The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) is a private college specializing in the visual arts and located in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Minnesota. MCAD currently enrolls approximately 800 students. MCAD is one of just a few major art schools to offer a major in

comic art ''Comic Art'' was a magazine, founded and edited by Todd Hignite, which surveyed newspaper comic strips, magazine cartoon panels and comic book art, both historical and contemporary. History and profile ''Comic Art'' was established in 2002. Th ...

History

MCAD was founded in 1886 by the trustees of the Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts and originally named the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts.

Douglas Volk Stephen Arnold Douglas Volk (February 23, 1856 – February 7, 1935) was an American portrait and figure painter, muralist, and educator. He taught at the Cooper Union, the Art Students League of New York, and was one of the founders of the Min ...

(1856–1935), an accomplished American portrait painter who studied in Paris with renowned French painter and sculptor

Jean-Léon Gérôme Jean-Léon Gérôme (11 May 1824 – 10 January 1904) was a French painter and sculptor in the style now known as academicism. His paintings were so widely reproduced that he was "arguably the world's most famous living artist by 1880." The ran ...

(1824–1904), became the school's first president. Its inaugural class was held in a rented apartment in downtown

and had an enrollment of 28 students, 26 of whom were women. In December 1889, the school found a more permanent home on the top floor of the just-finished

Minneapolis Public Library The Minneapolis Public Library (MPL) was a library system that served the residents of Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States. It was founded in 1885 with the establishment of the Minneapolis Library Board by an amendment to the Minneapolis ...

at 10th Street and Hennepin Avenue. In 1893, noted German-born painter and educator

Robert Koehler Robert Koehler (November 28, 1850 – April 23, 1917) was a German-born Painting, painter and art teacher who spent most of his career in the United States. Biography Koehler was born in Hamburg; his family spelled their name Köhler until ...

(1850–1917) moved from New York to Minnesota to become president of the school. Over the next ten years, he developed much of the curriculum that is known today as the art education field. By the turn of the century, the school had two instructors and had instituted a summer term, in addition to night classes for people in the community. In 1910, the School of Fine Arts changed its name to the Minneapolis School of Art to reflect the new emphasis on applied arts. In 1915, the school moved to its present location one mile south of downtown

, and set up its classrooms and studios within the newly constructed

Minneapolis Institute of Arts The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the largest art museums in the United Stat ...

. The site for the art museum and school was donated to the

City of Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

in 1911 by prominent local banker and businessman Clinton Morrison (1842–1913). It was formerly occupied by Villa Rosa, the home and estate of Morrison's parents

Dorilus Morrison Dorilus Morrison (December 27, 1814 – June 26, 1897) was an American banker, businessman, and Republican politician. He was the first and third Mayor of Minneapolis and was a member of the Minnesota Senate. Life and career Morrison was bor ...

(1814–1897), the first mayor of Minneapolis, and Harriet Putnam Whitmore Morrison (1821–1880). The site of the Morrison's former estate is today held in the public trust under the jurisdiction of the

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) is an independent park district that owns, maintains, and programs activities in public parks in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It has 500 full-time and 1,300 part-time employees and an $ ...

and is officially known as Dorilus Morrison Park. In 1916, the school moved into its own nearby facilities in the new Julia Morrison Memorial Building, which was built with funds provided to the Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts by Dr. Angus Washburn Morrison (1883–1949) and his sister, Ethel Morrison Van Derlip (1876–1921), as a memorial to their mother, Julia Kellogg Washburn Morrison (1853–1883), the wife of Clinton Morrison. Designed by prominent Minneapolis architect

Edwin Hawley Hewitt Edwin Hawley Hewitt (March 26, 1874 – August 11, 1939) was an Americans, American architect from Minnesota. In 1906, he designed the Edwin H. Hewitt House in the Stevens Square, Minneapolis, Stevens Square neighborhood of Minneapolis, listed on ...

