Alberta College of Art and Design

Alberta College of Art + Design
Established	1926
Type	public degree-granting, college of art & design
President	Dr. Daniel Doz
Academic staff	126
Admin. staff	87
Undergraduates	Bachelor of Design and Bachelor of Fine Arts
Location	Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Campus	Urban
Headcount	1,118 as of fall 2008
Colours	Red      White
Affiliations	ACCC, CCAA, Alberta Colleges Athletics Conference, Alberta Association of Colleges & Technical Institutes, CBIE
Website	acad.ca

The Alberta College of Art & Design (ACAD) is a Canadian degree-granting, publicly-funded art and design college located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It was known as the Provincial Institute of Technology and Arts, which was part of SAIT until 1985. It was known as the Alberta College of Art from 1985-1995.

History

Founded in 1926, ACAD has been a major contributor to Canada's visual culture in the 20th century, with many of its graduates gaining significant national and international reputations as artists and designers. With an annual budget approaching $12 million, and employing over 150 staff, ACAD provides accredited degree-standard education and learning opportunities to more than 1000 students enrolled in full- and part-time studies in a wide range of Art + Design studio disciplines together with academic study in the history of Art & Design, theory and criticism and related subject areas. Approximately 3000 students are registered each year in Extended Studies courses, including 400 in children + teens programs.

ACAD has had an important presence in the educational post-secondary sector in Alberta and, in 2001, celebrated its 75th anniversary. Originally part of the Provincial Institute of Technology and Arts (now SAIT Polytechnic), the Alberta College of Art, as it was then known, separated from SAIT in 1985 to become designated by the Alberta Government as an entirely autonomous and free-standing Art + Design college within the public sector. In 1995 the College amended its name to the Alberta College of Art & Design in order to acknowledge the separateness and importance of design education at the College.

Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

In 1995, the ACAD was granted degree accreditation by the Alberta Government's Ministry of Advanced Education and Career Development. Since that time the College has been able to grant Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees to those students who successfully complete the BFA requirements of the College's four-year programs.

In 2000, the College was further granted authority by the Alberta Government's Ministry of Learning to award a Bachelor of Design degree to those students studying Design for their degree. This approval signifies an important step by the College in clarifying the distinction between Design as a discipline and those of the Fine Arts, and now provides the College with two degree programs. Most recently, in 2009, the College was also granted Foreign-Equivalency Status by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. By earning this designation, ACAD is recognized by NASAD as having met rigorous qualifications and standards related to educational quality and institutional integrity. For our students, ACAD's NASAD Foreign-Equivalency status will mean that our Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Design degrees, and their individual class components, will be recognized as equivalent in post secondary institutions throughout North America. This important designation will ensure that ACAD artists and designers will be able to pursue graduate degrees internationally, and will become a crucial factor in our own imminent graduate program offering.

Programs

With 11 unique programs including Photography, Visual Communications Design, Ceramics, Drawing, Fibre, Glass, Jewellery + Metals, Media Arts + Digital Technologies, Painting, Print Media and Sculpture, ACAD offers a rigorous studio program which produces inventive thinkers, visually acute learners and leading problem solvers for today’s creative economy.

Bachelor of Fine Arts Program (BFA) ACAD's Bachelor of Fine Arts program is one of Canada's most prestigious studio-based fine art programs offering students a unique opportunity to access an impressive range of quality facilities while developing advanced technical, conceptual and problem-solving skills. The BFA program offers students a unique opportunity to access an impressive range of quality facilities while developing advanced technical, conceptual and problem-solving skills. The BFA Program embraces traditional, contemporary and conceptual approaches to art making in a learning environment that is both focused and flexible. Consisting of nine complementary studio majors, the Program allows students to immerse themselves in a wide spectrum of creative directions and opportunities while acquiring essential skills for professional activity in their chosen field. Students are encouraged to enrich their experience by accessing other studio areas and to develop unique skill sets that reflect their personal aspirations and individual career trajectories.

Graduates from the Program have created successful and fulfilling careers in Canada and throughout the world as fine artists, scholars, cultural workers, inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs. The Bachelor of Fine Arts Program may be completed on a full or part time basis. Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree

The Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree is offered in the following majors: Ceramics, Drawing, Fibre, Glass, Jewellery + Metals, Media Arts + Digital Technologies, Painting, Print Media and Sculpture.

Bachelor of Design Program (BDes) ACAD's Photography and Visual Communications Design program prepares students for successful careers as professionals in the discipline, practice and culture of design. We have an established track record of excellence that continues to create exciting opportunities in the newest design fields.

The Photography and Visual Communications Design majors prepare students for successful careers as professionals in the discipline, practice and culture of photography and design. The outstanding track record of alumni from both majors has established a reputation of excellence that continues to create exciting opportunities in the newest design fields. Alumni from Photography and Visual Communications Design work in a broad range of careers in the entertainment, advertising, new media, publication, editorial, corporate, television, film, fashion and environmental design industries and character design for the gaming industry. Both majors are four-year, full-time Bachelor of Design degrees with courses offered throughout the academic year, including evening classes. Admission to the Photography and Visual Communications Design Majors is competitive and is based on a combination of GPA and portfolio assessment.

The Bachelor of Design (BDes) degree is offered in the following majors: Visual Communications Design (with program specialities in Advertising, Illustration, Character Design and Graphic Design) and Photography.

Statue of Robert the Bruce outside of ACAD

ACAD offers programs in the Fine Arts, Crafts, Graphic Design, and New Media.

Faculty highlights

Dr. Daniel Doz, President

Dr. Daniel Doz joins ACAD from Ryerson University in Toronto, where he has served as Dean of the Faculty of Communication & Design. During his tenure at Ryerson he was actively engaged in major university capital projects including the Ryerson Gallery and Research Center, the Student Learning Center as well as the University Master Plan. Dr. Doz brings a strong background in scholarly research and creative activity support to ACAD, having more than doubled the research contribution made by Ryerson during his tenure. Prior to his position at Ryerson University, Dr. Doz was Head of the Division of Architecture and Art at Norwich University in Northfield, Vermont.

Born in Montreal and educated in France, Dr. Doz has a wide range of academic experience that spans several disciplines including art, cinema, photography, theatre, and architecture. He holds a Doctorate in Theatrical and Cinematographic Studies from the Université de Paris VIII, and is licensed as an architect by the French government. Dr. Doz’s scholarly research and creative activities focus on themes in cinema, photography, and architecture. His photographs have been published and exhibited in the U.S. as well as in France. His research on film and design has led to presentations at institutions in North America and Europe. He strongly values interdisciplinary and global learning as a means to better prepare students for the future.

Past and present faculty have included noted artists such as: Lars Jonson Haukaness, Mary Scott, Laura Vickerson, Don Mabie (a.k.a. Chuck Stake), Alan Dunning, Derek Michael Besant, Don Simmons, Katie Ohe, Christopher Willard, Kay Burns, Dick Averns, Don Kottmann, Jane Kidd, Bill Morton and Mitch Kern.

• Fine Arts: Laurel Johannesson and Derek Besant
• Ceramics: Mariko Patterson
• Media Arts and Digital Technologies: Mary Scott and Alan Dunning
• First Year Studies: Tim Zuck

Alumni

Joni Mitchell (did not graduate)
Several members of the United Congress, a well-known Calgary Artist Collective attended ACAD in the 1980s.[1]

See also

• Education in Alberta
• List of universities and colleges in Alberta

References

2. ACAD Welcomes New Incoming President, Dr. Daniel Doz

External links

• Alberta College of Art + Design
• ACAD Student Association