Department of Art
Cultivate Your Imagination
We inspire and prepare you to excel in a variety of art professions and engage in a life-long appreciation of the visual arts.
Degree Programs
Art (BFA) Studio Art Teaching Emphasis
This degree plan is ideal for art-focused students who wish to take their skillset into the classroom to educate others.
Art (BFA/BA) Studio Art
Our Bachelor of Fine Arts and our Bachelor of Arts (BFA/BA) in Studio Art programs provide an intensive foundation in theoretical knowledge and professional skills. Develop a personal vision, high-level techniques and the ability to make sound artistic decisions.
Photography (BFA)
Students can choose to focus on fine art or commercial photography, the latter encompassing advertising-purposed material.
Visual Communication (BFA) Art Direction Concentration
The concentration in Art Direction prepares students for professional positions as creative team leaders who target specific market audiences and produce client branding, single ads or campaigns in print, broadcast and interactive media. Courses in art direction and advertising emphasize the development of concepts from infancy through the finished product. The Art Direction student gains proficiency in creating headlines, copy, layout and storyboarding. All visual communication courses above the sophomore level are taught at East Texas A&M in Dallas.
Visual Communication (BFA) Art Direction Emphasis
The concentration in Art Direction prepares students for professional positions as creative team leaders who target specific market audiences and produce client branding, single ads or campaigns in print, broadcast and interactive media. Courses in art direction and advertising emphasize the development of concepts from infancy through the finished product. The Art Direction student gains proficiency in creating headlines, copy, layout and storyboarding. All visual communication courses above the sophomore level are taught at East Texas A&M in Dallas.
Visual Communication (BFA) Design Concentration
The concentration in Design prepares students choosing to pursue a career as a design professional. Instruction focuses on an applied conceptual skill set through the development and application of the creative process, conceptual thinking, and visual problem-solving. Courses focus on client-driven projects such as packaging, paper systems, and client visual branding development.
Visual Communication (BFA) New Media Concentration
The concentration in New Media pairs creative thinking and refined design skills with computer-based multimedia and motion design. Students study a variety of media including motion graphics, animation, video, gaming concepts, interactive web, and mobile apps to become innovative multimedia designers. A broad understanding of software applications and the concepts underlying them give students the capacity to stay current in this evolving field of Visual Communication. All visual communication courses above the sophomore level are taught at East Texas A&M in Dallas.
Art (MA) Studio Art Emphasis
This master's degree may be pursued either for personal enrichment or to advance one's professional standings and credentials. Courses for the degree include painting, sculpture, photography, drawing, ceramics and mixed and multi-media art.
Art (MFA) Studio Art Emphasis
This degree is built from the ground up to meet the artist where they are and enhance every level of their artistic ability through intensive study and hands on training.
Art (MFA) Visual Communication Emphasis
The advanced degree with an emphasis in visual communication centers on meeting the needs of practicing professionals in the expanding field of visual communication who aspire to achieve a higher level of proficiency in creative innovation, design professional practice and design leadership. The program explores creative process innovation; design professional practice leadership, strategy, process and product; and creative marketing promotion grounded in a social and business perspective. Courses for this degree are taught at East Texas A&M in Dallas.
Our Facilities
Wathena Temple Fine Arts Building
The Wathena Temple Fine Arts Building was dedicated in 2004 and includes one the region's finest ceramics facilities, with an exhibition space and private studios for graduate students. Also, the department's photography facilities are housed in this building comprised of a Mac and inkjet printing lab, darkroom and shooting studio.
Sculpture Lab
Our large sculpture lab occupies a full building and is equipped with tools and work areas supporting a broad range of three-dimensional media, including wood and steel, and a foundry for metal casting.
Art Building
The main Art Building is home to the administrative offices, art history lecture room, north light studios for drawing and painting and the University Gallery.
East Texas A&M at Dallas
Our visual communication students are situated in the heart of Dallas which is recognized as one of the nation's key centers of advertising and design. Computer labs support graphic and web site design, video and ad production, new media, and high-end modeling and animation. It is also home to a letterpress studio in which students and faculty collaborate on design projects using traditional letterpress techniques.
Gallery and Art Events
Dallas artist Du Chau
‘The Silence that Speaks’ tells stories of family, loss, and joy.
Listen to the audio clip Chau describes how art informs science and how science informs art
News
University Gallery to Host Traveling Exhibit of Photos From Civil Rights Movement
“I AM A MAN” displays a wide range of photographs that provide a vivid visual story of the evolution of the civil rights movement.
A&M-Commerce Visual Communication Students Recognized in Creative Quarterly
Several projects by Texas A&M University-Commerce Visual Communication students received accolades in a recent issue of Creative Quarterly Art & Design Journal.
University Gallery Hosts Graduate Student’s Exhibition
The University Gallery at Texas A&M University-Commerce will exhibit the work of current M.F.A. student Lisa Tyndell Batchelder from October 18 to November 1.
Visual Communication Students Honored by Graphis
A large group of Texas A&M University-Commerce Art majors were recently honored by design publisher Graphis in their yearly release “New Talent Annual.”
Alum Awarded with Lone Star Emmy
A Texas A&M University-Commerce alum was recently honored for his work as a graphic designer with an Emmy Award from the Lone Star chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
‘Abstraction and Color’ Exhibit now Showing at University Gallery
The latest art exhibition is underway at the Texas A&M University-Commerce University Gallery until October.
Visual Communication Faculty Featured in Industry Magazine
In the November issue of Graphis Journal magazine, Associate Professor of Visual Communication and Assistant Head of…
Community Invited to Art Walk 2023 at Texas A&M University-Commerce
What’s more delightful than a leisurely stroll through campus on a crisp October evening, immersing yourself in art ga…
A&M-Commerce VisCom Program Brings Home Awards from 2023 Dallas ADDY’s
A pair of awards were handed out to work created by the Texas A&M University-Commerce Visual Communication progra…
Scholarships
The Department of Art offers students multiple opportunities to receive scholarships. Some available scholarships include:
- Daniel Lloyd Ross Memorial Endowment
- Alex W. Kibler & Shirley Riley Kibler Endowment
- June Kidder Memorial Endowment
- John & Phyllis Carrier Scholarship Fund
- Wathena Temple Memorial Scholarship
In addition to these named scholarships, the Department of Art will annually offer approximately $2,000 in scholarships funded by the department’s fundraising efforts. Amounts of endowed scholarships will not be announced until awarded.
Giving Opportunities
Your generosity makes a big difference in the lives of our students. Consider giving to the Department of Art. For more information, contact us.
We are here to help!
Amanda Scott
Alum Staff Academic Advisor III / EAB, Onboarding Manager, Advisor for Music, Theatre, Art & Photography
Meet our Department
Contact Us
- Department of Art
- 903.886.5208
- [email protected]
- P.O. Box 3011
East Texas A&M at Dallas
- Visual Communication
- 214.954.3636
- [email protected]
- 8750 N Central Expy.
- Dallas, TX 75231
- P.O. Box 3011