ART AND CULTURE STUDIES

The Art and Culture Studies program at the School for the Contemporary Arts provides a superlative opportunity for students wishing to study a range of art forms. The interdisciplinary context of the School is the ideal environment for an in-depth investigation of dance, film, music, theatre, and visual art. Students are encouraged to examine the relationships among the various arts and to assess the significance of the arts in the world where they are made and experienced.

The BA program has a flexible curriculum that allows students to personalize their degree in relation to their needs and interests. Students benefit from the exceptional quality and breadth of courses offered at Simon Fraser University. The University is highly rated nationally and internationally and is renowned for its spirit of innovation, its sense of exploration, and its bold educational initiatives.

The School offers four options in the Art and Culture Studies discipline:

Major in Art and Culture Studies (BA)
Minor in Art and Culture Studies
Joint major in Art and Culture Studies and Anthropology (BA)
Joint major in Art and Culture Studies and Sociology (BA)

(Please refer to SFU Calendar for full details.)

To graduate with a BA, major in Art and Culture Studies, a student must complete 48 credit hours for the major itself, plus the 30 credit Faculty of Arts breadth requirements within the total of 120 credits required for the degree.

A minor in Art and Culture Studies requires a minimum of 29 credit hours in Art and Culture Studies and related areas in Contemporary Arts. The School also offers two joint major programs:

Art and Culture Studies and Anthropology
Art and Culture Studies and Sociology

Both joint majors require students to complete a minimum of 120 credit hours, 30 of which must fulfill the Faculty of Arts Breadth requirement. In addition, to graduate with a joint major in Art and Culture Studies and Anthropology, a student must complete 75 credit hours including 35 credit hours from the School and 40 credit hours in Anthropology. For a joint major in Art and Culture Studies and Sociology, a student must complete 74 credit hours including 35 credit hours from the School and 39 credit hours in Sociology.

Issues in fine and performing arts

Contemporary theory in the arts
Interdisciplinary studies in the arts
Arts, audience, patronage, institutions
Courses in dance, film, music, theatre, and visual art

Students are introduced to specific art forms in courses exploring the history, contemporary development, theoretical context, or studio techniques of the discipline. The program offers courses exploring the history, theory, and techniques of various disciplines. These courses are complemented by interdisciplinary courses that investigate relationships between art forms that exist in a common context. Beyond this interdisciplinary core, course selection is flexible and students shape their program in relation to their own interests and curiosity. The Art and Culture Studies program is a challenging and rewarding framework in which to learn about the arts, develop intellectually, and pursue the important achievement of a university education.

The Art and Culture Studies program prepares graduates for careers as art critics, researchers, librarians, journalists, and arts administrators. Many find work in related fields and still others continue on with graduate studies.

“I would definitely recommend the Art and Culture Studies program at SFU as I was able to study theory as well as participate in hands-on studio art. I was also able to fit two field schools into my degree.”

Writing from Thailand,
Klara Hermanek (BA Art & Culture Studies, 2000)


“Something I found particular to the Art and Culture program at the School for the Contemporary Arts was the quality of our seminar discussions. I found it illuminating to share ideas with my peers as we worked our way through intellectual debates. The instructors and professors were very good at challenging, steering, and facilitating debate – always, I thought, with a very clear idea of what we needed to learn. I graduated knowing that art and ideas have passionate reverberations through my work and life and that I could contribute to the dialogue in its myriad manifestations.”

Elia Kirby (BA Art & Culture Studies, 1999)

“I enjoyed the wide range of topics that surfaced during my time in Art and Culture Studies. I found the program to be broad and creative, with a lot of room for self-direction in research. I felt I could bring my own interests to classes – this was very much encouraged within a framework of contemporary theory and art practice. I play the violin and became active in the performance of new music at SFU. I enjoyed this mix of research, writing, and studio activity – and developed a wonderful network of contacts and friends who dance, act, compose, and make visual art.”

Andrea Dodwell (BA Art & Culture Studies, 2000)

“When I look back upon my undergraduate degree in Art and Culture Studies at SFU, what stands out is the truly personal service I received. I never experienced any sense of anonymity, which is often the case at university. Seminar classes were small and there I was both challenged and required to think critically. It was an excellent training ground for my graduate degree and my present work.”

Barbara Towell (BA Art & Culture Studies, 1995)