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Welcome
to the Website of the Davidson College Art Department!
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you're a prospective student interested in learning about our
facilities, a sophomore wondering about majoring in art, an
alum curious to see how things are going, or simply an interested
cruiser, we hope you'll find what you want to know and even
learn a bit more. My six colleagues on the faculty and our amazing
support staff work hard at making the studying and making of
art at Davidson a truly unique experience. I hope our Web site
conveys to you some of the passion we put into our work. |
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Take a look at our fabulous building, check out our graduates
to see what they're doing, read about the scholarships we offer,
and the classes we teach. If you have any questions, be sure
to contact us at
brking@davidson.edu.
And enjoy your visit!
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Nina
E. Serebrennikov
Professor of Art History and Chair
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HISTORY |
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Art
is a relatively young discipline at Davidson College, which
was founded in 1837. The
first course related to art was offered in 1928, and one art
appreciation class continued to be taught through 1953. That
year Douglas Houchens became the College's first full-time professor
of art, and students could choose from three courses that for
the first time included studio art. |
Art
became a major at Davidson in 1971 when the department's three
full-time professors taught 17 courses in Cunningham Fine Arts
Building, sharing the space with music and theatre. About that
time the department also began sponsoring the Davidson National
Print and Drawing Competition, which attracted some of the finest
artists of that era.
With the completion of the Belk Visual Arts Center in the fall
of 1993, the department moved into a state-of-the-art facility
dedicated exclusively to art. The VAC (as students promptly
christened the Center) includes two public gallery spaces, the
Van Every/Smith Galleries, through which thousands of visitors
pass every year. Today the department boasts seven faculty,
40 studio and art history courses, and about 45 majors. Three
more faculty positions — two in art history and one in
studio art — were added between 1978 and 1987. |
| MISSION
STATEMENT |
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Art Department of Davidson College is dedicated to the study,
history, production, and theory of art and to the conceptualization,
collection, exhibition, and curatorship of visual culture as
a central part of the liberal arts tradition and educational
experience. Through state-of-the-art facilities offered by the
Belk Visual Arts Center and the availability of gifted teachers
who are also committed and successful career artists and art
historians, the department provides students with a challenging
opportunity for aesthetic growth and personal intellectual development. |
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