Vermont College of Fine Arts
36 College Street
Montpelier, VT 05602
T +802 828 8636
[email protected]
– VCFA committed 100,000 USD in scholarship funding to the incoming class of January 2016. These new funds allow us to provide each incoming student with a significant scholarship package applied to all four semesters.
– The Levin/Lutz Prize, established by the first graduates of the MFA program, is granted to third-semester students whose exceptional progress in the program deserves special recognition.
– The Janet Kaplan Memorial Scholarship was established by alumni and faculty of the program in honor of our founding faculty member. This award honors students entering their final semester of the program, in support of their final exhibition costs and studio needs.
– A full four-week fellowship at the Vermont Studio Center will be awarded to one of our 2015 graduates of VCFA’s MFA Program in Visual Arts.
The program
Founded in 1991 as the first low-residency program in visual art in the country, the MFA in Visual Art program at VCFA is based on the principle of individualized learning: valuing the knowledge and experience that each student brings to his or her candidacy in equal parts with the latest developments in contemporary creative and critical discourse. Through the program’s unique integration of both on- and off-campus experiences, each semester begins with an intensive 10-day residency in Vermont comprised of student exhibitions, individual and group critiques, faculty and guest lectures, workshops and a thematic symposium.
Off-campus, students continue their studies by completing a series of interdisciplinary visual culture research and writing projects with the close guidance of a faculty member. Students pursue their studio work with formalized mentorship by a local artist selected in collaboration with the program.
Why come to VCFA?
Students in VCFA’s MFA in Visual Art program have the opportunity to connect with a roster of up to 15 faculty members, four artist-teachers (each guiding one semester of studio work), five artists-in-residence, more than 50 guest artists, a student body of more than 70 fellow students, and a wide network of more than 1,000 alumni located across the country and internationally.
MFA in Visual Art students work in their own studio and have monthly studio visits with their artist-teacher each semester, building a network of professional contacts that prepares students for a sustainable practice after they graduate. We have more than 1,500 artist-teachers approved to work with our graduate students wherever they are located across the country. Graduates leave the MFA program with an established studio practice grounded in their own locales.
Our expertise at VCFA supports all studio practices—from painting, photography and new media to performance, community arts and social practice. Our curriculum’s foundation on individualized learning supports the possibility of experimentation throughout a student’s time in the program.
Contact us to…
– Arrange a campus visit
– Speak to an admissions counselor
– Experience a residency first-hand
– Arrange to talk with an alumni and faculty of the program
– Discuss how you can afford VCFA
