Department of Visual and Literary Arts

110 Visual Arts Building, (307) 766-3269
Web site: https://www.uwyo.edu/vla/
Department Head: Doug Russell

Art and Art History Program

110 Visual Arts Building, (307) 766-3269
Web site: https://www.uwyo.edu/art/
Program Director: Doug Russell

Professors:

ASHLEY HOPE CARLISLE, B.F.A. University of Southern Mississippi 1997; M.F.A. University of Georgia 2002; Professor of Art 2019, 2003.

LEAH HARDY, B.F.A. Kansas University 1987; M.F.A. Indiana University 1990; Professor of Art 2014, 2002.

RICKI KLAGES, B.F.A. University of Arizona 1984; M.A. University of New Mexico 1991; M.F.A. 1993; Professor of Art 2012, 1996.

MARK RITCHIE, B.F.A. University of Kansas 1986; M.F.A. Indiana University 1990; Professor of Art 2007, 1995.

DOUG RUSSELL, B.F.A. Columbia College 1990; M.A. University of Iowa 1995; M.F.A. 1996; Professor of Art 2019, 2005.

Associate Professors:

DIANA BAUMBACH, B.F.A. Washington University in St. Louis 2003; M.F.A. Southern Illinois University 2007; Associate Professor of Art 2015, 2009.

PETER FINE, B.A. California State University, Chico 1993; M.F.A. University of Arizona 2004; Associate Professor of Art 2017, 2013.

BRANDON GELLIS, B.A. University of California at Santa Cruz 2002; M.F.A. University of Denver 2015; Associate Professor of Art 2021, 2015.

RACHEL SAILOR, B.A. Oregon State University 1992; M.A. University of Oregon 1994; Ph.D. University of Iowa 2007; Associate Professor of Art 2015, 2011.

SHELBY SHADWELL, B.F.A. Washington University in St. Louis 2003; M.F.A. Southern Illinois University 2007; Associate Professor of Art 2015, 2010.

Assistant Professor:

KATHLEEN FRYE, B.F.A. University of Colorado at Denver 1987; M.F.A. Colorado State University 1995; M.A. City College, New York; Assistant Professor of Art 2018.

Associate Academic Professional Lecturer:

BAILEY RUSSEL, B.A. Princeton University 2001; M.A. New York University 2004.

Senior Academic Professional Research Scientist:

DAVID L. JONES Jr., B.F.A. University of Georgia 2000; M.F.A. University of Tennessee 2004.

Assistant Academic Professional Lecturer:

RANI ROBISON, B.A. University of Utah 1999; M.F.A. University of Oregon 2008.

Professors Emeriti:

Deaderick, Edwards, Evans, Flach, Forrest, Reif, Russin (Distinguished Professor of Art), Schaefer, Haydon

Art and Art History

The Art and Art History Program within the Department of Visual and Literary Arts supports the creative, aesthetic and cultural development of students within the university community and serves the cultural and educational needs of the state. The department is dedicated to preparing its graduates to assume leadership positions in their professional lives while maintaining an inner commitment to the aesthetic standards of their chosen discipline.

The program fosters a unique combination of innovation, tradition, aestheticism and practicality, by providing a professional visual arts education built on a strong University Studies Program (USP) foundation.

Department Policy

A class within the Art and Art History Program within the Department of Visual and Literary Arts may require additional meeting times, so that students may fully participate in the Visiting Artist Program and the UWAM lecture series.

As a matter of policy, the Department of Visual and Literary Arts reserves the right to retain any works created by students it deems worthy for the purposes of exhibition until the end of the academic year.

The Department of Visual and Literary Arts studios are the primary instructional classrooms. As a matter of policy, access to the studios and use of the equipment is reserved for students who are formally registered for scheduled courses and are following a prescribed curriculum.

Scholarships

The department has several scholarships for qualified students at all stages in the program. See the Department of Visual and Literary Arts website for a full list of scholarships.

Academic and Career Advisement

Faculty advisers work closely with department students to guide and direct their progress through their declared degree program and course of study. Through the visiting Artist Program, the UW Art Museum and internship placements, the department provides numerous opportunities and role models for a professional life in the visual arts. Through consultation and discussion with faculty advisers, art students consider their interests and abilities in relation to the many and varied careers in the arts and art related fields. Many graduates go directly into industry, on to pursue graduate studies or take the next step in their career plan. On a competitive basis upon graduation, majors may participate in the Post Undergraduate Assistantship Program where they may prepare a portfolio for graduate school and/or gain additional experience in the studio and the classroom setting.

Undergraduate Majors

The University of Wyoming Department of Visual and Literary Arts offers five degrees within the Art and Art History Program:

Bachelor of Arts in Art History
Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art
Bachelor of Arts in Art Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Communication Design

Transfer Residency

A minimum of 26 hours of upper-division course work in the major is required to establish residency in the department for all transfer students. This applies to students in all five of the B.F.A., B.A., and Art Education degree programs who transfer in 12 or more hours of art courses for the major. Students in all art programs must meet the university requirement of at least 42 hours of course work at the upper-division level (3000- and above).

Studio Art and Art Education Majors - General Requirements

ART 1005, 1110, 1120 and 1130 are considered an important preparation and prerequisite for drawing, painting, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture and graphic design courses and are required freshman courses for the major. Studio Art and Art Education Majors must complete the Foundation Core Hours before electing upper division courses in any studio area. ART 2010, 2020, and 2305 are required sophomore courses.

Once sophomore Art Studio and Art Education majors complete course prerequisites, they select a minimum of four courses from the studio core hours. Most of the university and college requirements should be completed as early as possible before the senior year. The department will enforce published prerequisites for courses.

