An hour away, the Memphis metro area is an important arts community in the nation.
In the Northern Delta
- Studio 230
- Stan Streets Hambone Art Gallery
- Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art
- McCarty Pottery
- Peter’s Pottery
North Mississippi/Tupelo
Undergraduate Programs in Art & Art History
The Department of Art & Art History at the University of Mississippi offers three undergraduate degree programs.
Earn a Degree In An Innovative & Creative Field
Bachelor of Arts in Art History
As an art history major, you will study art across a wide range of media, cultures, and periods while you learn about the historical, social, and political contexts. You gain critical thinking and communication skills by conducting research to discern the ideas conveyed by art. A few studio art courses provide a solid understanding of the methods and techniques used to produces visual art.
Students completing the BA in Art History complete the general education courses, courses for the major in art history, and a minor field of study. The more popular minors chosen by our recent art history students include English, art, classics, business, and French. We expect the new Museum Studies interdisciplinary minor to be very popular!
Bachelor of Arts in Art
The Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree has a deeper and wider general education foundation than the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree. The BA degree provides flexibility for combining the study of art with another field of study through a required minor. Both degrees have a similar art foundation, with the BA students using their art electives to focus on the studio area of their choice or sample various media of studio art, including ceramics, graphic design, painting, printmaking & imaging arts, and sculpture. It is a broad, flexible degree that provides an art education in the context of the liberal arts.
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art
Students seeking professional portfolios will pursue the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (BFA). This degree allows for a concentration in expanded media arts or fine art with the emphases below.
Expanded Media Arts Concentration:
Graphic Design Printmaking & Imaging Arts
Fine Art Concentration:
Ceramics Painting Sculpture
Entrance to the BFA: Students can choose to enter the BFA Studio Art program during the regular UM admissions process. After completing the foundation core and having a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 and 2.5 GPA in all art and art history courses, BFA students participate in the BFA Foundations Review to stay in the BFA degree.
BFA candidates are required to present an exhibition during their senior year that demonstrates their achievement in developing a mature and cohesive body of creative work. The BFA degree is also the foundation for graduate study.
Art History
Learn about monuments, significant artists, and artistic periods in Western and non-Western cultures.
Ceramics
Our students learn to use clay as an artistic medium: throwing, building, molding, glazing and firing.
Graphic Design
Graphic design is an artistic and commercial discipline that balances technical ability and skills in artful presentation.
Painting
Students learn to work in diverse styles of representational, imaginative, and abstract painting.
Printmaking & Imaging Arts
Printmaking is the process of ink transferring from a matrix to material. Imaging arts processes are both analog and digital.
Sculpture
Sculpture encourages the creating, shaping, or combining of three-dimensional objects through a variety of media.
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Featured Art & Art History Courses
See a few examples of courses offered in the Department of Art & Art History.
Featured Art & Art History Courses -
Resources & Scholarships
Find out about the generous scholarship opportunities for art and art history students and student success resources available at the department, college, and university levels.
Resources & Scholarships -
Careers & Alumni
Our graduate programs focus on advanced technical skills while fostering engagement with contemporary practices.
Careers & Alumni
Beyond the Classroom
Clubs
Learning art is more than what’s learned in the traditional studio courses. Students can join the activities of the these student organizations: Vasari Society, Mud Daubers, GRID (Getting Rebels into Design), Pixel Press: Printmaking + Photography Club, and The UM Sculpture Society.
Art Talks
In addition to the many artists who visit campus through our clubs, the department also has an established visiting artist program called Art Talks. This program creates access to artists in person and via webcam, and helps students and faculty to keep pace with critical thought, contemporary artistic practice, and emerging technology used in cultural production today.
Study Abroad
Art and art history majors have exciting opportunities to experience the art and architecture abroad. They can arrange their own study abroad experience through the Office of Study Abroad. Or, they can travel with UM faculty. One possibility is the formal course titled Art on Location, where UM faculty can take a course of students to different locations around the US and abroad.
Internships
"The internship with Ole Miss Liberal Arts set such a great foundation for life after graduation. Not only did this internship provide experience in a professional setting, I learned valuable skills that have carried over to my current position as a graphic, web, and UI/UX designer. Working with a team of leadership and fellow designers allowed for a foundation of collaboration, versatility, and continuous learning. I gained further expertise in the Adobe Creative Suite as well as a background in WordPress. This experience strengthened my resume and helped me feel comfortable and confident entering the work force. Providing professional experience, collaboration, new skills, and development, the internship with Ole Miss allowed me to land a job (Graphic and Web Designer at Buffalo Rehab Group Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy P.C.) I love right out of college."
Alexa Tamburlin
B.F.A. in Art (Graphic Design) '23
UM Museum
In the museum, you can study the David M. Robinson Collection of Greek and Roman Antiquities, one of the finest collections in the United States. Covering the 1000-year period from 800 B.C. to around A.D. 300, the collection contains Greek and Roman sculpture, Greek decorated pottery, inscriptions, architectural fragments, inscribed Sumerian clay tablets, small artifacts in terracotta and bronze, and Roman copies of Greek art works.
Double Decker Arts Festival
This annual festival in late April boasts a crowd of more than 60,000 people in a two-day format with nearly two hundred art and food vendors, while a generous mix of both local and touring musicians take to the stage. Inspired by the Double Decker bus imported from England in 1994, the festival showcases Oxford as a town that supports the arts.
Art in Our Community
Oxford, Mississippi is an amazing place to live. Located 70 miles from Memphis and surrounded by the natural beauty of Northern Mississippi, Oxford boasts thriving music, art, and literary scenes along with great restaurants. University of Mississippi athletics provides many opportunities to watch and participate in sports—and one of the world’s best tailgating parties. Click links for many more Oxford attractions and things to do. With everything Oxford offers, it’s no wonder USA Today names Oxford as one of the Top Six College Towns in the Nation. Come see why.
YAC ensures a place for arts in the community and offers a diverse range of programs, professional development services, and support to serve both artists and residents in Lafayette County. Programs offer opportunities and resources for students and emerging artists while providing support to over 20 different arts organizations including live theatre, dance, concerts, creative arts classes, culinary experiences, film screenings, festivals, and more.
The Oxford Film Festival celebrates the art of independent cinema while raising the understanding of cinema through screenings, workshops and educational programs, culminating in the annual five-day festival. Founded in 2003 by the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council, audiences can now see over 200 quality films from across the globe, including short and feature-length films in both showcase and competition settings. The festival also hosts panel discussions on issues in contemporary filmmaking, and invites the filmmakers to interact with the audience at a number of social events.
Featuring a rotating exhibit of 17-20 large-scale sculptures by locally, regionally, and nationally renowned exhibiting artists, this collaboration between the City of Oxford, The University of Mississippi, the UM Museum and the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council and is the first outdoor sculpture program of its kind in North Mississippi.