MFA IN PRINT MEDIA
+ PHOTOGRAPHY

As a graduate student in the Print Making + Photography MFA, you’ll have 24-hour access to an exceptional array of shared and personal studio spaces. 

Outstanding printmaking facilities include studios for:

• Etching
• Lithography
• Silkscreen
• Bookmaking
• Letterpress
• Digital print 

The MFA provides:

• Multiple digital labs with current Adobe software dedicated to printmaking and photography
• Black and white darkrooms that support 35 mm to large format printing
• 35 mm and large format film cameras and digital medium format equipment for graduate student use only
• Lighting kits and studio access

Additional facilities available to graduate students include:

• fully equipped woodshop
• welding shop
• ceramics facilities
• digital media studios including vinyl cutters
• three-color RISO printer with a large array of color drums for limitless color potential

Students also have access to BU’s Engineering Product Innovation Center (EPIC), an impressive 15,000-square-foot, multi-million dollar engineering and manufacturing facility. This state-of-the-art facility features everything from laser etching to rapid prototyping, allowing designers to collaborate with engineering staff and students to see their projects through all stages of hands-on production.

The Visual Arts Resource Library is a non-circulating collection of books, exhibition catalogues, directories, magazines, and sound and video recordings available for SVA students and faculty. New books are added annually, and acquisition recommendations are always welcome. In addition to housing an over 6,000-volume reference collection, which includes many rare and unique items.

The Visual Arts Resource Library’s digital resources include Apple desktop computers fully loaded with the Adobe Creative Cloud, a large-format digital scanner, and a tabletop copy stand for documenting work. A collection of digital equipment, including digital cameras, projectors, audio recording equipment, lighting kits, and more, are available for short-term loans to SVA students and faculty. 

The Karl Fortress Audio Archive is a resource developed by Karl Eugene Fortess (1907–1993), a painter and printmaker who headed the School of Visual Arts printmaking department from 1956 to 1973. Beginning in the early sixties, he undertook a major artist interview project, creating 269 recordings with prominent American artists. These interviews are available for students to borrow from the library on mp3 players. The list of interviews in the library’s collection includes many prominent American artists of the twentieth century, among them Romare Bearden, Thomas Hart Benton, Louise Bourgeois, Helen Frankenthaler, Philip Guston, Alex Katz, Jacob Lawrence, Jack Levine, Robert Motherwell, and Alice Neel.

Also available to MFA students are:

The Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center, which captures and documents history by collecting the manuscripts from individuals who play a significant part in the fields of journalism, poetry, literature and criticism, dance, music, theater, film, television, and political and religious movements.

The Boston University Center for Antiracist Research, whose mission it is to convene researchers and practitioners from various disciplines to figure out novel and practical ways to understand, explain, and solve seemingly intractable problems of racial inequity and injustice.

After finishing your MFA in Printmaking + Photography, you’ll be able to display:

• Ability to communicate in spoken and written language
• Exemplary professional-level knowledge and skills
• A personal vision evident in your work
• Conceptual acuity and creative virtuosity at multiple levels of complexity
• Technical virtuosity
• Conceptual and technical command of integration and synthesis
• Command of appropriate professional level studio protocols and professional practice
• Exceptional understanding of the history of the art form (the disciplines of photo and print, and their historical contexts) in Western and other civilizations
• A coherent set of artistic/intellectual goals and the ability to achieve these goals as an independent professional
• Ability to form and defend defined judgments of one’s own work and others’

Students will have the unique opportunity to embark on international study tours that blend the art of printmaking with photography. These immersive experiences provide direct, hands-on learning and invaluable networking opportunities with industry professionals, offering insights and connections that cannot be replicated within traditional studio or classroom settings.

BU’s MFA in Graphic Design offers various funding options to help you manage tuition and associated costs:
Lower Tuition Rates for CFA Students: The program benefits from reduced tuition rates compared to standard BU tuition, as part of the university’s support for the College of Fine Arts​.

Scholarships and Financial Aid: Merit-based scholarships are available to MFA students. Additional financial aid options may include teaching and graduate assistantships, as well as multiple federal funding opportunities.

Work Opportunities: Students can explore paid opportunities through BU’s resources, such as internships for credit or collaboration on faculty-led projects. Teaching assistantships are available for numerous undergraduate courses, and Graduate Assistantships are also available in the BU Art Galleries and in numerous facilities in the School of Visual Arts during the first and second year.