Related Information
Contact:
800.345.SFAI
Contact:
800.345.SFAI
Photography
The Photography Department’s legacy at SFAI is that of excellence and innovative practices, which situates photography within the realm of “fine art.” The program was established in 1945 by Ansel Adams, who was followed by Minor White and a coterie of highly respected artists of the medium, including Imogen Cunningham, Lisette Model, Edward Weston, and Dorothea Lange.
From then until now, for over sixty years, the Department of Photography has been an exceptional and highly esteemed place for the teaching, learning, and practice of the medium as art. Today, it functions as a fulcrum, balancing import with a spirit of inquiry into the medium’s future. The inventive malleable education and practices in photography at SFAI continue with a distinguished faculty, widely recognized as influential figures in the field, practicing all facets of contemporary aesthetics of the medium.
Whether an image from pinhole or pixel, the attentive curriculum challenges one to: experiment, practice innovative risk, and create a unique ‘visual voice’. This is verified by the belief that essential technical skill, acute knowledge of the medium’s history, and support of an individual’s perception of reality are essential to the development of artistic vision and expression.
Facilities
The Photography Department provides private and group darkrooms with
Saunders and Beseler enlargers to print from 35 mm to 8x10 inch negatives; a 42-inch Kreonite KM IV color processor; a mural room for making prints up to 96x96 inches; a 30x40 inch UV light exposure unit for alternative processes; filtered and temperature controlled water for film processing; a fully equipped lighting studio; matt-cutting facilities; a copy workroom; a digital darkroom with regularly calibrated monitors, Macintosh G5s and Epson and Nikon scanners; a classroom with dual processor Mac G5's with Epson printers; Digital SLRs, 35mm Medium Format, 4x5, and 8x10 cameras and lighting available to students for checkout as well as exhibition spaces for the display of student work. Download PDF [308k] of darkroom facilities.
Other Resources
The Bay Area has major museums, galleries, and many alternative exhibition venues. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and UC Bancroft Library have some of the largest collections of photographs in the world; SF Camerawork is a renowned alternative gallery for photography; and a number of commercial galleries in the Bay Area exclusively show photo-based work.
The Photography Department’s legacy at SFAI is that of excellence and innovative practices, which situates photography within the realm of “fine art.” The program was established in 1945 by Ansel Adams, who was followed by Minor White and a coterie of highly respected artists of the medium, including Imogen Cunningham, Lisette Model, Edward Weston, and Dorothea Lange.
From then until now, for over sixty years, the Department of Photography has been an exceptional and highly esteemed place for the teaching, learning, and practice of the medium as art. Today, it functions as a fulcrum, balancing import with a spirit of inquiry into the medium’s future. The inventive malleable education and practices in photography at SFAI continue with a distinguished faculty, widely recognized as influential figures in the field, practicing all facets of contemporary aesthetics of the medium.
Whether an image from pinhole or pixel, the attentive curriculum challenges one to: experiment, practice innovative risk, and create a unique ‘visual voice’. This is verified by the belief that essential technical skill, acute knowledge of the medium’s history, and support of an individual’s perception of reality are essential to the development of artistic vision and expression.
Facilities
The Photography Department provides private and group darkrooms with
Saunders and Beseler enlargers to print from 35 mm to 8x10 inch negatives; a 42-inch Kreonite KM IV color processor; a mural room for making prints up to 96x96 inches; a 30x40 inch UV light exposure unit for alternative processes; filtered and temperature controlled water for film processing; a fully equipped lighting studio; matt-cutting facilities; a copy workroom; a digital darkroom with regularly calibrated monitors, Macintosh G5s and Epson and Nikon scanners; a classroom with dual processor Mac G5's with Epson printers; Digital SLRs, 35mm Medium Format, 4x5, and 8x10 cameras and lighting available to students for checkout as well as exhibition spaces for the display of student work. Download PDF [308k] of darkroom facilities.
Other Resources
The Bay Area has major museums, galleries, and many alternative exhibition venues. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and UC Bancroft Library have some of the largest collections of photographs in the world; SF Camerawork is a renowned alternative gallery for photography; and a number of commercial galleries in the Bay Area exclusively show photo-based work.
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