As an art student at the University of Michigan, it seemed to me like most of my peers, as freshmen last year, didn’t have a full understanding of what the art school was about until it started. We were sent in, floundering, with a new TMP (Tools, Material, and Processes) program, into other extremely conceptual art classes that differed greatly from art classes many of us took as high school students.

As opposed to other art schools across the United States, the Art and Design program at the University of Michigan has more “academic appeal to make us more aware of the world around us and apply that to our art other than just the physical nature of the art itself”, said Yonit Olshan, a sophomore in the A&D. “It’s about thinking a few steps ahead and growing in all directions–maturity, not just in one direction”, she said.

What is the difference between a craftsman and a true creative thinker? Does the world need more creative thinking over the traditional repetitive art processes? Our world demands higher forms of thinking to help us improve our way of living–a world of active creators has the potential to change things, and it starts here, in the school of Art and Design. 

It’s important to take a good look inside the the art school at the University of Michigan and investigate the classes offered as well as hearing from students the general take we have of the art school and the work we do for our classes. Will we find out whether the school of Art and Design lives up to its reputation of being highly conceptual? What kind of work do the students do, exactly? And how much time and commitment is required for a “good” work of art? We will explore these aspects of the student life in order to find a more comprehensive understanding of the school of Art and Design at the University of Michigan.

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