Kirstin
What is the best high quality art school in the world that is not Julliard?
I am a sophomore in high school that is interested in an artistic career that involves makeup, special effects makeup and art in general like painting, drawing and design. I want to attend a top notch art school that will truly lead me to a successful career that makes my artwork noticed in this lifetime. With this information it will help me look into the best school i can. Not a lot of people are really interested in the art career like i am because of it's pay-grade. Making it difficult to find one . I am a self taught artist that began making art before i even knew what it was. I knew it was a thing in school where we can make things and get creative. Now i know there is more to it and i want to be a part of it. #art #fine-art #artist #makeup-artist #professional-makeup-artist #special-effects #special-effects
2 answers
Eric Vincent
Eric’s Answer
Hi Kirstin,
That's really not the easiest question to answer because 'the best' doesn't mean its a high end school. I work part time as a Teaching Assistant in a local community college, Graphic Design program, and I have students who have attended Pratt and Parsons in NYC who leave there because for their Associates Degree they could gain the same education for less money. We also did a tour of School of Visual Arts and found that our local community collage had 90% of the same equipment they did. Our teachers and professors all hail from the finest schools, such as Columbia, FIT, Pratt, Tish.
The name and reputation of the institution will certainly give you more clout as you apply for positions, but consider your entry into college for your associates as step one and look for schools that have strong educators and programs at a low cost. This will allow you to gain the prerequisites and baseline art education with minimal dollar output and gain the same knowledge base you might at a more prestigious university, in those initial years. It also allows you to make mistakes, build a portfolio for a more prestigious university, and position yourself for a better chance at acceptance if you happen to apply to a very competitive school.
With that said, best art schools is also a matter of opinion. Some would say Parsons is superior to Tish, but others would argue Tish is the best school because it's part of NYU. Still one might say that Columbia is better if you're heading into arts education while others might argue Princeton. What you need to do is to look at all the art schools and create your own definition of what's best based on what your needs are.
Are you going to major in art history with a minor in studio arts so you can work in a museum, or are you going to major in graphic design and minor in studio arts? Are you going to want a digital arts component or maybe you are heading towards education. All these questions you ask yourself will help to develop your own personal profile that you can then look at schools such as FIT, Academy of Arts University, Parsons and so on.
Look at your career path and build what you want and then look at the various schools to see which best fits your trajectory. Do not be enamoured by a name, find the education that fits. A name is only a small part of your education, your portfolio and experience will be equally if not more valuable.
Brooklyn Cobb
Brooklyn’s Answer
I am hoping I am not responding to this too late... according to my calculations you are in your Spring semester of your Senior year!
Art schools are complicated because unlike traditional universities, it seems the curriculum varies a lot per institution. I currently attend a 4 year art program at a private art school and despite it's price, I find that the experience I am receiving is one I would not be able to pursue in a traditional state university.
Like Eric said, "best" is a hard word to apply to art schools because they do vary so much. It is important to find a school which offers the kinds of classes you are interested in and will allow you to pursue different mediums and techniques! This looks different for everyone, but I knew that I wanted to take mostly photography classes but also wanted to take printmaking classes, which is something my school offers.
I know that this may not be a completely satisfactory answer to your question, but please reach out and I would be glad to look at specific schools for you. I believed SCAD does have a special effects makeup program as well as traditional painting and drawing classes, etc.
Goodluck!