The BA in Art and Visual Culture degree includes concentrations in Art History, Art Management and Studio Art. This liberal arts degree provides students with unique opportunities to integrate an in-depth study of art and visual culture with a minor in another discipline and foreign language study.

In each of the concentrations, students consider not only the form and content of images, but the contexts in which we interact with them (whether on a smartphone, in a museum, or at an artist’s studio); the materials used to make them; and the way meanings shift over time. Visual culture includes analysis of the production of images as well as their circulation through and modification by various institutions of the art world.

The Art and Visual Culture degree at Appalachian State University draws from a number of disciplines to explore the meanings, practices, and processes of looking and imaging across historical periods and diverse cultures. The strong emphasis on service learning, internships, and international study at Appalachian further provide opportunities for students to enhance their study of art and visual culture from a global perspective.

Whether students wish to engage in creative practice, curate exhibitions, conduct scholarly research or work in arts administration, this degree program empowers students to interpret a wide range of images comprising the field of art and visual culture and understand the particular historical and geographic contexts in which they were produced. Students graduating with a degree in Art and Visual Culture are well prepared for graduate work in art history, expressive arts, arts administration, studio art, or a variety of career paths in museums, galleries, libraries, publishing houses, studio practice, and arts related social practices.