“ We are a unique constellation of artistic disciplines–one of only a few in the entire country devoted to three aspects of artistic practice: 1) the visual arts ranging from sculpture, painting, photography, to graphic and industrial design, to art education to art history; 2) the performing arts encompassing modern dance, classical and contemporary theatre production, and music–from our newly inaugurated program in jazz studies, to opera, to composition and to individual instrumental studies; 3) the environmental design arts-from architecture, to urban planning, to landscape architecture in which entire landscapes, neighborhoods, buildings, and cities are designed with an immediate and long-term human impact.

Our curricula are rigorous and allow students opportunity for intense study in their chosen fields. At the same time, we are part of a Research One institution, where students can pursue science, technology and humanities at a very high level. We offer a constellation of world class facilities, such as the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, and faculty who are outstanding teachers and continue to practice as performers, artists and designers in the world beyond this campus.

Supporting these artistic enterprises are five major units in our College–a performing arts center, a museum, a cultural building, a gallery in the arts district of Chicago, and a community development project in southern Illinois. Students who choose to study the arts here are engaged in not only developing specific artistic skills, but also in constantly assessing the impact of their work in relation to communities and neighborhoods and the world at large. Our students receive a world class education that combines classical training with the best of contemporary professional practice. Everything we do is a creative act.

We constantly strive to produce the finest intellectual inquiry and artistic work with a superb community of faculty, staff, students and guest artists/scholars. Join us for a class-a major-a performance-an exhibition-a research project.” -Robert B. Graves, Dean