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Thursday, December 10, 2015

Applications for the MFA with concentration in Printmaking

Work by current MFA Candidates:  David Villegas, Jessie Barnes, Kayla Seedig, Sarah Ellis, and Zack Petot
The MFA program at the University of North Texas is accepting applications to begin course work in Fall 2016.  The printmaking area is made up of six MFA printmaking candidates and twenty BFA undergraduates from a variety of artistic and geographic backgrounds.

The MFA in Printmaking at the University of North Texas offers a broad and intensive experience for serious artists engaging printmaking processes and concepts.  As artists, we are drawn to printmaking as a primary form of expression with many facets.  MFA Printmaking candidates come from a range of conceptual, technical, and formal interests.  The program aims to expand and focus these while increasing the individual’s professional experience through exhibitions, exposure to visiting artists, print media conferences, portfolio exchanges, printmaking workshops and other professional activities.  The UNT campus offers exceptional professional research resources, and the Dallas/Fort Worth area offers additional resources including world-class art museums, a vibrant contemporary art galleries scene, and many other cultural activities.

*Deadline for Priority Consideration is January 5, 2016*  (for enrolling in Fall 2016).
Late applications will be reviewed for acceptance until mid February, but with fewer opportunities for Scholarships and Graduate Assistantships.

Printmaking Faculty:
Andrew DeCaen, Associate Professor of Art & Printmaking Area Coordinator
www.andrewdecaen.com/

Lari Gibbons, Professor of Art & Director of P.R.I.N.T Press
www.lrgibbons.net/

Printmaking Studios and Equipment:
Printmaking Graduate students have 24/7 access to the main printmaking studios plus exclusive access to two semi-private studios shared among the printmaking graduate students.

MFA Print Studio #1 at Hickory Hall (550 square feet) including:
*Individual work spaces, tables, storage cabinets, and flat file space for 3-4 graduate students.
*Apple desktop computer, laser printer, and darkroom with a 40-1KS Nuarc exposure unit.
MFA Print Studio 1 at Hickory Hall 
MFA Print Studio #2 at Oak Street Hall (550 square feet) including:
*Individual work spaces, tables, storage cabinets, and flat file space for 3-4 graduate students.
*Century AL Series M&M Research automatic screen print press.
*26" x 50" Charles Brand etching press.

Critique/Presentation/Archive Room (650 square feet) at Hickory Hall including:
Computer station and ceiling mounted digital projector.
Flat file drawers for student print storage.
Critique/Presentation/Archive Studio
Intaglio/Relief/Screenprint/Artist's Books Studio (2,900 square feet) at Hickory Hall including:
*38" x 72" Takach etching press
*36" x 60" Charles Brand etching press
*30" x 50" Charles Brand etching press
*26" x 50" Charles Brand etching press
*16" x 30" Charles Brand etching press
*18" x 36" Takach etching press
*G.P. Gordon clamshell letterpress
*22" x 32" hotplate
*30" x 48" Light Table
*A collection of 5 newly surfaced professional rollers including:
      29"Circumference x 24"wide
      29"Circumference x 20"wide
      25"Circumference x 20"wide
      22"Circumference x 18"wide
      17"Circumference x 25"wide
*A collection of professional 6 Takach brayers ranging from 4-8" wide
*A large collection of Squeegees ranging from 6" to 32" wide
*A dark room with Nuarc MRS 3140 exposure unit for screen, intaglio, and relief.
*Screen Wash-Out Room with power Cam Spray 1500A Power Washer and booth.
*Acid room with enclosed Gene Scientific ventilated acid hood.
Intaglio/Relief/Screenprint Studio 
Lithography Studio (1,200 square feet) at Hickory Hall including:
*32" x 56" Takach lithography press
*30" x 50" Charles Brand lithography press
*30" x 44" Graphic lithography press
*A large selection of  litho stones (up to 30" x 24" in size)
*Hydraulic Lift capable of lifting 1000kg
*Three 12" leather rollers.
*A collection of 6 newly surfaced professional rollers including:
      27"Circumference x 20"wide
      20"Circumference x 18"wide
      14"Circumference x 18"wide
      13"Circumference x 18"wide
      13"Circumference x 14"wide
      13"Circumference x 12"wide

Lithography Studio

Sculpture Shop at the Art Building including tools and equipment for various materials and processes.

Digital Fabrication Lab at the Art Building including:
*CNC router 
*Laser cutters 
*3d printers


Visiting Artists:
The Printmaking Area co-hosts at least two Visiting Artist in Printmaking annually. Recent Visiting Artists include: Charles Beneke, James Ehlers, Nicole Hand, Tom Huck, Beauvais Lyons, Phyllis McGibbon, Lloyd Menard, Ashley Nason, Dennis Olsen, Ryan O'Malley, Brandon Sanderson, , Juergen Strunck, Jason Urban, Joseph Velasquez, and Sang-Mi Yoo. The College of Visual Art and Design and the Institute for the Advancement in the Arts also host many artists from a variety of disciplines including recent artists: Kiki Smith and Nick Cave.

