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Maryland Institute College of Art

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Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA)
MICA Logo
TypePrivate
Established1826
Endowment$51 million
PresidentFred Lazarus IV
Academic staff
291
Students1872
Undergraduates1644
Postgraduates228
Location
Baltimore, Maryland
,
U.S.
CampusUrban
Websitehttp://www.mica.edu

Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is an art college in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. It was founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts[1], making it the oldest fully accredited, degree-granting art college in the United States.[2] In 2008, MICA's Master of Fine Arts program was tied for #4 in the nation among fine arts master programs by U.S. News and World Report.[3] MICA is also a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design (AICAD), a consortium of thirty-six leading art schools in the United States, as well as the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). The school is located in the Bolton Hill neighborhood, along Mount Royal Ave. The main campus is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from downtown Baltimore.

MICA hosts pre-college, post-baccalaureate, continuing studies, Masters of Fine Arts, and Bachelors of Fine Arts programs, as well as weekend young peoples' studio art classes.

Buildings and Histories

MICA's campus is a milieu of diverse buildings from different periods of Baltimore's development. Two buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the Renaissance Revival marble Main Building, constructed in 1908; and the Mount Royal Station, a former B&O passenger train station erected in 1896 and renovated to academic use in 1966.

Main Building

Main Building

Construction began on a new Maryland Institute campus in Bolton Hill when its downtown Baltimore building was destroyed in the Great Baltimore Fire of February 7 1904, and construction was completed four years later in 1908. The State of Maryland, the Carnegie Foundation, and a number of local benefactors contributed funds to build the Main Building. Michael Jenkins donated the land on which the Main Building was built, stipulating that the new building not clash with the nearby Gothic Revival Corpus Christi Church[4]. The Main Building was the first building designed by New York-based architects Pell & Corbett, who were awarded the contract when they won a $500 design contest sponsored by the New York Association of Independent Architects. Otto Fuchs designed the interior studio plans. The architecture was designed to evoke a feeling of the Grand Canal of Venice, circa 1400.

Important architectural features include the impressive main entrance, with large marble staircase, stained-glass skylight and the names of Renaissance masters surrounding the entrance to the second floor. The exterior of the northeast façade features four stone memorial medallions: one for the city, one for the state, and two others honoring Institute benefactors Andrew Carnegie and Michael Jenkins [5]. Throughout the Main Building there are also plaster replicas of Greek and Roman statues that students are often required to make studies of their Foundation year.

In 1908, the New York Association of Independent Architects awarded the building a gold key, the highest award in architecture at the time. The Main Building was added to the National Register of Historic Sites in the 1970s.

From 1990 through 1992, the building underwent a major, $5.1 million renovation under the direction of architects Grieves, Worrell, Wright & O’Hatnick, Inc. The renovation upgraded the building’s facilities and created additional academic and office space while retaining much of the original design and décor. The Main Building houses painting and drawing studios, undergraduate photography department, foundation department, two departmental galleries, undergraduate admissions and the President's Office.

Mount Royal Station

See also: Mount Royal Station
Mount Royal Station

Built in 1896, the Mount Royal Station (now known as The Station Building) was the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's showcase passenger station until it ceased its operations at the Station in 1961. MICA purchased the building in 1964 and renovated the building under the direction of architect Richard Donkervoet, who took pains to retain as much of the building’s exterior appearance as possible, and also preserved much of the interior character, including vaulted ceilings, columns, and mosaic floor. Architectural Forum recognized the Mount Royal Station renovation in 1966 for "sensitivity by later architects to the initial conception by the original," and Margaret Mead, in a lecture given at the Station, commented that the renovation "is perhaps the most magnificent example in the Western World of something being made into something else".

In 1973, the Station was added to the register of National Historic Landmarks, granting it full protection as an historic site. The Mount Royal Station’s train shed, one of the country’s last remaining such structures, was renovated in 1985 due to advanced deterioration of the shed’s materials. In 1992, the AIA's Baltimore chapter honored the Maryland Institute and architects Cochran, Stevenson & Donkervoet with a 25 Year Award for Excellence in Design of Enduring Significance for their adaptive reuse of the Mount Royal Station.

