Saturday, October 27, 2011

Design Criticism MFA Department
School of Visual Arts
136 West 21st Street, New York, NY

The 2011 Open House at the D-Crit Department at the School of Visual Arts was an afternoon of presentations and informal discussion about this exciting two-year graduate program. Watch the video if you missed the event in person: Current students spoke about their D-Crit experiences so far, such as what it’s like to produce a podcast for Kurt Andersen, to get behind-the-scenes access at the Brooklyn Navy Yards with architecture critic Karrie Jacobs, to lift up the hood and study the mechanics of industrial design history with Russell Flinchum, or to create their own blogs with New York Observer editor-in-chief Elizabeth Spiers.

Faculty members Andrea Codrington Lippke, Steven Heller, and Karen Stein shared highlights from their classes—Criticism Lab, Researching Design, and The Design Book Workshop, respectively, and D-Crit chair Alice Twemlow gave an overview of the program, which trains students to research, analyze, and evaluate design and its social and environmental implications, to develop their writerly voices, and to explore a range of media for reaching their publics.

A selection of recent graduates of the program talked about how they landed plum jobs and how they are deploying skills learned at D-Crit in their daily work as design writers, editors, educators, researchers, curators, and managers. And designer Massimo Vignelli reflected on what has been achieved since he wrote the essay “Call for Criticism” in 1983, and what are the priorities for today’s emerging design critics.

If you were unable to attend the Open House, we are happy to arrange another time for you to tour the department and to attend a class or a Tuesday evening lecture. The department chair is always available to discuss your application with you. The deadline to apply is Friday, January 20, 2012.

For more info about the program, download the D-Crit section of the SVA Graduate Catalog, or fill out SVA’s online form to have a catalog sent to you via mail. If you have specific questions and would like to speak to us directly, feel free to contact Emily Weiner at eweiner1@sva.edu or 212.592.2228.