Comments on: Do artists need PhDs?

By: Bruce Mackh

Bruce Mackh — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 18:49:50 +0000

It will be good to see them graduate! The success of any program can only be measured by the success of their graduates. At present, without graduates, the program remains only a great idea, but it is a great idea!

By: Linda Brown

Linda Brown — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 23:29:03 +0000

The program began in 2007 so the first graduates are just beginning to emarge. Keep a look out for them!

By: Bruce Mackh

Bruce Mackh — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:17:14 +0000

Where are the graduates from the program. Who are they?

By: Cameron Luft

Cameron Luft — Wed, 18 May 2011 05:57:19 +0000

I’m curious about the IDSVA program. I have two questions for you: Where did you get your MFA and what did you do for your writing samples on your application? I’m a current MFA student and none of my classes demand much writing so I won’t have any writing samples from my classes.

By: Arlinda

Arlinda — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 23:12:38 +0000

So eloquently put and spot on in its entirety.

By: Jessica Doyle

Jessica Doyle — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 16:00:41 +0000

Over the years since receiving my MFA, I had this pulsing feeling that I still needed to research further into art theory. My MFA experience consisted of primarily formal critiques in regards to my work. For some time, I researched the possible options for furthering my education as an artist. The options for a PhD program in Visual Arts were overseas. I looked into PhD programs in Art History, Visual Anthropology, Cultural Studies. When I discovered IDSVA, I was shocked that there was a program that was so perfectly formed and planned for artists such as myself. Since I began the program in June, I have changed for the better as an artist, writer, and thinker. My studio work is flourishing as well. I see my work with more clarity and I am collaborating with fellow artists in a new and thought-provoking manner. Situating myself within artists and writers of the past and present has formed my vision so that I am not just looking within myself, but thinking about how to progress the idea of art further. The set-up of IDSVA is most certainly advanced in that it is utilizing technology to further education. The online aspect certainly is a benefit, as I am still able to work, while continuously communicating with classmates and professors. In addition, the intensive residency in Europe was life-changing as an artist and human being.

By: Amy Cook

Amy Cook — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:00:40 +0000

IDSVA facilitates artists’ participation in conversations with the larger academic community, from which they have heretofore been excluded; however, there are as many ways to be an artist as there are to make art. Academic study is but one route, and the non-studio PhD is a welcome addition to the various bifurcations within that route. I am currently writing my dissertation at IDSVA on aesthetics and the ethic of hospitality. I embrace differing avenues of exploration and development for artists and discourage the tendency toward competition in our field. While debate over studio vs. non-studio programs or whether terminal degree status resides in the MFA or PhD can provide rich intellectual fodder and suggest educational reform, it can also stifle and erode the larger point of what contemporary art has to offer and thus, what it means to be an artist.

For me, the companionship of the artist-philosopher way provides a broader view and a solid purchase on the core of my artistic and teaching practices alike. For someone else, the object alone may suffice, and the responsible creation, manipulation, and critque of it are valid endeavors encouraged in many venues. Together our paths strengthen the field.

By: Gregory Steel

Gregory Steel — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 14:58:42 +0000

I am a first year student in the program at IDSVA, I have long searched for this kind of experience as a working artists and always felt as though I was missing important intellectual information about the world as it relates to art and it’s making. This opportunity bridges the gap between the functions of making art and the intellectual impetus behind it all. It is an all important step for the arts and for humanity to reinstate the arts in the discourse at the levels it deserves. I am very proud of the program, the founders and my fellow seekers in the program for blazing this trail.

By: EL Putnam

EL Putnam — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 02:12:07 +0000

Currently I am in my third year of studies at IDSVA and preparing for my dissertation. I am also a practicing artist and an educator. Through its non-studio approach, IDSVA has helped develop and mature my thinking about art and the artist in our current historical moment. My studio work has changed because I as an artist have changed. Being an artist/philospher I am able to perceive my practice through a comprehensive lens that is not limited to the creation of art objects. Also, this degree has afforded me with the language and knowledge to think about and discuss art critically, as well as educate up-and-coming artists in the rich world of aesthetics.

By: Arlinda

Arlinda — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 01:03:40 +0000

I am also a current student at IDSVA. In my search for PhD programs in the visual arts I was impressed with what IDSVA had to offer and I am thrilled to find the program has exceeded my expectations. In my opinion any structured studio course beyond the MFA amounts to not much more than buying time to practice art. Why buy time when I can make it? IDSVA offers an extremely demanding program but well worth the effort.