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A film is projected on the side of a wooden framed canvas, and people are seated in the background.

About the department

Department of Art

About the Department

At Cornell, the study of art is an education in creating objects, images, spaces, and experiences that reflect intellectual judgment, philosophical understanding, knowledge of the history and traditions of the visual arts, and ethical principles that engage the often bewildering complexity of contemporary culture.

Projected artwork in a darkened gallery space

Sopheak Sam (M.F.A. ’25) presents work for a student group show in Olive Tjaden Gallery.

Degree Programs

Upcoming and Ongoing Events

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  • A view from inside a gallery with a white wall that has photographs, leading into a center portion of the gallery with structures.

    Jun 6–Sep 4

    AAP Summer Exhibition 2026

    Visit AAP this summer for a cross-departmental exhibition featuring student work from the 2025–26 academic year that showcases the college’s creative and critical practices.

    Exhibition

  • Aerial view of first-year students and AAP Ambassadors forming AAP on the Arts Quad with Sibley Dome in view.

    Jun 26–Aug 14

    Undergraduate Admissions Summer Events 2026

    Register for an in-person information session at Cornell AAP or drop in for a casual conversation with an admissions officer.

    Admissions

Student Experience

  • student developing an image at a work station
  • book and papers on a desk
  • student examining objects on a pink-lit gallery floor
  • student sketching in charcoal on a gallery wall
  • students putting up work in a bright gallery space

Jason Gama Bezerra De (B.F.A. ’24) working in the alternative processes lab in Tjaden Hall.

Andy Li looking at the work of Hyunjin Park (both M.F.A. ’25), part of the M.F.A. group show over and over, Tjaden Gallery.

Artists Tim Green and Oliver Stern (both B.F.A. ’24) draw on canvas lining the walls of the Olive Tjaden Gallery during a five-day live drawing performance and exhibition titled Cave Painting 2.

As artist-educators, we assume a unique and critical role in connecting some of the most complex aspects of art practice to pedagogy. We do this, understanding that the next generation of artists live in a world that is both fraught with compounded crises and full of opportunities for engagement, intervention, and for making lasting change.

Paul Ramírez Jonas, Professor and Chair of the Department of Art

Latest News and Faculty Work

Latest News and Faculty Work

Stories Philosophy and Art Faculty Win Guggenheim Fellowships

A woman with wavy brown hair and a blue geometric pattern shirt, standing in an art studio.

Two Cornell faculty have been awarded Guggenheim Fellowships this year, including Assistant Professor of Art Leeza Meksin, who shares details on her site-specific installations and future plans with the Cornell Chronicle.

Announcements Explore Fall ’26 Classes for Non-Majors at AAP

Aerial view of Sibley Hall and the southern end of Cayuga Lake

Expand your disciplinary boundaries and enroll in courses that cultivate connection and catalyze actionable research. Options range from fundamentals to deep dives across architecture, art, city and regional planning, real estate, and design technology.

Stories Fabric Artist Alum Creates Visual Poetry Whose Meaning Lingers

Fabric letters hanging from the ceiling with shadows cast on the wall.

Anna Warfield (B.S. ’17, B.F.A. ’18) speaks with Cornellians about their art installations that combine soft sculpture and poetry to challenge how viewers understand identity and communication.

Exhibition At Sixes and Sevens: Sculpture at the Bundy Modern

A black and white art print

Assistant Professor of Art Oscar Rene Cornejo is a featured artist at this group exhibition which highlights site-specific works for the grounds and interior gallery space at the Bundy Modern.

Stories

Book cover with view of the back of a person's head and shoulders

Announcing: Love in a Time of Allegory

In his new book, Art faculty Nicholas Muellner looks for ways to move forward in life and creative practice while surrounded by the crises and complexities of our current cultural moment.

Stories Prof. Jolene Rickard Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

A woman with straight dark hair and black square glasses.

Associate Professor Jolene Rickard (Art, History of Art and Visual Studies, AIIS–American Indian and Indigenous Studies) was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the Native American Art Studies Association (NAASA) for her work as “an artist, curator, scholar, and cultural leader.”

Announcements 15 Scientific and Technical Achievements to be Honored with Academy Awards

Jeff Budsberg (B.F.A. ’04, ’07) was part of a team recognized for their contributions to the stylized animation toolset at DreamWorks Animation.

Exhibition Common Sense Exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum

A large horse sculpture with various pieces of paper attached to the base.

Professor and Chair of Art Paul Ramírez Jonas is a featured artist in this group show, which puts America’s past in dialogue with its present by pairing writings by statesman, abolitionist, and philosopher Thomas Paine with nine contemporary works that speak to the ongoing quest, as Paine wrote, “to begin the world over again.”

Stories Teiger Foundation Gift Advances AAP’s Teiger Mentor in the Arts Program

Tug boat pushing a dirt-filled barge covered with grass and trees.

Cornell AAP announces funding to continue the Teiger Mentor in the Arts program, which brings a remarkable slate of internationally acclaimed faculty artists to the college, including Spring 2026 Teiger Mentor Mary Mattingly.

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