Between 2005-2007, MICA accomplished a two-phased, $6.3 million renovation of the building by the architectural firm Grieves, Worrall, Wright & O’Hatnick, Inc. The first phase, renovation of the interior, was completed in Fall 2005: interior finishes, such as the mosaic tile flooring, marble columns, tin ceilings, wood wainscot, and trim were cleaned and restored. Classroom space was also increased, as well as the quality and quantity of studio space. The second phase, restoration of the building's exterior and train shed, was completed in Spring 2007: stonework and wood were cleaned, repaired, and repainted, the slate canopy restored, and the drainage system fixed; clerestory and structural timbers in the train shed were replaced and the steel roof framing was reinforced. In keeping with the pedestrian landscaping and streetscape that MICA has created along Mount Royal Avenue, a new plaza with benches, bike racks, shrubs, and ornamental grasses and ground cover was added.

The Mount Royal Station currently houses the undergraduate departments of fiber and interdisciplinary sculpture, 3-D classrooms, and the Rinehart School of Sculpture, as well as senior studios. The railroad tracks underneath the train shed remain active as CSX Transportation's freight mainline to New York City.

Bunting Center

The acquisition and renovation of Bunting Center, which opened in 1998, increased MICA’s academic space by 20 percent. The building houses Liberal Arts departments (art history and language, literature, and culture), as well as the Pinkard Gallery and Student Space Gallery. Bunting Center also houses one of the four places to eat on campus, Java Corner. The first and second floors house the Decker Library, one of the finest art college libraries, which houses the largest collection of art books of any institution in a climate-controlled room called "The Cage". Students are allowed to look at any book in the collection, but must wear white gloves and work on a clean table. The remainder of the library is divided into the Quarto, which hold oversized books, and the Stacks, which hold normal sized books. Linked to the Decker Library is the Media Resources Collection ("MRC"), with more than 120,000 slides, as well as videos and audiotapes. Offices in the Bunting Center include Human Resources, In 2007, architect Steve Ziger headed the building’s $5.5 million renovation, seeking to create “a real sense of neighborhood” for the college. The new building was named for trustee George Bunting, who was instrumental in the development of the Fox Building among other projects. The Bunting Center received the Grand Design Award and Honor Award from AIABaltimore in 1998.

Firehouse

MICA purchased an historic Firehouse along North Avenue in 2001 and renovated the building in 2003 to house the College’s operations and facilities management department. The building has 7,224 square feet (671.1 m2) of space. As part of the redevelopment agreement, MICA maintained the station’s front façade in accordance with Commission for Historical and Architectural Preservation standards. Renovation architect for the project was Cho Benn Holback + Associates, Inc. Kajima Construction Services was the contractor. The Firehouse won an award from the Baltimore Heritage Foundation for preservation in 2004.

Fox Building

The Fox Building

Built in 1915 as the Cannon Shoe Factory, the Fox Building was purchased in 1976. After two years of planning by architects Ayers/Saint/Gross, work began in 1979 and the newly renovated building opened in 1980. This renovation retained most of the warehouse character of the building, including exposed ductwork and framing and the original exterior—providing more than 60,000 square feet (5,600 m2) of usable space. The renovations cost $2.5 million, and the building was named for architect Charles J. Fox, a 1965 graduate of MICA whose family contributed over $1.5 million of the renovation cost. After the conversion, the Mount Royal Improvement Association granted MICA an Award of Merit for its contribution to the community.

In 2005, a second renovation of the Fox Building added Decker Gallery and Café Doris. The building also houses Meyerhoff Gallery, Center for Art Education, Division of Continuing Studies, as well as Ceramics, Illustration, Environmental Design, GFA, Drawing and Painting departments, the woodshop, and the nature library.