P.R.I.N.T Press:
P.R.I.N.T Press hosts professional publishing of visiting artists’ work and provides educational opportunities and professional training for current UNT students through collaborations, internships and jobs. Recent collaborations between visiting master printers and artists include John Huckaby/Brian Garner, Catherine Chauvin/Kiki Smith, Ryan Burkhart/Scott Ingram, Erika Adams/Michelle Samour, Jon Lee/Albert Paley, David Jones/Jeff Elrod, Ryan Burkhart/Jiha Moon, and Jon Lee/Robyn O'Neil. Exhibitions, performances, and other engaging projects are led by visiting artists such as Susan Goethel-Campbell, Beauvais Lyons, Leslie Mutchler, John Risseeuw and Jason Urban. Distinguished printmakers such as Charles Beneke, Lynwood Kreneck, Michelle Martin, Nancy Palmeri and Gretchen Schermerhorn teach workshops in specialized techniques. (http://art.unt.edu/print/http://untprintpress.blogspot.com)

Museums and Galleries:
The College of Visual Arts and Design has two student galleries. (http://gallery.unt.edu/)  Exhibitions in otherl art venues are also common in Denton.  Just 40 miles away, in the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth there is an excellent contemporary art gallery scene and a world class selection of museums such as the Dallas Museum of Art, the Nasher Sculpture Center, the Crow Collection of Asian Art, the Museum of Modern Art in Fort Worth, the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, and the Kimbell Art Museum.

Rare Books and Texana Collection:
UNT Library’s Rare Books department collects and preserves rare and unique materials including rare books, oral histories, university archives, historical manuscripts, maps, microfilm, photographs, art and artifacts. Students, faculty and the public are welcome to access collections and view special exhibits in our Fourth floor Reading Room.  http://www.library.unt.edu/rarebooks/exhibits/

The Elm Fork Natural Heritage Museum and Collections
An extensive collection of flora and fauna preserved specimens are available for research studies.  http://efnhmuseum.unt.edu/

Study Abroad:
CVAD faculty lead study abroad programs in Italy, France, and England.  http://international.unt.edu/

P.A.N. T. S: Printmaking Association of North Texas Students:
Our student print club energetically organizes exhibitions, fundraisers, and many public events.  https://www.facebook.com/printmakingassociation https://www.facebook.com/groups/75645964808/

Graduate Student Work:

Zachary Petot: http://www.zackpetot.com/
Melody Vaughan: http://melodyvaughan.com/
David Villegas

Recent MFA Alumni
Luke Ball, http://lukeballart.blogspot.com/

Application Process:
The process of applying to the MFA program at the College of Visual Arts and Design has Three Parts:  an application to the Toulouse Graduate School of the University of North Texas, an application to the College of Visual Arts and Design, Department of Studio Art, and applications for Assistantships and/or Scholarships.

PART 1:  Apply and read application requirements at http://www.tsgs.unt.edu by January 5.
The applicant is evaluated by the Toulouse Graduate School of the University of North Texas to verify that minimum standards required for all graduate students at UNT are met.  Graduate Admissions generally takes two to four weeks to process application materials including transcripts from all coursework applied to your undergraduate degree.  Note that the GRE test is no longer a requirement for the MFA application.  *Transcripts of all College Education will be required to insure that minimum requirements are met.  Once the graduate school’s review is complete, they will forward the application to the printmaking faculty so that they may make the final decision from the application materials sent to the Department of Studio Art in second part of the process.

PART 2:  Apply at https://unt.slideroom.com/ by January 5.
Applications are evaluated by a series of required application materials:
*Portfolio of Artworks: a CD with 15-20 high quality jpg images of artworks including at least 10 prints.   Images could be up to 5MB each.   Include a PDF image identification sheet indicating the corresponding image number, title, media, size, and year with thumbnails of each image.
*Artist’s Statement:  A description of your creative interests, context, and process.
*Statement of Intent:  A brief statement describing your educational and professional background, your motivations for attending graduate school, and your professional aspirations for after graduate school.
*Artist’s Resume:  A professional resume showing all educational and professional experience including a complete exhibition record.
*Two Letters of Recommendation:  Two letters of recommendation (recommenders should email these directly to studio@unt.edu (with "MFA Printmaking Recommendation for Your Name in the heading.)
*Please label all application materials/documents with “Your Name and MFA Application Printmaking .”

