Temple University Tyler School of Art

Temple University Tyler School of Art
Name	Tyler School of Art
Established	1935
Type	Art school
Parent	Temple University
City	Philadelphia
State	Pennsylvania
Country	United States

Temple University Tyler School of Art is an art and design college housed within Temple University located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school offers undergraduate and graduate degrees across studio, design, and art history programs and participates in collaborations with regional and international institutions such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation, the Franklin Institute, the National Constitution Center, and the Museum of Modern Art. Founded in the 1930s, Tyler has developed connections with artists, curators, and institutions including the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Tate Modern, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

History

Tyler traces origins to the 1935 establishment of art instruction at Temple University, expanding under benefactors linked to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, the Gershwin family, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Throughout the mid‑20th century the school engaged with visiting artists and critics from the New York School, the Art Students League of New York, and exhibitions at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia. In the 1970s and 1980s Tyler faculty and alumni exhibited alongside figures associated with Abstract Expressionism, Pop Art, and Minimalism, showing work at venues such as the Whitney Biennial, the Carnegie Museum of Art, and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Major curricular reforms in the 1990s and 2000s aligned Tyler with international partnerships including programs with the Royal College of Art, the École nationale supérieure des Beaux‑Arts, and the Berlin University of the Arts.

Academic Programs

Tyler offers Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees with concentrations linked to studios and departments such as Painting, Sculpture, Graphic Design, Photography, Ceramics, Printmaking, Textiles, Glass, and Art History. Graduate curricula emphasize professional practice, research, and exhibition collaborations with institutions like the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the SculptureCenter, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Interdisciplinary options connect students to programs in Architecture, Film and Media Arts, Music, and Literary Arts as well as external fellowships from organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the Fulbright Program. Studio pedagogy integrates critics, curators, and visiting artists associated with galleries on South Street, the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania, and the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.

Campus and Facilities

Located in North Philadelphia with satellite facilities in the Templetown area and partnerships extending to the Main Line, Tyler maintains studios, darkrooms, kilns, and fabrication labs adjacent to Temple's main campus and near cultural anchors such as the Franklin Square, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Rodin Museum. Specialized resources include a foundry, a glass studio informed by techniques used at the Corning Museum of Glass, digital fabrication labs with equipment comparable to those at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Cooper Union, and galleries that exhibit work similar in scope to shows at the New Museum and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston. The Tyler Arboretum and nearby green spaces support site‑specific projects in dialogue with organizations like the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.

Faculty and Administration

Faculty at Tyler have included artists, scholars, and critics who have shown and worked with institutions such as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and academic partners like the University of Pennsylvania, the Yale School of Art, and the Pratt Institute. Administrative leadership has liaised with Temple University offices and external funders including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and cultural agencies such as the National Endowment for the Arts. Visiting lecturers and critics frequently come from networks associated with the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the Biennale di Venezia, and the Documenta exhibition.

Student Life and Organizations

Student organizations support studio practice, exhibition programming, and professional development in groups affiliated with the College Art Association, the Student Government Association, and local collectives on South Street and in Fishtown. Student-run galleries, zine collectives, and design studios often collaborate with the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Barnes Foundation, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, and community partners such as the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation. Annual events and critiques draw visiting critics, curators, and alumni connected to the Whitney Biennial, the Sundance Film Festival, and the Armory Show.

Notable Alumni and Faculty

Alumni and faculty have been active across museums, galleries, and institutions including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum, and international venues such as the Tate Modern and the Centre Pompidou. Tyler affiliates have received awards from the MacArthur Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Pollock‑Krasner Foundation, and have exhibited at the Venice Biennale, the Biennale de Lyon, and the Documenta.

Admissions and Rankings

Admissions processes align with Temple University undergraduate and graduate requirements and consider portfolios, statements, and academic records alongside fellowships administered by organizations such as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Fulbright Program. Rankings and assessments reference metrics used by publications and organizations like U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, and the National Association of Schools of Art and Design, and comparisons are often made with peer institutions including the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts, and the Rhode Island School of Design.

Category:Temple University Category:Art schools in Pennsylvania