Game Art
Express yourself through media in the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Game Art program at University of the Arts in Philadelphia.
In Game Art, our media are 2-D and 3-D graphics and immersive and interactive technologies. Using the tools of game design and gamification, you can become a visionary leader in fields as diverse as city planning, medical visualization and virtual tourism.
Games are a synthesis of film, theater, graphics, music, animation and fine art skills. Because UArts students can minor in more than 30 programs, we mold fine artists capable of
- multimedia installations in galleries;
- visualization at the forefront of technology;
- and the development of innovative, expressive indie games for app stores.
That kind of synthesis helped a recent UArts student work on a game that won the Independent Games Festival Award for Best Student Game.
UArts will also open a 5,600-square-foot Center for Immersive Media by 2020, with studios dedicated to motion-capture and immersive technologies like augmented and virtual reality.
And because you’re more complex than just one discipline or medium, the Game Art program lets you study what you love while also taking a minimum of 15 credits in other areas, such as audio electronics, painting or literature.
Students immerse themselves in the foundations of game art: Drawing, 3D Design and Concept Development. Learn to enhance your models and environments with convincing textures, lighting and visual effects.
Game Art is a synthesis of storytelling, graphics, sound & music, cinema & theater, animation, and fine art skills. With its rich multidisciplinary history, UArts is the perfect environment to mold the Game Artist of the future.
— Erik Van Horn, Program Director
Game Art
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Erik VanHorn
Game Art
Digital Art Director, 'Magic: The Gathering'; Disney Animation Studios
Jeremy Maas
Game Art
Designer of applications, games and experiences
Rob Shields
Game Art
Game designer, illustrator and comics artist
Jason Corbett
BFA '15
Member of the winning team of the Philadelphia Museum of Art's 2017 Hackathon
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Mac Rose
BFA ’20
Game Art
Sample Courses in the Game Art Major
First Year
Drawing: Objects & Space
Drawing: Natural Forms & The Human Figure
Image/Time
Color
Object/Environment
Body as Form
Second Year
Introduction to Design
Computer Art Studio
Programming for Creatives
Virtual 3D Environments I
Introduction to Computer Animation
Third Year
3D I: Introduction
3D II: Advanced Modeling and Lighting
3D III: Advanced Character Animation
Game Concepts
Virtual 3D Environments II
Professional Practices
Fourth Year
Senior Studio
Design Internship
About the Curriculum
The Game Art program utilizes a cross-college, interdisciplinary framework to create skillful virtual 3D artists who can create compelling, complex digital worlds from concept through realization. Our approach balances the development of the artist’s creative voice with in-depth, systematic, progressive technical instruction. Students are exposed to broad historical contexts in order to develop rich aesthetics that push the boundaries of imagination. By emphasizing the artistic components of immersive media creation, we are able to re-think and re-frame the visualization of game worlds and experiences. Students will be prepared to be effective creative partners, whether serving as part of a small indie-game development team or working on a large AAA title.
Students who complete the Game Art program will demonstrate ability to:
- Utilize 3D-game development tools and systems to produce technically competent works of art;
- Imagine and express creative, innovative, visually engaging virtual worlds and characters;
- Participate and collaborate successfully as effective members of creative development teams;
- Develop meaningful 3D virtual objects, characters and worlds across a wide range of aesthetic styles, while adapting to rapid changes in industry.
To explore the full curriculum, click here.
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