(1874–1939), a former Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts president, the Morrison Building featured three large painting studios with skylights, administrative offices, workshops and an auditorium. In 1970, the School was renamed the Minneapolis College of Art and Design to reflect the broadening of its fine arts and liberal arts curricula. By this time, with enrollment of nearly 600 students, the college had outgrown its facilities, and in 1974 expanded into a building designed by Pritzker Prize–winning modernist architect

Kenzo Tange is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Kenzō can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *賢三, "wise, three" *健三, "healthy, three" *謙三, "humble, three" *健想, "healthy, concept" *建造, "bu ...

(1913–2005) as part of the new "arts complex" that included the

Children's Theatre Company The Children's Theatre Company is a regional theater established in 1965 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in plays for families, young audiences and the very young. The theater is the largest theater for multigenerational audiences in th ...

and a major addition to the

. On July 1, 1988, MCAD became a wholly independent institution, no longer governed by the Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts.

Academics

MCAD offers several degree programs. Bachelor of Fine Arts: The BFA program offers majors in Animation,

Comic Art ''Comic Art'' was a magazine, founded and edited by Todd Hignite, which surveyed newspaper comic strips, magazine cartoon panels and comic book art, both historical and contemporary. History and profile ''Comic Art'' was established in 2002. Th ...

, Drawing and Painting, Filmmaking, Fine Arts Studio, Furniture Design,

Graphic Design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art whose activity consists in projecting visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdiscipli ...

Illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vid ...

, Web And Multimedia Environments, Photography, Print Paper Book, Product Design, and Sculpture. Bachelor of Science: The

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

program offers a major in entrepreneurial studies. Continuing Education: MCAD offers a number of continuing studies courses for children, teens, and adults. Adult courses are available for both enrichment and professional development. Master of Fine Arts: The MFA program offers disciplines in the areas of Animation,

, Drawing, Filmmaking, Furniture Design,

, Interactive Media, Painting, Photography,

Printmaking Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed techniq ...

, Sculpture. It uses a mentor-based approach in which students select a mentor from a list of MCAD faculty and professional area artists, work one-on-one with their mentors discussing their goals as an artist, and develop strategies in studio art and liberal studies seminars to meet their needs. Master of Arts in Sustainable Design: Launched in 2004, MCAD's master of arts in sustainable design program was the first accredited online program, not exclusive to architecture, focusing on sustainability methodologies that can be applied to any effort. The program was developed and is taught by long-standing sustainability practitioners working in design and business, including members of Worldchanging, Biomimicry Guild, International Society of Sustainability Professionals, and the

Permaculture Permaculture is an approach to land management and settlement design that adopts arrangements observed in flourishing natural ecosystems. It includes a set of design principles derived using whole-systems thinking. It applies these principle ...

Guild. Master of Arts in Graphic and Web Design: MCAD's master of arts in graphic and web design is fully online. Courses cover design principles, typography, research, ideation, web design, programming, workflow management, and more.

Campus

MCAD is located at 2501 Stevens Avenue, just south of downtown Minneapolis. It shares an eighteen-acre arts campus with the

Minneapolis Institute of Art The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the largest art museums in the United State ...

and the

. The MCAD campus consists of eight buildings and three acres of lawns and gardens. *MCAD offers student apartments for on-campus living. **122 Units **10 efficiencies **63 one-bedrooms **40 two-bedrooms **9 three-bedrooms *43 percent are furnished The

Minneapolis Japanese School Minneapolis Japanese School (MJS; ミネアポリス日本語補習授業校 ''Mineaporisu Nihongo Hoshū jugyō kō'') is a Japanese weekend school in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. It is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to teach Pre- ...

, a weekend Japanese educational program designated by the

Japanese Ministry of Education The , also known as MEXT or Monka-shō, is one of the eleven Ministries of Japan that composes part of the executive branch of the Government of Japan. Its goal is to improve the development of Japan in relation with the international community ...

, previously held its classes at MCAD.

Galleries

MCAD operates one main gallery space, a gallery on the concourse, an outdoor sculpture garden, and the student-run Gallery 148. The college hosts contemporary art and design exhibitions, receptions, artist talks, and other events that are free and open to the public.

