensive (WI)3
Graduation Requirements (required by Sacramento State) (12 Units)
English Composition II3
Race and Ethnicity in American Society (RE)3
Foreign Language Proficiency Requirement 26