Rollins

In the studio art program at Rollins, you do more than master technique—you explore new creative strategies, practice focused and sustained engagement, and tackle important conceptual and social issues. Each day, you exercise not only your artistic passion, but also develop expertise in communication, problem solving, and strategic thinking.

A major in studio art will prepare you for a broad range of professional endeavors after graduation. With ample opportunities to engage in research and production of advanced studio artwork, you’ll learn transferable professional practices that are highly sought after by an array of employers—including critical and creative thinking, cultural fluency, and the skills to work effectively both individually and collaboratively.


Why Study Studio Art at Rollins

  1. Individualized Instruction

    You’ll refine skills and techniques under the guidance and mentorship of professional artists in small classroom settings.

  2. Access to Important Collections

    You’ll have an opportunity to exhibit at Rollins’ nationally recognized museum and engage with the growing Alfond Collection of Contemporary Art.

  3. A Broad Educational Environment

    As an artist at Rollins, you’ll draw from an interdisciplinary liberal arts educational experience to create critical and creative work.

Interested in Studying Studio Art at Rollins?

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Grace Loescher portrait

“Arguably the most valuable thing the studio art major taught me is the ability to ‘think critically.’ I use quotations here because I don’t mean just ‘think critically’ in the way all higher education classes require, but I mean dig and push and stretch at a subject until you can literally turn a concept into an entirely original physical form. There are rules an artist must learn and at the same time learn to break.”

Grace Loescher ’14

Program Director, Waking the Village; Director of the Creation District


Rollins Studio Art Careers

Rollins studio art grads are prepared for success both in and outside the art world.

  • Andrew Cohen

    Andrew Cohen ’10

    Architectural Designer, Stantec
  • Airam Dato-on ’13

    Airam Dato-on '13

    US Community Manager, Pexels
  • David Matteson

    David Matteson '15 '18MBA

    Associate Curator of Education & Outreach, Orlando Museum of Art
  • Leah Sandler

    Leah Sandler '14

    Contributing Art & Culture Writer,
  • Mary (Nicole) Weedo

    Mary (Nicole) Weedo '14

    Activity Director, Pacific Heights Transitional Care Center
  • Betsy Johnson

    Betsy Johnson '15

    Office Assistant, Illinois Department of Human Services

Real World Experience

From community engagement courses to internships, studio art students hone their skills in the real world.

  • AIGA
  • Arrowmont
  • Lure Paper Goods
  • Orlando Museum Art
Professor and students in a class discussion at a Rollins outdoor classroom

See for Yourself

Get a feel for Rollins’ unique brand of engaged learning and personalized attention through one of our virtual or in-person visit experiences.

Take a Closer Look

Popular Courses


A Day in the Life of a Rollins Studio Art Major

“I love my major because of our department’s amazing professors. Dawn Roe is an irreplaceable mentor who showers me with endless intellect and support. I also love Rollins’ Cornell Fine Arts Museum, which is truly the best museum in Orlando and an incredible resource for both artists and art historians.”

Christine Cole ’20


Beyond the Classroom

Bonner Leaders Program At Rollins, we’re always nurturing our students’ calls to service, and service through art is no exception. Through this premier service-focused cohort program, Meredith Ewen ’19 created a framework to help guide her social-practice studio-art projects and performative works.

Study Abroad Well-traveled artists make better artists. Elizabeth Shugart ’19’s experience in Iceland led her to develop a series of mixed-media prints that informed both her environmental studies and studio art major capstone projects.

Community Interaction Rollins provides students with the opportunity to experience how what they’re learning can benefit the larger community. Professor Dawn Roe’s Conceptual Documentary Practice course, for example, allows majors and non-majors to produce ethically aware photography projects intended to contribute to current and future conversations within and about our neighboring Hannibal Square community as it faces rapid gentrification.


Students photograph archival content.

Virtual Tour: Rollins Museum of Art

As a studio art major at Rollins, you’ll have the opportunity to curate and create professional exhibitions at our on-campus fine arts museum.


Keep Exploring

Take a deeper dive into our studio art major by exploring our creative spaces and seeing our graduates in action.

Piece in The Alfond Collection of Contemporary Art by Andrew Robert Parker, Lithograph

Rollins Museum of Art Announces Winter 2024 Exhibitions

The Rollins Museum of Art unveils five exhibitions for its winter season, which runs from January 20 to May 12.

Beyond the Medici collection painting by Pietro Dandini

Rollins Museum of Art Announces Beyond the Medici Exhibition

The Rollins Museum of Art welcomes a touring exhibition of Florentine Baroque art for its fall season, which opens September 9.

The Corridor Project Spotlights Artwork by 3 Tars

Studio art professors Lisa Cody-Rapport and Rachel Simmons ’97 and alumna Kelly Berry ’13 each contributed a piece of original artwork to be displayed on billboards around the Orlando metropolitan area.

Hope Debuts Solo Exhibition at Lightner Museum

Visiting art professor Audrey Hope explores the connections between nature and travel, poverty, creativity, and the capacity of objects as representation.

Roe Presents at ISEA Conference in Barcelona

Studio art professor Dawn Roe recently presented her current work at the International Symposium on Electronic Art (ISEA).

Evan Mascagni ’08, Shannon Post ’08, and Nick Capezzera ’08

Making Films That Make a Difference

When Evan Mascagni ’08, Nick Capezzera ’08, and Shannon Post ’08 first met on the Rollins campus, the wheels of social change started turning. Now the trio is helping shape the world through documentary film.


Expert Faculty

At Rollins, you learn from academic, working artists who maintain active studio practices and regularly exhibit their work in national and international galleries, museums, and nonprofit venues. Their scholarship also includes presentations at academic conferences, public art projects and commissions, and frequent participation in artist residencies and workshops.

Department of Art & Art History

Cornell Fine Arts Center
1000 Holt Ave. – 2774
Winter Park, FL 32789

Telephone: 407.646.2498

Fax: 407.628.6395

Visit the Department of Art & Art History Website

Contact Studio Art Professors

  • Dana Hargrove

    Dana Hargrove, MFA

    Professor of Art

    Research interests: Painting and mixed media; ideas that frame perceptions of the land and our sense of place and space

  • Dawn Roe

    Dawn Roe, MFA

    Professor of Art

    Research interests: Photography and time-based media; site-responsive projects engaging with temporality, memory, and perception in relation to the camera image

  • Rachel Simmons

    Rachel Simmons, MFA

    Professor of Art

    Research interests: Screen printing and relief printmaking, mixed media, drawing, and book arts; connecting curriculum and community through socially engaged practice