PART 3:  Apply for Graduate Area Assistantships and Scholarships by January 5.
A variety of scholarships and assistantships are available through the College of Visual Arts and Design and Toulouse Graduate School.  Applicants should be sure to apply for an area assistantship at the time of application for the MFA program. More information at http://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife/teaching-assistantships and https://art.unt.edu/financial-aid.html

*Area Assistantships:  First year graduate students are encouraged to apply for two Area Assistantships in one of the following areas:  the Printmaking Area, P.R.I.N.T Press Area, Core Drawing Area, Core Design Area, Art Gallery, and Sculpture Area.  Assistantships are selected by qualifications demonstrated in the MFA application.  Each Area Assistantship entails working 10 hours/week and is accompanied by a stipend.  Application form at:  https://art.unt.edu/sites/default/files/u45/CVAD-TATF-App13.10.02.pdf
See https://art.unt.edu/fellowships-assistantships for details.

*Academic Achievement Scholarship (AAS):  The scholarships are available to many new doctoral and Master of Fine Arts students for the first year of study with a possible one-year renewal. Recipients of these competitive scholarships receive $1000 and may be eligible for in-state tuition rates.  See at http://www.tsgs.unt.edu keyword search “AAS” for details.  

*Tuition Benefits Program:  This tuition savings program assists a competitive number of graduate students who are awarded two assistantships (1/2 time).  Awardees receive funds to cover a large portion of tuition costs.  This program is available up to 6 long semesters of support.  Awardees of the AAS will not be eligible for the Tuition Benefits Program.  More information at:  https://tsgs.unt.edu/tuition-benefit-program

Teaching Opportunities:

Teaching Assistantships may be available after the first semester of studies.  During the first semester graduate students who are taking the Seminar on University Teaching may apply for Teaching Assistantships in Core Drawing or Core Design with a stipend to begin in the second semester. Graduate students can be awarded up to two assistantships per semester when available.  Teaching Assistants attend a weekly lecture by the Core faculty, then lead a class section in Drawing or Design Core.  They also attend weekly guideance meetings with Core faculty and other Core Teaching Assistants.  Teaching Assistants receive a stipend corresponding to their assignment and academic progress.

Teaching Fellowships in Printmaking may be available to second or third year graduate students on a limited basis. The Teaching Fellowship is an opportunity to teach a printmaking class as an Instructor of Record and be paid a stipend corresponding to the assignment and academic progress.

Stipends are attached to all Assistantships and Fellowships.  The amount of the stipends depends on the number of appointments a graduate student holds and the number of academic hours s/he has completed.  Current amounts of stipends can be obtained by contacting the Printmaking Area Coordinator.

Funding Opportunities for Continuing Graduate Students

Graduate Student Travel Grants
Graduate students may apply for funds to travel to present at professional conferences to present research.  The grants are offered by the Toulouse Graduate School, the Office of Research & Development and the Graduate Student Council.  See at http://www.tsgs.unt.edu keyword search “Graduate Student Travel Grants” for details.  

Raupe Travel Grants
Raupe Travel Grant is a scholarship to UNT students attending a conference that will benefit the university. Students can receive up to $750 a semester towards their conferences.  https://studentaffairs.unt.edu/raupe-travel-grant


CVAD Project Awards
CVAD students may prepare a proposal to be funded for one of the following categories:
*Creative Project or Research
*Travel for Creative Conference (for presenting research, presenting an exhibition)
*Creative Internship
*Study Abroad relating to creative research
The awards are offered by the generous support of private donors through the College of Visual Arts and Design.  See at https://art.unt.edu/current-students/funding-awards-projects

The Nicholas + Ann Ricco Ethics Award
This $1,000 award will be given annually to the leading CVAD student proponent of ethical behavior and concepts.  https://art.unt.edu/current-students/funding-awards-projects

Other UNT Scholarships
are also available and graduate students are encouraged to apply to support their research. More information at http://tsgs.unt.edu/graduatelife/toulouse_fellowships_scholarships


Visit the following links below for more info:
UNT Printmaking Blog:  http://untprintmakingblog.blogspot.com/
UNT Printmaking:  http://www.art.unt.edu/printmaking.html
UNT Studio Art: http://www.art.unt.edu/studio-art.html
UNT College of Visual Art and Design:  http://www.art.unt.edu
UNT Toulouse Graduate School: http://www.tsgs.unt.edu
Current Tuition and Fees: http://www.tsgs.unt.edu/admissions/all-about-money
Application for an Area Assistantship  (PDF download) https://art.unt.edu/fellowships-assistantships

Please Email Andy DeCaen if you have any questions about the program, about the application process, or if you plan to visit the studios and campus.