Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts
Encyclopedia
The Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts is an art college in Old Lyme
, Connecticut
as a figurative academy for the teaching of sculpture
, figure drawing
, Illustration
and painting
dedicated to the fine arts. The school offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts
degree in the disciplines of painting, sculpture, illustration and drawing. The college also offers Post-Baccalaureate and a 3-year Certificate program.
The Lyme Academy College is the sole fine-arts-only art college accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges
and is one of the independent Art Colleges belonging to the National Association of Schools of Art and Design
. The College is also accredited by the State of Connecticut, and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design
and the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges.
Amongst private art colleges, the Lyme Academy is known for its contemporary focus on the history and tradition of representational art, centered on the study of nature and the figure. Its small student body offers a uniquely personal education. With an enrollment of around 200 students, the Lyme Academy College is an intimate artistic community. Ninety-five percent of classes have fewer than twenty students. The student-to-faculty ratio is fourteen to one, which facilitates an academy
based teaching philosophy not often available at other art colleges.
Old Lyme became a center for the American Impressionists at the turn of the century, as they became attracted to the luminosity of the landscape with its resemblance to the light and landscape painted by the Impressionists in France. It is in close proximity to both New York and Boston (two hours away) as well as convenient access to major visual arts
collections held in Connecticut by the Yale University Art Gallery
, the Yale Center for British Art
, the Wadsworth Atheneum
, and The New Britain Museum of American Art
, and The Florence Griswold Museum just down the street. The college facilitates a focus on the fine arts that is distinctive from many art colleges and schools in the country.
BFA Degrees have been awarded since 1996. Many alumni of this new college have gone on to earn their MFA degrees, one has won a Fulbright Fellowship. The faculty has many notable regular and visiting instructors.
Old Lyme, Connecticut
Old Lyme is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Main Street of the town is a historic district. The town has long been a popular summer resort and artists' colony...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
History
The Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts was founded in 1976 by Elisabeth Gordon ChandlerElisabeth Gordon Chandler
Elisabeth Gordon Chandler was an American sculptor and educator, and the founder of the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts.-Life and work:...
as a figurative academy for the teaching of sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
, figure drawing
Figure drawing
In art, a figure drawing is a study of the human form in its various shapes and body postures - sitting, standing or even sleeping. It is a study or stylized depiction of the human form, with the line and form of the human figure as the primary objective, rather than the subject person. It is a...
, Illustration
Illustration
An illustration is a displayed visualization form presented as a drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that is created to elucidate or dictate sensual information by providing a visual representation graphically.- Early history :The earliest forms of illustration were prehistoric...
and painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
dedicated to the fine arts. The school offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts
Bachelor of Fine Arts
In the United States and Canada, the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, usually abbreviated BFA, is the standard undergraduate degree for students seeking a professional education in the visual or performing arts. In some countries such a degree is called a Bachelor of Creative Arts or BCA...
degree in the disciplines of painting, sculpture, illustration and drawing. The college also offers Post-Baccalaureate and a 3-year Certificate program.
The Lyme Academy College is the sole fine-arts-only art college accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges
New England Association of Schools and Colleges
The New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. is the U.S. regional accreditation association providing educational accreditation for all levels of education, from pre-kindergarten to the doctoral level, in the six-state New England region. It also provides accreditation for some...
and is one of the independent Art Colleges belonging to the National Association of Schools of Art and Design
National Association of Schools of Art and Design
The National Association of Schools of Art and Design , founded in 1944, is an accrediting organization of colleges, schools and universities in the United States. The organization establishes standards for graduate and undergraduate degrees. Member institutions complete periodic peer review...
. The College is also accredited by the State of Connecticut, and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design
Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design
The Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design is a non-profit consortium of 41 leading art and design colleges in the United States and Canada. All AICAD member institutions have a curriculum with full liberal arts and sciences requirements complementing studio work, and all are...
and the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges.
Academy
An academy is an institution of higher learning, research, or honorary membership.The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 385 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the goddess of wisdom and skill, north of Athens, Greece. In the western world academia is the...
based teaching philosophy not often available at other art colleges.
Old Lyme became a center for the American Impressionists at the turn of the century, as they became attracted to the luminosity of the landscape with its resemblance to the light and landscape painted by the Impressionists in France. It is in close proximity to both New York and Boston (two hours away) as well as convenient access to major visual arts
Visual arts
The visual arts are art forms that create works which are primarily visual in nature, such as ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, design, crafts, and often modern visual arts and architecture...
collections held in Connecticut by the Yale University Art Gallery
Yale University Art Gallery
The Yale University Art Gallery houses a significant and encyclopedic collection of art in several buildings on the campus of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. Although it embraces all cultures and periods, the Gallery possesses especially renowned collections of early Italian painting,...
, the Yale Center for British Art
Yale Center for British Art
The Yale Center for British Art is an art museum in New Haven, Connecticut at Yale University which houses the most comprehensive collection of British Art outside the United Kingdom...
, the Wadsworth Atheneum
Wadsworth Atheneum
The Wadsworth Atheneum is the oldest public art museum in the United States, with significant holdings of French and American Impressionist paintings, Hudson River School landscapes, modernist masterpieces and contemporary works, as well as extensive holdings in early American furniture and...
, and The New Britain Museum of American Art
New Britain Museum of American Art
The New Britain Museum of American Art is an art museum in New Britain, Connecticut. Founded in 1903, it is the first museum in the country dedicated to American art....
, and The Florence Griswold Museum just down the street. The college facilitates a focus on the fine arts that is distinctive from many art colleges and schools in the country.
BFA Degrees have been awarded since 1996. Many alumni of this new college have gone on to earn their MFA degrees, one has won a Fulbright Fellowship. The faculty has many notable regular and visiting instructors.
External links
- Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts Official Website