The Department of Art and Visual Culture balances creation and critique, providing foundations in studio practice and in contemporary and historical analysis.
The major offers two tracks: one in history and criticism and the other in studio art. The history and criticism courses focus on images, objects, and architecture made by people from different periods and places, which students situate in historical and social contexts, while the studio art courses concentrate on making, including animation, ceramics, drawing, film, painting, photography, and print.
Marisa C. Wickersham, Academic Administrative Assistant
75 Russell St
Olin Arts Center
Phone: 1-207-786-8212
mwickersham@bates.edu
The visual arts field is broad, and we prepare our students to find their place in it. Graduates have pursued careers in a variety of fields, including museum and curatorial studies, architecture, art therapy, education, film, and art conservation. Many alumni have pursued MFA and Ph.D. degrees, building on the foundations that they gained at Bates to become museum directors, arts policy leaders, professional fine artists, corporate consultants, and more.
of 2020-2024 Bates graduates are employed and/or attending graduate school — settled into their next opportunity within 6 months of graduation.
I really loved the breadth and depth of the art and visual culture department and how it taught me the ability to think across time and geography. In particular, a museum studies class I took is really what sparked my entire career in the museum world.
—Rachel Ferrante ‘10
Our program asks students to slow down and think about how art and visual media is made, as well as what it represents, what it obscures, and how it shapes our thinking. Studio art majors undertake a yearlong thesis, concluding in an exhibition of their work at the nationally-recognized Bates Museum of Art. History and criticism-focused majors conduct independent research projects that may include hands-on experience in museums and archives.
The art and visual culture faculty write books, make films, produce scholarship, and make and exhibit art in diverse media across the globe. Faculty members have exhibited their art in galleries from New York City to Miami, present regularly at international art forums, and publish scholarly articles in renowned academic journals. Areas of expertise include multimedia art, media history and visual culture throughout the Mediterranean and Atlantic worlds, and ceramics.
Each year the graduating class at Bates picks a faculty or staff person to offer the Baccalaureate Address. The Class of 2026 selected Professor of Rhetoric, Film, and Screen Studies Stephanie Kelley-Romano.
On Sunday, May 31, 2026, 480 Bates students became Bates alumni, ready to face uncertainty with the support of the lessons they’ve learned at Bates, both in and out of the classroom.
The skies were changeable but the mood was resoundingly upbeat on Sunday, May 31, as 480 members of the Class of 2026 celebrated their Bates graduation surrounded by family and friends, and bolstered by speeches that dwelled on bright promises, both those already delivered and those to come.
