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PAFA News

Learning to Design an Exhibition

It’s not enough to make artwork for an exhibition in Stephanie Reyer’s "Digital Print and Web Design" class. For three weeks, students in Reyer's class designed a branding suite and layout for an exhibition that will feature their work and their classmates. Each student presented their design…
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PAFA Presents the Untold Story of Philadelphia’s Leadership Role in the Story of American Landscape Painting

PAFA is pleased to present "From the Schuylkill to the Hudson: Landscapes of the Early American Republic," on view June 28 through December 29, 2019. Philadelphia's key role in the growth of American landscape painting has never been the subject of a major museum exhibition before. Delving into the…
Press Release
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Helen Frankenthaler Foundation Awards Gifts and Funding to PAFA

The Helen Frankenthaler Foundation has selected the PAFA to receive ten Frankenthaler prints, up to ten proofs by the artist and a $25,000 grant to exhibit and study the works over three years. The gifts—spanning etching, lithography, monotype or monoprint, and more—will reflect the variety of media…
Press Release
PAFA News

PAFA Awards Four MFA Scholarships As Part of Crosscurrents Exhibition

Bringing together 30 young artists from 13 undergraduate programs across the country for the exhibition Crosscurrents, PAFA leaders hope to foster a sense of community among students. Crosscurrents is not only an opportunity for undergraduates to showcase their work in America’s oldest art museum…
PAFA News

A Fine Art School for a Digital Career

For a traditional fine arts school, third-year Illustration student Kaisha Dukes wasn’t expecting much when it came to digital offerings and classes at PAFA. But she was pleasantly surprised by PAFA's extensive digital offerings, and the way professors provide mentorship and support in acquiring…
Perspectives
PAFA News

Painting as a Way to Capture Memories

Painting student Kelly Micca likes to capture what she calls the underestimated, ordinary world. Micca’s studio space in the ninth floor gang studio at PAFA is decorated with her landscapes. Working outside with a changing environment presents challenges but it’s an experience Micca loves. She often…
PAFA News

Changing Gears to Pursue A Creative Passion

Illustration student Eustace Francis worked as a creative director and designer before realizing he wanted to pursue his fine art interests. He ended up choosing PAFA after seeing the Academy featured on PBS's "Newshour" program and visiting the museum. Now a third-year student at PAFA, Francis is…
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PAFA Partners With Philadelphia Photo Arts Center To Exhibit the Women's Mobile Museum With Zanele Muholi

PAFA is proud to present "Zanele Muholi & The Women's Mobile Museum," one of four exhibitions of a year-long artist residency connecting acclaimed South African photographer Zanele Muholi and the Philadelphia Photo Arts Center (PPAC) with ten Philadelphia women. The exhibition, which also features…
Press Release
PAFA News

Njideka Akunyili Crosby, MacArthur Recipient, Visits PAFA

Visual artist and PAFA alumna Njideka Akunyili Crosby returned to campus on November 9, 2018, as part of the Visiting Artist Program organized by students of the School of Fine Arts. The Visiting Artists Program is a student-run venture that brings an outstanding roster of local, national and…
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PAFA Receives $1 Million Gift to Name New Anne Bryan Gallery

PAFA is pleased to announce a $1 million gift from Nancy Winkler and Jay Bryan to name the Anne Bryan Gallery, set to open in the Samuel M.V. Hamilton Building in early 2019. The Anne Bryan Gallery will allow PAFA students to acquire creative and professional skills in creating exhibitions through…
Press Release
PAFA News

Venturing Far Outside One's Comfort Zone

While visiting her brother at the University of Pennsylvania, first-year MFA student Bhoomi Patel started looking for a graduate program so she could continue her at practice. Hailing from Ahmedabad, India, Patel said PAFA offered a flexibility that she didn’t have while completing her undergraduate…
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Going Global: PAFA Curators Put American Art on the World Stage

Artwork from PAFA’s permanent collection is not only on view at the museum in Philadelphia but in exhibitions across the country and globe. Each year dozens of works are lent to museums that want to highlight American art. This fall, some of PAFA’s most important pieces are traveling to Germany for…

About PAFA

Founded in 1805, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is the United State's first school and museum of fine arts. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, PAFA offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the fine arts, innovative exhibitions of historic and contemporary American art, and a world-class collection of American art. PAFA’s esteemed alumni include Mary Cassatt, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, William Glackens, Barkley L. Hendricks, Violet Oakley, Louis Kahn, David Lynch, and Henry Ossawa Tanner.