Enrollment

*Total undergrads: 650 *First-time degree-seeking freshmen: 140 *Graduate enrollment: 44

Notable alumni and faculty

Kinji Akagawa Kinji Akagawa (born 1940, Tokyo, Japan) is an American sculptor, printmaker, and arts educator best known for sculptural constructions that also serve a practical function. A pioneer in the public art movement, Akagawa has throughout his caree ...

: Sculptor, printmaker, and arts educator best known for sculptural constructions that also serve a practical function. * Henry Bannarn: Artist best known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance period. * Belle Baranceanu: Artist best known for her paintings and murals. * Tuesday Bassen: Designer best known for her eponymous label. * Patrick Jennings Brady: Artist best known for organizing the Cig Art benefits. *

Arnold Franz Brasz __NOTOC__ Arnold Franz Brasz (July 19, 1888 – April 1, 1966) was an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker who was born in Polk County, Wisconsin on July 19, 1888. He studied at the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts and also with Robert He ...

: Painter, sculptor, and printmaker. *

Sarina Brewer Sarina Brewer is a Minneapolis-based American artist known for her avant-garde taxidermy sculpture and her role in the popularization of taxidermy-related contemporary art. Brewer is one of the individuals responsible for the formation of the genr ...

: Sculptor known for her innovative use of taxidermy-related materials and the formation of the genre of Rogue Taxidermy Art. *

Esther Bubley Esther Bubley (February 16, 1921 – March 16, 1998) was an American photographer who specialized in expressive photos of ordinary people in everyday lives. She worked for several agencies of the American government and her work also featured in s ...

: Photographer who specialized in expressive photos of ordinary people in everyday lives. *

Margaret Gove Camfferman Margaret Gove Camfferman (1881 – 1964) was an American painter. She was born Margaret Gove in 1881 Rochester, Minnesota. She went on to study at the Minneapolis School of Fine Arts. In 1915 she moved to Whidbey Island, Washington, where she ma ...

: Painter *

James Casebere James Casebere (born 1953) is an American contemporary artist and photographer living in New York and Canaan, New York. Biography Casebere, born in Lansing, Michigan, grew up outside of Detroit. He attended Michigan State University and gradua ...

: Contemporary artist and photographer. *

Adolf Dehn Adolf Dehn (November 22, 1895 – May 19, 1968) was an American artist known mainly as a lithographer. Throughout his artistic career, he participated in and helped define some important movements in American art, including regionalism, social r ...

Lithographer Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

who helped define some important movements in American art, including Regionalism,

Social Realism Social realism is the term used for work produced by painters, printmakers, photographers, writers and filmmakers that aims to draw attention to the real socio-political conditions of the working class as a means to critique the power structure ...

, and caricature. *

Gregory Euclide Gregory Euclide (born 1974) is an American contemporary artist and teacher who lives and works outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Early life and education Born in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, (1974) and raised there before moving to Minnesota, his ric ...

Contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...

ist and teacher best known for creating the album artwork for ''Bon Iver'', winner of the

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

for

Best New Artist The Grammy Award for Best New Artist has been awarded since 1959. Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for records released in the previous year. The award was not presented in 1967. The official guidelines are as ...

. *

John Bernard Flannagan John Bernard Flannagan (April 7, 1895 – January 6, 1942) was an American sculptor. Along with Robert Laurent and William Zorach, he is known as one of the first practitioners of direct carving (also known as ''taille directe'') in the Unite ...

: One of the first practitioners of

direct carving This page describe terms and jargon related to sculpture and sculpting. __NOTOC__ A armature :An armature is an internal frame or skeleton which supports a modelled sculpture. A typical armature for a small sculpture is made of heavy gauge ...

(also known as ''taille directe'') in the United States. * Wanda Gág: Artist, author, translator, and illustrator most noted for writing and illustrating the children's book ''

Millions of Cats ''Millions of Cats'' is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Wanda Gág in 1928. The book won a Newbery Honor award in 1929, one of the few picture books to do so. ''Millions of Cats'' is the oldest American picture book still in ...

.'' * F. Keogh Gleason: Resident

set decorator The set decorator is the head of the set decoration department in the film and television industry, responsible for selecting, designing, fabricating, and sourcing the " set dressing" elements of each set in a Feature Film, Television, or New Media ...

