Department Of Design Media Arts
The UCLA Department of Design Media Arts (DMA) offers a multidisciplinary education that fosters individual thinking, encourages experimentation, and works with students to develop truly contemporary practices. Those practices can include typography, graphic design, branding, digital fabrication and printing, photography and video, video games and 3D modeling, virtual and augmented reality, art+science, social and environmental practice, public arts, media archeology and theory, creative coding, interaction, electronics and interface design.
DMA’s renowned faculty is committed to educating conscientious designers and media artists, and our community strives to create socially and culturally relevant objects, experiences, and spaces. We make our work public in galleries and laboratories, as social media, on large screens, smart phones and game consoles, in media installations, performances and public spaces, as websites, posters, books and magazines.
Learn more about the history of the Department of Design Media Arts.
THE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND ARCHITECTURE
As the premiere public arts school in the nation, the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture (UCLA Arts) plays a vital role in the cultural and artistic life of the campus and the broader community. Guiding our mission is the belief that the arts are not only an essential part of the cognitive, critical, inquisitive life of a public research university, but the practice and presence of the arts are a cornerstone of the creative, innovative thinking and collaborative approaches that the 21st century demands.
One of 12 prestigious professional schools at the University, the School of the Arts and Architecture offers leading programs in four degree-granting departments: Architecture and Urban Design, Art, Design | Media Arts, and World Arts and Cultures/Dance. Our commitment to innovative education, pioneering research, dynamic public service, and community engagement is fueled by our unwavering belief in the fundamental value of creativity and the artist’s unique ability to change the world and shape the future.
The Hammer Museum at UCLA offers collections, exhibitions, and programs that span the classic to the contemporary in art, architecture, and design. The Hammer’s international exhibition program focuses on wide-ranging thematic and monographic exhibitions, highlighting contemporary art since the 1960s and the work of emerging artists through Hammer Projects and the Hammer’s biennial, Made in L.A. As a cultural center, the Hammer Museum offers nearly 300 free public programs a year, including lectures, readings, symposia, film screenings, and music performances.
The Fowler Museum at UCLA explores global arts with an emphasis on works from Africa, Asia, the Pacific, and the indigenous Americas—past and present. The Fowler enhances understanding and appreciation of the diverse peoples, cultures, and religions of the world through dynamic exhibitions, publications, and public programs; informed by interdisciplinary approaches and the perspectives of the cultures represented. The Museum’s mission has expanded in recent years to include a strong focus on contemporary artistic production from the regions of the world that the Fowler has long represented—one of the museum’s goals is to show how artistic creativity is flourishing in the postcolonial, transnational contexts in which artists find themselves today.
UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA) is dedicated to the advancement of contemporary performing arts: dance, music, spoken word, and theater; as well as emerging digital, collaborative, and cross-art platforms inspired by today's leading artists and creators. CAP UCLA supports the creation, presentation, and critical dialogues vital to the innovation and expressive potential of artists who inform the dynamic and evolving heritage of contemporary performance. Through an annual season of performing arts and extensive community-engagement initiatives and events, CAP UCLA advances the importance of art in society by celebrating and deepening the connection between artist and audience.
THE UNIVERSITY
As a public research university, our mission is the creation, dissemination, preservation and application of knowledge for the betterment of our global society. Located by the Pacific Coast in Los Angeles, we have over 40,000 students enrolled in degree and graduate studies. The university prides itself on a vibrant student body and alumni network that is active in communities around the world. Visit the website at www.ucla.edu.