Arts Program
In the Arts Program, we encourage all our students — not only those
who plan careers as artists — to cross boundaries and experiment, to
seek inspiration inside and outside class, to incorporate their art work
into their other courses and into the rest of their lives. The only thing
we don't encourage them to do is to limit themselves by focusing entirely
on their professional training. Seeking truth from many sources and learning
to question what's possible are necessary habits whether you want to be a
painter or a physicist. These are habits you'll practice here.
The arts thrive at Bryn Mawr partly because of the diversity
of our community(which includes Haverford College, a mile down the road).
Chemists and philosophers
and students of ancient literature sing together, draw together, dance together,
sit down together to study a novel or a play. Everyone brings a different perspective
to the table; everyone grows intellectually and artistically from these exchanges.
A liberal arts education is the best kind of training for an artist — particularly
for students like ours, who aren't necessarily preparing for a role in the cast of
"Cats" (although they may be) but rather for a role in shaping the future of dance or
theater or music or literature or fine arts in the next century.
At Bryn Mawr, you can take arts courses for academic credit as electives or in
partial requirement of your arts and humanities divisional requirement or you
can participate in the arts as an extra- or co-curricular activity. You can
formally document your studies here on your transcript as well through a minor
in the Arts Program or through petitioning to create an independent major.
And opportunities don't end in the classroom or studio. The Arts
Program presents student and faculty work in performances and exhibitions in both
formal and informal settings. You can also experience the work of major artists
through the Performing Arts Series and share the expertise, creativity, and energy
of these artists in workshops and master classes. The Arts Program also seeks to nurture
the life of the Arts on campus, providing coordination between the academic and
studio experiences, supporting faculty or student initiatives, publicizing events
and opportunities, and so on.
And don't forget that Philadelphia is only 11 miles or 25 minutes away by
train. With friends or on a field trip you can take advantage of everything from
the world renowned Philadelphia Orchestra and the Philadelphia Museum of Art to
jazz clubs, to funky art galleries, to concerts and performances at any of the
other 89 colleges and universities in the greater metropolitan area. You can
discover a whole world of art nearby or right here on your home campus.