SVA New MFA Program in Design Criticism
Friday, February 29th, 2008The new MFA in Design Criticism at the School of Visual Arts is now accepting applications for Fall 2008. This innovative two-year program trains students to research, analyze, and evaluate design and its social and environmental implications. Study with some of the best design writers and thinkers of our time, including: “Studio 360″ host and author Kurt Andersen; MoMA’s design curator Paola Antonelli; Pentagram partner and co-founder of Design Observer, Michael Bierut; former editor of I.D. Magazine Ralph Caplan; Metropolis contributing editor Karrie Jacobs; and architecture critic Philip Nobel.
Still accepting applications!
PROGRAM OUTLINE: SVA MFA IN DESIGN CRITICISM
Situated at the intersection of commerce and culture, design is a field of activity that touches the lives of everyone. Its role as an aesthetic, social and economic force is the subject of increasing attention: mainstream news outlets, the business press and lifestyle magazines routinely cover design, and it is the focus of major exhibitions and even entire museums. Yet, while forums for design commentary have increased, there is a crucial need for more intellectually rigorous approaches to design criticism.
The SVA MFA in Design Criticism—the first of its kind in the United States—seeks to cultivate design criticism as a discipline and contribute to public discourse with new writing and thinking that is imaginative, historically informed and socially accountable. Drawing on the broadest possible definition of design, the curriculum includes graphic, web and product design, as well as fashion, urban planning and networked systems. The course of study couples a theoretical framework with significant opportunities for practical experience. In providing the tools for researching, analyzing, evaluating and chronicling all aspects of design, students will prepare for careers as design critics, journalists, editors, curators, educators and design managers.
We welcome students from a range of academic backgrounds whose diverse perspectives and experiences enrich the debate. The program is equally well suited to designers, who want to hone their skills in writing and critical thinking, as it is to journalists and writers, who wish to deepen their understanding of design. Students will learn skills and techniques for the uncovering of data, the development of a story and for communicating with different audiences. The two-year program places significant emphasis on the practical application of the many methodologies it teaches. Students will produce tangible documents of their critical practice, such as books, blogs, documentaries, course syllabi, conferences and exhibitions.
It’s an exciting time to be involved in design criticism; students of this program will be instrumental in shaping its formats, directing its priorities and negotiating the ways it is encountered by its many publics.
ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS
Admission to the program is by online application, the submission of required documents, and an interview. Candidates should apply online, following the directions below. Short-listed candidates will be interviewed in person or by telephone.
Click HERE to apply.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
1. Applicants must have a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
2. Application form and nonrefundable $80 fee.
3. Official transcripts from each college or university attended. Transcripts from foreign institutions must be officially translated into English and U.S. grading equivalencies.
4. Three letters of recommendation from instructors or practicing professionals. Letters should be written on school or company letterhead and returned to the applicant in a sealed envelope with the recommender’s signature across the seal.
5. A written statement (250-500 words) of the applicant’s reasons for pursuing graduate study.
6. Résumé, including professional experience as well as related activities such as research, internships, publications and awards.
7. Proof of English proficiency (required of applicants whose primary language is not English).
8. Personal interview (except for students living beyond a 1,000-mile radius of New York City who may request a telephone interview instead.)
9. Nonimmigrant alien applicants are required to submit documentation of sufficient financial resources to attend SVA.
http://designcriticism.sva.edu/
if you have any questions about the program or your application please do not hesitate to contact the department.
Alice Twemlow, Chair
atwemlow@sva.edu
Emily Weiner, Assistant to the Chair
eweiner1@sva.edu
Mail:
Design Criticism Department
School of Visual Arts
209 East 23 Street
New York, NY 10010-3994
Visiting in person or deliveries:
Design Criticism Department, Room 1201c
133 West 21st Street
New York, NY 10011-3213
Direct:
Telephone: 212.592.2561
Fax: 212.592.2559