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

studios for over 40 years * Samara Golden: Installation artist * Mary GrandPré: Illustrator best known for her cover and chapter illustrations of the ''

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

'' books in their U.S. editions published by Scholastic. * M.S. Harkness:

Cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and ...

created the graphic novels "Tinderella" and "Desperate Pleasures", featured in The New Yorker. *

Theodore Haupt Theodore Gilbert Haupt (1902–1990), was an American Modernism, Modernist painter, sculptor and muralist who melded cubism, Cubist with Surrealism, Surrealist elements. As a graphic designer, he achieved recognition for his ''The New Yorker, N ...

Modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

painter, sculptor, and muralist who achieved recognition for his ''

New Yorker New Yorker or ''variant'' primarily refers to: * A resident of the State of New York ** Demographics of New York (state) * A resident of New York City ** List of people from New York City * ''The New Yorker'', a magazine founded in 1925 * '' The ...

'' magazine covers. * Pao Houa Her (born 1982), photographer *

Dan Jurgens Dan Jurgens (; born June 27, 1959) is an American comic book writer and artist. He is known for his work on the DC comic book storyline "The Death of Superman" and for creating characters such as Doomsday, Hank Henshaw and Booster Gold. Jurgens ...

: Comic book writer and artist known for his lengthy runs on the

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

titles '' The Adventures of Superman'' and ''Superman'' (vol. 2). * Vance A. Larson: Abstract expressionist painter and portrait painter. * P. Scott Makela:

Graphic designer A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography, or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, ...

multimedia Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms such as text, audio, images, animations, or video into a single interactive presentation, in contrast to tradition ...

designer, and

type designer Type design is the art and process of designing typefaces. This involves drawing each letterform using a consistent style. The basic concepts and design variables are described below. A typeface differs from other modes of graphic production su ...

especially noted for the design of

Dead History Dead History is a typeface which explores combining structural elements of both geometric sans-serif and Didone (typography), Didone serif typefaces. History The Dead history typeface was designed in 1990 by P. Scott Makela and is licensed by Em ...

, a postmodern typeface. *

Mark Mallman Mark Mallman (born July 20, 1973) is a Minnesota musician, film composer, and memoirist. Since 1998, he has released nine full-length studio albums, ''Happiness'' (2021) being his most recent. Education Mallman graduated from Waukesha South Hi ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

musician and composer for film. * Linus Maurer:

, illustrator and

puzzle A puzzle is a game, Problem solving, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together (Disentanglement puzzle, or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at th ...

designer. *

Jin Meyerson Jin Meyerson (born 1972, Incheon, South Korea) is an American artist previously based in Brooklyn, New York, later dividing his time between Paris and Seoul. Biography Born in Incheon, South Korea, and given up for adoption during the Korean W ...

: Artist with a disposition for large-scale painting of high detail. *

Chris Monroe Christine Monroe (born April 17, 1962) is an American cartoonist, illustrator, and author best known for her weekly comic strip “Violet Days,” which appears in the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Duluth News Tribune. "Violet Days" has been in pri ...

: Cartoonist, illustrator, and author best known for her weekly comic strip "Violet Days.” * George Morrison: Landscape painter and sculptor and part of a circle of abstract expressionists. *

Lisa Nankivil Lisa Nankivil (born 1958, Minneapolis, Minn.) is a contemporary American painter and printmaker. Life and work Nankivil grew up in Winona, Minnesota, an historic Mississippi River town located in the bluff country of southwest Minnesota, wher ...

: Best known for her non-representational striped-format oil paintings and abstract

monoprints Monoprinting is a type of printmaking where the intent is to make unique prints, that may explore an image serially. Other methods of printmaking create editioned multiples, the monoprint is editioned as 1 of 1. There are many techniques of mono-p ...

. *

Patricia Olson Patricia Olson (born 1951) is an American graphic designer, painter, feminist artist, and educator whose works are categorized as figurative art. Olson was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She earned her B.A. in studio art from Macal ...

