Art Studio | SUNY Potsdam

B.A. in Art Studio

The Art Studio major is designed to provide students with a broad-based education in the traditional fine art studio areas as well as to introduce relevant historical, theoretical and critical issues. Studio Concentrations are available in ceramics, digital design, painting, photography, printmaking and sculpture. These require four upper-division courses in the studio area of choice. A Studio Concentration is suggested for those students wishing to enter graduate programs or seeking a career as a professional artist.

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Outcomes

Students will be able to:

create original artwork with advanced proficiency.
execute visual communication of an idea or concept.
demonstrate critical analysis of visual elements and design principles.
demonstrate a basic knowledge of art history.

Career Outlook

Inquire today:

“Our students develop skill sets that can be applied to many different careers from design and technology to advertising, education, illustration, and business. we believe in the value of traditional practices like film lithography and oil painting while also embracing new technology and processes. our students benefit from abundant opportunities to study abroad as well as our annual Festival of the Arts, which brings distinguished artists, writers, and musicians to campus each year."
Iggy Beerbower Chair of the Art Department

Liza’s Life in Lines

Liza Paige ’12, a Potsdam native and adjunct instructor of art at SUNY Potsdam, is hard at work on her next project—an interactive optical illusion drawn entirely in outlines, with props chosen to help replicate the feeling of a college dormitory dwelling. The “2D Dorm Room” is an immersive art experience that will be revealed in the Lougheed Learning Commons in time for the 2024 LoKo Arts Festival starting May 1.

From Liberal Arts to Big Tech

Just over a decade ago, Daniel Romlein '12 graduated from SUNY Potsdam with a degree in studio art. Now he works at one of the biggest technology companies in the world—combining a myriad of liberal arts skills from his undergraduate years that became the foundation for an impressive career at Google and YouTube as a user experience (UX) designer.

Discovering Her Artistic Path

A passion for the arts took root at an early age for Marie Amell ’21, who is now wrapping up her senior year at SUNY Potsdam, and completing an animated film for her Presidential Scholar’s project—all while preparing for a career as an artist.

Landscape of Discovery

As he mastered sculpting, painting and graphic design in SUNY Potsdam’s Department of Art, Evan Blondell ’06 had no way of knowing that he was planting the seeds for a fruitful career as a landscape architect. Armed with an artistic eye, and years of training, Blondell now works in major urban centers to transform the landscape into breathtaking parks that intertwine modern design with nature.

Murals for the Masses

Amy Swartele, who has been a professor in the Department of Art for the past 20 years, just completed a vibrant mural in downtown Potsdam! After securing a grant for professional development, she has been expanding the scope of her work and learning the nuances of creating large scale murals—all with the goal of launching SUNY Potsdam's first-ever mural painting class in the fall of 2021!

A Passion for Art

Born in the Dominican Republic, Michelle Solorzano ’19 has been passionate about art from an early age, taking her first painting class when she was just 8 years old. Michelle is now a talented art student who is working toward her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Take a visual tour of a day in her life.