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California Institute of the Arts

MFA: Photography and Media

School of Art

Photographic installation accompanied by a pile of books in the middle of the gallery.

Challenge the conventions of lens-based media

Created for artists who want to expand the possibilities of their media, the two-year MFA in Photography and Media at CalArts encourages students to engage in critical conversations relating to how images shape contemporary culture, build technical and formal skills, and create a distinctive body of work. Guided by faculty mentors, graduate students participate in seminars that emphasize critical theory, current issues, and contextualizing history. Critique classes establish the basis for dialogue about ongoing work among students and rotating faculty members, helping each artist to develop their own criteria and ability to discuss their own and others’ work. Graduate students work in individual studios and mount exhibitions in CalArts’ many galleries, establishing the foundation for a lifelong independent practice.

Prints up for display in Studio Wall.

Jake Thorton’s (MFA 25) work on display during Open Studios.

Sharpen your eye for innovation

MFA Photography and Media

Graduate critiques, seminars, and independent studies with faculty will form the basis of your curriculum as an MFA Photography and Media student. When you arrive at CalArts, you’ll be assigned an individual studio, available to you 24/7, and have access to a wide range of communal labs, shops, and studios. CalArts’ Photo Lab provides equipment check-out and facilities to support both traditional and digital processes.

Let’s connect

Photography and Media faculty—100% of whom are working artists themselves—bring experience in a broad range of media and approach, with practices that include analog and digital photography, moving image and installation, writing and publishing, painting and social practice, and present their work among the contexts of museums and galleries, documentary, art criticism, and community and grassroots venues. The School of Art brings dozens of visiting faculty to campus each year, augmenting the expertise available to you as a graduate student.    

Program alums emerge with the skills and creative voice necessary to excel as professional lens-based artists upon graduation, and have charted successful careers in the worlds of contemporary art, photography, filmmaking, and beyond. The expansive skill set acquired over the course of the program’s two years in residence builds the foundation and networks to support these varied careers—graduates work as filmmakers, documentarians, educators, editorial and commercial photographers, writers and art critics, journalists, curators, museum administrators, designers, publishers, and entrepreneurs whose businesses include photographic and film production companies, art galleries, photography labs, and fine-art finishing and handling services.

MFA candidates mark completion of the program by presenting an exhibition or other approved public presentation of work. Also required are faculty reviews, including a mid-residency review for first-year students and a graduation review for graduating students, to assess each student’s progress and the development of their practice as you prepare for a future beyond CalArts.

Interested in this program?

View our step-by-step application guide to learn more.

Start your application

Admission requirements

To be considered for the MFA Photography and Media program, you must complete the application process and all program-specific requirements, including a portfolio of representative work, an artist statement, a brief video introduction, and two letters of recommendation. Before applying, be sure to familiarize yourself with the detailed application requirements and resources available to assist you in this important process.

Application requirements

Degree requirements

Each CalArts student develops a course of study in consultation with their faculty mentor. The program provides a structure for developing technical, conceptual, and critical skills that align with the core studio classes.

MFA Photography and Media academic requirements

Interdisciplinary opportunities

In addition to CalArts’ naturally collaborative atmosphere, the Institute provides several programs of study that can be pursued concurrently with a student’s chosen metier, such as a concentration in Arts Education or Integrated Media.

Learn more about MFA concentrations

Courses you might take

What courses would you take as an MFA Photography and Media student? Browse the courses offered in the School of Art, including opportunities to work in painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, digital imaging, sculpture, installation, video, film, writing, performance, and much more.

Explore the School of Art course catalog

Meet the faculty

At CalArts, faculty and students are collaborators, teaching, learning, and working together as members of our community of artists. 

What will you make?

Student Projects

The Art School Project Archive, a collection of final projects and exhibitions launched in May 2021, offers a window into the diverse and vital work our students are producing at CalArts.

A magnifying glass over a wall of digital photo prints. In the center of the magnifying glass says "2023".

Yuang Li (MFA2), Three Years, digital inkjet print.

Some of our alumni

More School of Art alumni

Flamin’ Hot

A kiddie pool filled with Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Cardboard cut-outs celebrating a quinceañera. Both connect to themes that run through Jazmín Urrea’s work: an exploration of her Mexican and Honduran cultures and food. “Food makes it so you can relate with everyone,” she says. “Everyone has a food story.”

A woman sits on the ground outdoors next to a large transparent box filled with Hot Cheetos.

Jazmín Urrea (MFA 17), BTS of Imperishable.

Gallery

Want to learn more?

We got you. Our Admissions team is all about providing the information you need to decide if CalArts is right for you. We’re excited to connect with you for a tour of our legendary campus, a virtual info session, or at one of our admissions events across the country or around the world. Take the next step—we’re here to help.