School of the Art Institute of Chicago

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Hallmarks and Quirks

Okay, so I'm an art school, which means I'm good at…uh…art. Not really into sports.

I'm best at visual arts, but if you want to break it down a little more, here are some of the disciplines I'm best at.

Painting. Heard of Georgia O'Keefe? Yeah, she's an alum.
Performance art. I have one of the only undergraduate and graduate performance art programs in the country.
Fashion. It's not just pretty dresses. My students treat fashion as the artistic endeavor it is. And I don't just mean in their own wardrobes.

A monthly L (elevated train) pass. You'll take the L a lot, in case you haven't figured that out yet.
A map of Chicago. It's probably best to have this handy on your phone, as carrying around a paper map will make you look like a clueless tourist. Don't get cocky and go off-map too soon—Chicago is a big city. Then again, getting lost in the big city could be inspirational…
Street Smarts. So yeah—Chicago is a big city, and big cities have their share of not-so-nice people. Just to be safe, have your trusty spray-bottle of Mace handy whenever you're walking at night. It's mostly just to make you feel safer, but it's nice to have just in case.
An open mind. I know, I know—you think that because you're artist, that means you already have this. Well, get ready to open up a little wider. My interdisciplinary philosophy can be pretty challenging at times, especially for students who think they're here for one thing and one thing only.
A thick skin for critiques. It's one thing to take a test, bomb it, and get a D. It's another thing to pour your soul into a piece and then have a group of teachers and peers rip it to shreds. Critiques here are not easy, so best start working on this one now so you have time to develop some nice, thick mental callouses.

If you're all about that art (and I sort of assume that you are if you're still reading this), you've either visited or heard of my museum. (It's the one from Ferris Bueller's Day Off.)
Several historical art movements got their start here. Heard of Ed Paschke and the 1960's Imagists? Yep, they met here.

Catching an indie flick at the Gene Siskel Film Center.
At a hipster bar in Wicker Park, hanging out with friends before a show Double Door.
Drinking cheap wine and mingling at an opening in the Sullivan Gallery on campus or in one of the many small galleries in the West Loop.

At one of the many on-campus studio spaces, where you can hang out with friends and tell people how you spent the whole weekend in your studio (workspace, not apartment).
In one of the less-popular galleries or dining spots in the Art Institute. It's fun to pretend that your living room is decorated with real, priceless works of art instead of the cheap poster versions. Since students have an all-access pass to the museum, you can hang out among amazing works of art without breaking your own bank.
At your rich friend's apartment. It's like one-hundred times bigger than your dorm room and has the perfect view of the Chicago skyline. How did they even?

Credit/no credit grading system: This means what you think it means. No As, Bs, Cs, or Ds. I mean, art is subjective, right? What does an "A" painting look like? Or a "C" photograph? Of course, this doesn't mean you'll get credit just by showing up to most classes. But your days of obsessing over GPA? Over.
Interdisciplinary studies: Look, this is an art and design school, so you're not going to have to take as many core courses as students as liberal arts colleges. But that doesn't mean you're going to pick a discipline and only do that for four years straight. SAIC takes an interdisciplinary approach, so you'll have a chance to try out new things. Maybe you'll discover a talent you never knew you had. Or maybe you'll just find out what it's like to be really bad at something for a change—which is totally valuable, too.