The role of the Visual Arts Program is to provide a basis of support for the Benedict College liberal art curriculum by offering a broad base of study in concepts and principles, historical perspectives, techniques and processes, and understanding and appreciation of the creation process.

The Visual Arts Program aims to provide students with a broad base of educational experiences in art which will equip them with necessary skills to enter professional career fields in art. Students selecting the Program of Study in Teaching of Art will be prepared to teach art in Grades K-12. Students selecting the Program of Study in Studio Art will be prepared for careers in fine arts and visual communication. Students in the Visual Arts Program acquire knowledge and skills necessary for entrance into graduate school.

The Visual Arts Program provides the following services to the College. Art Appreciation is offered in support of the General Education requirement for the College to provide awareness and appreciation of art. Support courses are designed and offered for Teacher Education, Recreation, and History majors who have a need to teach or use art and design in their professions. Art courses are open to non-art majors as electives, used for enriching their liberal arts education. A minor in Studio Art is also an option. The Benedict College Art Gallery provides continuous art exhibitions as educational experiences for students of art, for the Benedict College family, and surrounding communities.

All students interested in the Art Education major must present a portfolio of artwork for acceptance into the program. Art majors must meet certification standards of the State Department of Education, including a required 2.50 grade point average for graduation.

Students within the Visual Arts Program learn to:

1. interpret the nonverbal language of art and design;
2. develop essential foundation-level art/design skills;
3. become familiar with and develop competence in a number of two-dimensional and three dimensional art/design disciplines;
4. become familiar with major achievements in the history of art, including the works and intentions of leading artists in the past and present;
5. develop critical thinking skills and cultivate the ability to make intelligent and informed judgments regarding excellence in the arts;
6. understand and evaluate contemporary thinking about art and design;
7. develop aesthetic perception by increasing their awareness of the aesthetic qualities in man-made and natural environments;
8. develop the capacity to identify and solve problems within a variety of physical, technological, social and cultural contexts.

Program objectives are in compliance with the South Carolina Visual Art Frameworks standards of the South Carolina Department of Education and the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD).

Source: Benedict College Catalogue 2007-2009.