About the Faculty of Visual Arts
The Origin of the Faculty of Visual Arts
of the University of the Visual and Performing Arts goes back to the
year of 1893; the year in which Ceylon Technical College was
established. Among the first courses to be taught at the college were
drawing and painting.
After a period of approximately five
decades, on 1st October 1949 the Department of Drawing and Painting
moved from the Technical College at Maradana to the “Heywood” building
at Horton Place and was subsequently renamed as the School of Art.
Diploma in Fine Arts was awarded to students upon the completion of 5
years of study. Prominent painter and teacher JDA Perera was the first
Principal of this Department.
On 2nd July 1952, Music and Dance got
included into the curriculum of the institution and the institute came
to be known as the Government College of Fine Arts. The Departments of
Music and Dance were established at 21, Albert Crescent in Colombo 7
while the Art and Sculpture courses continued to be conducted at the
“Heywood” Building.
As a result of the First University Act
of 1972, this Institution came to be known as the Institute of Aesthetic
Studies and was affiliated to the University of Ceylon in 1974. For the
first time in 1978, 63 students were awarded the Bachelor of Arts
degree. The restructuring of the university system in Sri Lanka brought
about the affiliation of this Institute to the University of Kelaniya in
1980.
The special Gazette Notice issued by Her
Excellency the President of Sri Lanka, Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranayake
Kumaratunga formally announced the establishment of the University of
the Visual & Performing Arts with effect from 1st July 2005. It was
established in order to promote and develop the fields of visual and
performing arts as well as to offer recognized higher education 33
qualifications in these subject areas. Thus, the university was divided
into three faculties: the Department of Art and Sculpture became the
present Faculty of the Visual Arts.
The Faculty of Visual Arts of the University of the Visual & Performing Arts consists of 09 Academic Departments.
1. Department of Painting
2. Department of Sculpture
3. Department of Visual Communication Design
4. Department of Multidisciplinary Design
5. Department of Textile and Wearable Arts
6. Department of Ceramics
7. Department of Printmaking
8. Department of History and Theory of Art
9. Department of Multimedia Arts
2. Department of Sculpture
3. Department of Visual Communication Design
4. Department of Multidisciplinary Design
5. Department of Textile and Wearable Arts
6. Department of Ceramics
7. Department of Printmaking
8. Department of History and Theory of Art
9. Department of Multimedia Arts
Bachelor of Visual Arts Degree
(BVA) Pragramme
The
objective of the Bachelor of Visual Arts degree is to provide aspiring artists
and designers with portfolio preparation and a disciplined approach to the
study of Fine Art, Design and Theory of Art. The BVA degree can be completed in
four years. The general education course works prepare students for a life long
learning and help them develop interest in disciplines outside their primary
areas of study.Current
student population of the faculty is 420. Students must earn a total number of
A credits to a minimum of 120 from course units with an overall cumulative
grade point average of at least 2.0 in order to receive their degree.
J.D.A Perera Gallery
The gallery located at the Faculty of Visual Arts is built in
conformity with international standards, fulfilling a long felt need for
a fully-fledged gallery in Sri Lanka for local and foreign art lovers.
The Gallery which is a realization of a dream of generations of students
and well-wishers was named after J. D. A. Perera, a cultural,
intellectual and artist of international repute who had established
systematic study of Arts in Sri Lanka. It has four floor space gallery.