Bank Building (Studio Center)

MICA purchased the former Jos. A. Bank sewing plant on North Avenue in August 2000. The all brick building dates back to the early 1900s and was home to Morgan Millwork for most of the century until Jos. A. Bank Clothiers bought it for a sewing plant. The 120,000-square-foot (11,000 m2) building houses the post-baccalaureate certificate program, Hoffberger School of Painting, The Mount Royal School of Art, the graduate photography and digital imaging program, and upper-level student studios. Although the official name is The Studio Center, many students know it as The Bank Building.

Brown Center

The Brown Center

The first newly constructed academic building in nearly a hundred years, Brown Center was dedicated on October 17, 2003 and became fully operational in January 2004. Bolstered by a $6 million gift from Eddie and Sylvia Brown, the largest gift ever received by the Institute, the Brown Center houses MICA’s digital art and design programs, as well as the 525-seat Falvey Hall, which, in extension to hosting school-related functions, has also played host to events like the Maryland Film Festival. The building was designed by architect Charles Brickbauer and Ziger/Snead LLP.

In addition to Falvey Hall, the Brown Center houses the Video, Interactive Design, Animation, and BFA and MFA Graphic Design departments. Most of the computer labs in the Brown Center are Macintosh computers, though there are two labs with PC computers for 3D animation. It also has an art gallery, a secondary hall for lectures ("Brown 320"), and a "Black-Box" area for Interactive Media installations.

The 61,410-square-foot (5,705 m2), five-story contemporary structure has garnered wide acclaim as an architectural landmark. Awards have included the AIABaltimore 2004 Grand Design Award, AIA Maryland 2004 Honor Award of Excellence, regional award of merit in 2004 in the International Illumination Design Award competition, and several awards for excellence in construction. In addition, MICA President Fred Lazarus traveled to Italy in June 2006 to receive the Dedalo Minosse International Prize for Brown Center. Brown Center was the only American project among the finalists.

Additional Facilities

Additional buildings making up MICA's campus include the Maryland Institute College of Art shop (known simply as "The MICA Store") at 1200 Mount Royal Avenue, where most of the students get supplies for their projects and books for their classes, and where visitors can visit to get official MICA merchandise.

The Art Tech Center at 1206-1208 Mount Royal Avenue has facilities for large-format printing (up to 44" x ∞"), laser-cutting and 3D printing. Additionally, it has graduate studios and a faculty and staff computer lab.

The Dolphin Building at 100 Dolphin Street houses MICA's Printmaking department and Book Arts and Printmaking concentrations, as well as the independent Dolphin Press. It has three large floors, with lithography and etching studios on the first floor, screenprinting, and letterpress studios with a solar plate and polymer developing facilities on the second floor, and a lecture/computer lab and senior studios on the third floor.

Other facilities include the Jewelry Center at Meadow Mill, Kramer House, Main Building Annex (administrative offices and alumni relations), The Center for Design Practice at 1210 Mount Royal Ave and the Joseph Meyerhoff Center for Career Development in the Gateway (see below).

Student housing

The Commons

MICA's first official student housing facility, The Commons is a three-building, four-story student apartment complex. Among the first student residences to be constructed on the apartment-living model, it houses approximately 350 students. When MICA proposed purchasing a lot on McMechen Street that had been vacant for more than 30 years to build the Commons, the Bolton Hill neighborhood not only approved the purchase, but also gave $50,000 in donations. Built in 1991, inside the Commons is MICA's largest green space and above the Gatehouse is an area for Student Organization meetings.

In 2000, American School and University included The Commons in its Architectural Portfolio awards, citing Mahan Rykiel Associates for their Landscape Architecture work on the project. The Maryland/Potomac Chapters of the American Society of Landscape Architects also gave the project an award.

Meyerhoff House

Meyerhoff House opened in August 2002 as a cutting-edge residence for upper-level students. The building also includes the College’s main dining facility, student life program, and recreational amenities. Originally built in to house the Hospital for the Women of Maryland, the building had been a nursing home until it closed in the 1990s. The building then lay vacant for seven years until the bank foreclosed, whereupon MICA purchased it in January 2001.