: Graphic designer, painter,

feminist art Feminist art is a category of art associated with the late 1960s and 1970s feminist movement. Feminist art highlights the societal and political differences women experience within their lives. The hopeful gain from this form of art is to bri ...

ist, and educator whose works are categorized as figurative art. * Clara Elsene Peck: Illustrator and painter known for her illustrations of women and children in the early 20th century. *

Tania del Rio Tania del Rio (born November 16) is an American cartoonist working mainly in comic books. She is a graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with a BFA in animation. In 2003, Tania's manga entry, ''Lovesketch'', was selected to a ...

working mainly in comic books who has worked for Archie Comics. *

James Rosenquist James Rosenquist (November 29, 1933 – March 31, 2017) was an American artist and one of the proponents of the pop art movement. Drawing from his background working in sign painting, Rosenquist's pieces often explored the role of advertising a ...

: Artist and one of the protagonists in the pop-art movement. * John Howard Sanden: Portrait artist whose subjects include former President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

and First Lady Laura Bush.Maurer, 1926–2016, url=http://www.sonomanews.com/news/5179817-181/linus-maurer-1926-2016?artslide=0, publisher=Sonoma Index-Tribune, accessdate=November 27, 2017 *

Paul Shambroom Paul Shambroom (born 1956) is an American photographer and graduate from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design whose work explores power in its various forms. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a grant from the Creative Capi ...

: Photographer whose work explores power in its various forms. *

Aaron Spangler Aaron Spangler (born 1971, Minneapolis, Minnesota) is a sculptor and printmaker who lives and works in Park Rapids, Minnesota. Life He attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, earning his BFA degree in 1993. He is represented by ...

: Sculptor and printmaker whose sculptures are carved from solid blocks of

basswood ''Tilia americana'' is a species of tree in the family Malvaceae, native to eastern North America, from southeast Manitoba east to New Brunswick, southwest to northeast Oklahoma, southeast to South Carolina, and west along the Niobrara River to ...

and finished with coats of black gesso and

graphite Graphite () is a crystalline form of the element carbon. It consists of stacked layers of graphene. Graphite occurs naturally and is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Synthetic and natural graphite are consumed on large ...

. *

Adrien Stoutenburg Adrien Stoutenburg (December 1, 1916 – April 14, 1982) was an American poet and a prolific writer of juvenile literature. Her poetry collection ''Heroes, Advise Us'' was the 1964 Lamont Poetry Selection. Life Stoutenburg was born in Darfur ...

: Poet and prolific writer of juvenile literature whose poetry collection ''Heroes, Advise Us'' was the 1964

Lamont Poetry Selection The Academy of American Poets is a national, member-supported organization that promotes poets and the art of poetry. The nonprofit organization was incorporated in the state of New York in 1934. It fosters the readership of poetry through outreach ...

. * Piotr Szyhalski: poster designer and multimedia artist. *

Pete Wagner Pete Wagner (born January 26, 1955) is an American political cartoonist, activist, author, scholar and caricature artist whose work has been published in over 300 newspapers and other periodicals. His cartoons and activist theatrics have been the ...

: Political cartoonist, activist, author, scholar, and caricature artist whose work has been the subject of controversy and frequent media attention. *

Ben Willmore Ben Willmore is an American photographer, author and founder of Digital Mastery, a training and consulting firm that specializes in photography and Photoshop. He is best known for his digital imaging expertise and for writing the book Photoshop St ...

: Photographer, author, and entrepreneur best known for his

Digital Imaging Digital imaging or digital image acquisition is the creation of a digital representation of the visual characteristics of an object, such as a physical scene or the interior structure of an object. The term is often assumed to imply or include ...

expertise and for writing the book ''Photoshop Studio Techniques''.

References

External links

Official website
{{Coord, 44, 57, 25.95, N, 93, 16, 29.6, W, type:landmark_region:US, display=title Culture of Minneapolis Art schools in Minnesota Universities and colleges in Minneapolis Educational institutions established in 1886 Private universities and colleges in Minnesota 1886 establishments in Minnesota Art museums and galleries in Minnesota