Art Schools

Art school is a colloquial term for any educational institution (whether secondary, post-secondary/undergraduate, or graduate/postgraduate) with a primary focus on the visual arts, especially graphic design, illustration, painting, photography, and sculpture. They are distinguished from larger institutions which may also offer majors or degrees in the visual arts, but only as one part of a broad-based range of programs (such as the liberal arts and sciences).

If accredited as a college, most art schools grant a Bachelor of Fine Arts, or a Fine Art B.A. in the United Kingdom, and perhaps other degrees.

Art schools in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, an indefinite number of such institutions exist, differing in size, number and administration.

Perhaps those generally felt most applicable to the definition of 'art school', however, are the autonomous Colleges or Schools of Art offering courses across both further and higher education boundaries, of which there are approximately eighteen, under the banner of United Kingdom Art & Design Institutions Association. Others, whose existence ties in indelibly with that of larger, non-discipline-specific universities (such as the Slade School of Art) exist. Most art schools of either orientation are equipped to offer opportunities spanning from post-16 to postgraduate level.

The range of colleges span from predominantly further education establishments to research-led specialist institutes; the Royal College of Art with its degree-awarding arm and singular focus on postgraduate awards being a most singular exception.

Since the 1970s, degrees have replaced diplomas as the top-tier qualification in the field. In the case of wholly freestanding institutions, degree validation agreements in liasion with a university have long been the custom for B.A. (Hons) level upwards. There has been a general trend for all-encompassing Universities to offer programs in the visual arts, and formerly independent art schools have merged with polytechnics and universities to offer such degrees. A few art schools have taken on university status themselves; both London's Royal College of Art and the University of the Arts maintain their specialist focus and offer degrees under their own banner.

Most specialist institutions in the United Kingdom can trace their histories back to the 19th century or beyond, not unusually as Government Schools of Design / Art.

Academies of Art

Academy of Art University (United States), the largest private school of art and design in the United States, located in San Francisco, California

China Academy of Art (China), an art school of mainland China, founded in 1928 by the government of Republic of China

Cranbrook Academy of Art (United States), a school of architecture and design, founded in 1932, located in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

Iceland Academy of Arts (Iceland), an arts school which offers education in arts at university level

Imperial Academy of Arts (Russia), a Russian art institution founded in 1757 which has played a variety of roles in the artistic life of Russia

Iranian Academy of the Arts (Iran), an organization whose aim is preservation and development of Iranian and local arts

Royal Academy (United Kingdom), an independent fine arts institution based in London

Royal Swedish Academy of Arts (Sweden), an independent organization acting to promote painting, sculpting, building and the other visual arts

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