The Gateway

The Gateway

Construction began on The Gateway in October 2006. Located at the intersection of Mount Royal and North avenues alongside the Jones Falls Expressway (I-83), it is part of the revitalization of Baltimore’s Bolton Hill area.

The Gateway includes apartments to accommodate 217 student residents, a translucent studio tower, a multi-use performance space, the College’s largest student exhibition gallery, and a new home for the Joseph Meyerhoff Center for Career Development. As of late August, 2008, upper-level students have moved into the Gateway's residence areas.

Students and alumni information

Approximately 1,644 undergraduate students and 228 graduate students hail from 48 states and 53 foreign countries. The student body is 66% female, 34% male, 22% minorities and international students, and 97% traditional college-age. Sixty-five percent of MICA students receive some form of financial aid. Among the most selective art colleges in the United States, MICA has consistently enrolled more Presidential Scholars in the Visual Arts than any other college or university in the nation, and in the last several years has enrolled approximately 2/3 of those who received Scholastic Arts' Gold Portfolio award. In 11 of the last 14 years, a MICA student has won the National Student Art Achievement Award, which is given by the National Art Education Association for outstanding studio achievement in candidates for teaching.

MICA's approximately 10,000 alumni living in 58 countries have won international awards, attended graduate programs, exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the world, and are represented in public and private collections across the globe. 86% of B.F.A. graduates who take jobs immediately after graduation are working in art related fields; 23% of MICA's B.F.A. graduates pursue graduate study immediately after graduation.

In the past eight years, 14 MICA graduates have received Fulbright awards for study abroad and five students have earned the Jacob Javits Fellowship for graduate study. Since 2003, two alumni have received the national Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Graduate Scholarship and three Jack Kent Cooke Foundation scholars have also chosen to study at MICA. Additionally, four alumni have been awarded Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grants.

Curriculum and degrees

Graduate Programs (MFA)

Main article: Maryland Institute College of Art MFA Programs
  • Photography and Electronic Media
  • Graphic Design
  • Sculpture (Rienhart School of Sculpture)
  • General Arts (Mount Royal School of Art)
  • Painting (Hoffberger School of Painting)

Graduate Programs (MA)

  • Community Arts
  • Teaching (MAT)

Undergraduate Programs (BFA)

Majors

  • Fiber
  • Graphic Design
  • Printmaking
  • Illustration
  • Drawing
  • General Fine Arts (GFA)
  • Painting
  • Interdisciplinary Sculpture
  • Experimental Animation (2D + 3D)
  • Environmental Design
  • Interactive Media
  • Video and Film Arts
  • Ceramics
  • Photography
  • Art History

Undergraduate students may also add a studio concentration and a liberal arts minor, if they so elect:

Studio Concentrations

  • Animation
  • Book Arts
  • Environmental Design
  • Experimental Fashion
  • Graphic Design
  • Illustration
  • Interactive Media
  • Photography
  • Printmaking
  • Video

Liberal Arts Minors

  • Art History
  • Creative Writing
  • Critical Theory
  • Culture & Politics
  • Gender Studies
  • Literary Studies
  • Curatorial Studies


5-Year, Dual-Degree Program

  • BFA/MAT in Teaching

Notable alumni

See also

References

  1. ^ MICA | Leadership
  2. ^ "About the Maryland Institute College of Art". 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-01.
  3. ^ "U.S. News and World Report - Best Graduate Schools - Fine Arts". 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-29.
  4. ^ Mary Ellen Hayward & Frank R. Shivers, Jr., ed. (2004). The Architecture of Baltimore. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP. ISBN 0-8018-7806-3.
  5. ^ Mary Ellen Hayward & Frank R. Shivers, Jr., ed. (2004). The Architecture of Baltimore. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP. ISBN 0-8018-7806-3.
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