Art School

The Academy of Art University was established in San Francisco in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens, a fine art painter who had accepted the position of Creative Director for Sunset Magazine. Assisted by his wife, Mrs. Clara Stephens, he opened the new school in a rented loft at 215 Kearny Street to teach advertising art. In a few years, a distinguished faculty of practicing art and design professionals was assembled and the school’s philosophy was formulated: hire established professionals to teach future professionals. In 1933 the curriculum was expanded to include Fashion Illustration, and in 1936 a Fine Art Department was added.

In 1951, after graduating from Stanford University, Dr. Richard A. Stephens took over the Presidency from his parents. His vision led to the expansion of the Academy from an enrollment of fifty students in two rented loft spaces to a 5,200 student body, with continued expansion of department majors available. In 1966 the school was incorporated and granted authority to offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education of the State of California. The graduate program was inaugurated in 1977 and approved by 1983.

Dr. Elisa Stephens, the granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her father as President of the Academy of Art University in 1992. Dr. Stephens has been committed to expanding the Academy’s curriculum to stay current with new technologies and industry trends, as well as making state-of-the art facilities and resources available to Academy students. In 2004, the name of the school was changed from Academy of Art College to Academy of Art University in recognition of its depth, scope and quality.

Today the University has over 11,000 students, making it the largest private school of art and design in the country. Students now have the opportunity to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Associate of Arts, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Architecture or a Certificate Program, with over 30 areas of academic emphasis.

Mission

It is the mission of the Academy of Art University to provide aspiring artists and designers with career preparation, combined with academic excellence, for the BFA, MFA, and Certificate programs in the areas of art and design.

Open Admissions

One of our objectives is to maintain an open admissions policy that affords all people access to an institute of higher education. We know that many of our most successful students, and some of our best candidates for the Academy, haven’t been given that opportunity yet. We do not require a portfolio for admission; however, if you do have a portfolio, this may be helpful to you in accelerating your program.

Curriculum

Flexible schedules allow our students to take classes days, nights, and weekends.
We offer the following twelve undergraduate majors:

• Advertising (Account Planning, Art Direction, Copywriting, and Television Commercials)

• Animation (Background Painting & Layout Design, Visual Development, Character Animation, Games, Visual Effects/Compositing, and 3D Modeling)

• Computer Arts (3D Modeling, Animation, Gaming, New Media, Publishing, Visual Effects, and Web Design)

• Digital Arts & Communications (user experience, information architecture)

• Fashion (Fashion Design, Fashion Illustration, Knitwear, Merchandising, and Textiles)

• Fine Art (Ceramics, Metal Arts, Neon, Painting/Drawing, Sculpture, and Printmaking)

• Graphic Design (Branding, Corporate Identity, Packaging, and Print)

• Illustration (Cartooning, Children’s Books, Editorial, Feature Film Animation, and 2D Animation)

• Industrial Design Studios (Automotive Design, Product Design, Toy Design, and Furniture Design)

• Interior Architecture & Design (Commercial & Residential Interior Architecture)

• Motion Pictures & Television (Acting, Advertising, Cinematography, Directing, Editing, Producing, Production Design, Screenwriting, and Special Effects)

• Photography (Advertising, Documentary, Digital Photography, Fashion, Fine Art, Photo Illustration, Photojournalism, and Portraiture)