Studio Art, Visual Communication Design, and Art Education majors must submit a portfolio for evaluation before proceeding to intermediate and advanced studios beyond the required studio core. Any student whose portfolio is assessed as deficient must address the deficiencies before receiving permission to advance in the major.

Please note: Studio Art and Art Education students who do not pass the portfolio review will be able to resubmit the following semester. However, if students fail more than once, they will be unable to progress in the Department of Visual and Literary Arts and may be asked to transfer to another department or UW college or complete an art minor. Portfolio evaluation will occur once in each of the fall, spring, and summer semesters.

Undergraduate Minors

Minors are offered in the following areas:

Art History
Ceramics
Digital Media
Drawing
Metalsmithing
Museum Studies
Painting
Photography
Printmaking
Sculpture

Further information may be found on the department’s website.

Please note: B.A. in Studio Art, B.F.A. in Studio Art, B.F.A. in Visual Communication Design and B.A. in Art Education degree students cannot have a minor in a specific studio discipline. B.A. in Art History students may have a minor in studio disciplines, and B.A. in Studio Art, B.F.A. in Studio Art, B.F.A. in Visual Communication Design, and B.A. in Art Education degree students may have a minor in Art History and/or Museum Studies.

Creative Writing Program

201 Hoyt Hall, (307) 766-6453
FAX: (307) 766-3189
Web site: www.uwyo.edu/creativewriting/
Program Director: Val Pexton

Professors:

ALYSON HAGY, B.A. Williams College 1982; M.F.A. University of Michigan 1985; Professor of Creative Writing 2008, 1996.

HARVEY HIX, B.A. Belmont College 1982; M.A. University of Texas, Austin 1985; Ph.D. 1987; Professor of Philosophy and Creative Writing 2015.

FRIEDA E. KNOBLOCH, B.A. Cornell University 1985; Ph.D. University of Minnesota 1994; Professor of American Studies and Creative Writing 2014, 1997.

JEFFREY A. LOCKWOOD, B.S. New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology 1982; Ph.D. Louisiana State University 1985; Professor of Philosophy and Creative Writing 2006.

Associate Professors:

KATE NORTHROP, B.A. University of Pennsylvania 1991; M.F.A. University of Iowa 1995; Associate Professor of Creative Writing 2008.

Senior Lecturers:

APRIL HEANEY, B.A. University of Wyoming 1998; M.A. 2000. Senior Lecturer in English and Creative Writing 2015, 2005.

VAL PEXTON, B.A. Humboldt State University 1986; B.A. University of Wyoming 1998; M.A. 2001; M.F.A. 2008; Senior Lecturer in English and Creative Writing 2018, 2009.

PAUL BERGSTRAESSER, B.A. Oberlin College 1989; M.A. Northern Michigan University 2000; Ph.D. University of Illinois, Chicago 2007; Senior Lecturer in English and Creative Writing 2018, 2007.

Creative Writing

We are writers. Our principles follow from what claims us as writers as we guide our students in the creation of their own work. We offer a commitment to art and to the development of community through art. We offer an immersion in making, a chance to discover, to create serious work without pretense, to collaborate, to shake off assumptions and anxieties.

To be first and foremost concerned with making does not mean we take refuge from the world. It means we begin by supporting the deepest, most intelligent engagement with what matters to us as writers. A critical distance from the literary and academic marketplaces allows us to engage with them in a more thoughtful manner once we have found our authentic calling-that which we are truly compelled to explore. Our values will never map perfectly onto the concerns of institutions, and that is good. We strive to create the finest conditions for the making of art when we remain in an eccentric orbit of our own, one that overlaps with the other orbits, yet remains, as much as possible, guided by our own principles which include:

Making: we require the serious, committed, ongoing process of writing and revision.

Range: we cultivate a diversity of taste, form, genre, experience, and background, as well as an open understanding of what might constitute professional accomplishment.

Flexibility: we invite our writers to pursue their own creative and intellectual goals, to tailor the program in individual ways.

Curiosity: we urge creative and intellectual roaming: cross-genre work, interdisciplinary study, the movement across what are usually understood as boundaries; we encourage students to imagine possibilities beyond what is already imagined for them by the program and the university.

Community: we foster an environment that sustains listening, investment in the work of others, collaboration, rigorous expectation, generosity and, at the same time, respect for solitude.

Integrity: we challenge students to engage in deep investigation, to find their intent as a writer and to commit to it fully.

Graduate Study

The Creative Writing Master of Fine Arts offers two areas of concentration: fiction and creative non-fiction.

Program Specific Admission Requirements

In addition to the minimum requirements set forth in this Catalog, the Creative Writing M.F.A. Program requires that students demonstrate by means of an official transcript that they have a solid undergraduate record. The M.F.A. program welcomes degrees in any discipline from four-year colleges or universities. Candidates submit three letters of recommendation, a writing sample consisting of no more than 25 pages of prose, a 500-word statement of purpose and a vita. Students should consult the M.F.A. web site or contact the department for specific admission information and deadlines.

Program Specific Graduate Assistantships

We are a fully-funded program, meaning that we accept only as many students as we can support with graduate assistantships. Full assistantships carry an annual stipend and tuition waiver, and require the teaching of one section per semester, or equivalent work assignment. M.F.A. students are expected to teach freshman English.

Each fall, the English department conducts a week-long orientation for new teaching assistants and a subsequent series of colloquia. Each graduate assistant is assigned to an experienced teacher in the English department as a mentor, to be available throughout the semester for consultation on teaching and grading techniques.

Programs

Major

Minor

Graduate

Creative Writing, M.F.A.

Courses

Art

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