Digital Media Art
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- Degrees Offered:
- Undergraduate Programs
- Bachelors of Fine Arts: Concentration in Digital Media Art (BFA)
- Minor in Digital Media Art
- Graduate Programs
- Undergraduate Programs
- Facilities
- Faculty
The Digital Media Art (DMA) program at San Jose State University is a multidisciplinary degree offering a digital art and design curriculum in the areas of computer graphics, web development, programming, physical computing, fabrication, prototyping, interactivity and computer games. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, the DMA program is dedicated to the advancement of contemporary technologies through research and experimentation at the intersection of art and science.
Examples of Student & Faculty Projects
Undergraduate Program – BFA
Degrees: BFA Art Concentration in Digital Media Art | Minor Digital Media Art
The BFA Concentration in Digital Media Art teaches technical, creative, and critical thinking skills to empower our students as problem solvers and innovators in the field of digital technology. Students graduating from the program develop real-world skills in graphics, programming, digital video, interaction design, and computer game design using a wide range of tools, technologies, and techniques. Our curriculum is hands-on, providing project-oriented learning in collaborative workshop environments.
DMA operates several labs including the CADRE Physical Computing Lab and the DMA Game Design Lab providing research based pedagogy in microcircuits, fabrication and prototyping, computer games and interactive programming. We offer fabrication facilities through our comprehensive wood and metal shops including laser cutters, CNC routers, and vacuform, in addition to metal and large-scale sculpture fabrication through the Spatial Art Program.
DMA BFA Program Strengths
- Multidisciplinary digital media art curriculum at a world class public university located in the heart of Silicon Valley
- Expert faculty committed to student engagement and academic excellence
- Collaborative art and technology projects supported by faculty mentors and industry partners
- 21st century digital media lab facilities featuring industry-standard hardware and software with access exclusively for DMA students
- Active student clubs including the SJSU Game Development Club and the CADRE Student Organization
Quick Links
Program Learning Outcomes (PLO)
Graduate Program – MFA
MFA Art Concentration in Digital Media Art
The Digital Media Art MFA concentration provides an unparalleled environment for technical and conceptual research driven by project-oriented digital media practices in a fine art context. Our community of faculty and graduate students work expansively across media and processes including; 2D/3D imaging, code, video, sound, AR/VR/XR, multimedia, electronic sculpture, physical computing, and computer games.
Reflecting the atmosphere of the Bay Area, our MFA degree emphasizes creative experimentation within a context of historical, cultural, technical, and theoretical study. Students in the program are encouraged to be active members of our research community by participating in exhibitions, conferences, and funded research projects.
Our innovative approach to art and technology has led to world-class academic and
career opportunities for graduating students. Recent DMA research partners include
Intel Corporation, Microsoft, Autodesk, Philips LumiLED, VentureWell, and The John
S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Faculty have received competitive grants from the
National Endowment for the Arts and the US State Department, among others. MFA Digital
Media Art alum are employed in wide variety of Silicon Valley technology companies
including Adobe, Autodesk, Cisco, Google, Intel, Microsoft, and Electronic Arts and
have been appointed in teaching positions in higher education at universities including
UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, University of Nevada, Reno, Claremont University,
and the National University of Singapore.
Quick Links
- Application Instructions and Procedures
- Degree Requirements: MFA Digital Media Art
- Academic Summary Form [pdf]
- MFA Summary
Program Learning Outcomes (PLO)
Facilities
Digital Media Art and CADRE Labs
Contact: james.morgan@sjsu.edu
DMA operates two labs providing research based instruction in web development and coding, computer games and interactive design, fabrication and prototyping. Our labs are equipped with Mac and PC computers supporting a wide range of software and hardware in addition to high-definition digital video, digital photography, sound and projection equipment available for student checkout. DMA labs feature 3D printers, CNC machines, laser cutters, electronics, and game development workstations open exclusively to DMA BFA and MFA students.
DMA Faculty & Lecturers
David Bayus
Lecturer
David Bayus (b. 1982, Johnson City, TN) lives and works in San Francisco, CA. His work is a cross-disciplinary practice centered around experimental film-making with a focus on the dualistic relationship between science and spirituality. He is a co-founder of BASEMENT art collective located in San Francisco's Mission District. He received his MFA from The San Francisco Art Institute in 2010.
He has exhibited work in the Bay Area at Et Al, City Limits, Ever Gold, Alter Space, the San Francisco Arts Commission, Southern Exposure, and more. Further afield, his work has been exhibited at Vacancy, Los Angeles; Field Contemporary, Vancouver; and at Material Art Fair, Mexico City. Editions of his work can be found in the collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; the Museum of Modern Art, New York; and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York.
Andrew Blanton
Associate Professor
Area Coordinator
Art 311 | andrew.blanton@sjsu.edu
Andrew Blanton is Associate Professor in Digital Media Art – CADRE Media Labs at San Jose State University and PhD student in music composition working at the Center for New Music and Audio Technologies (CNMAT) at the University of California Berkeley.
His work has been performed and presented around the world in venues such as Google Cultural Lab in Paris, The University of Brasilia, The City University of Hong Kong, and STEIM Amsterdam among many others. His current work focuses on the emergent potential between cross-disciplinary arts and technology in the context of Composition, New Media Art, and building sound + visual environments through software development. Andrew has advanced expertise in percussion, 3D environments/graphics programming, creative software development, and developing projects in the confluence of art and science.
https://www.andrewblanton.com/
Steve Durie
Senior Lecturer
Art 325 | steve.durie@sjsu.edu
Steve Durie is an artist, lecturer, digital media producer and designer. He has worked
on numerous individual and collaborative projects involving digital media, installation,
web art, music and performance, which has been applied to traditional art and academic
environments as well as business and commercial venues.
Mr. Durie is one of the founding members of C5 Corporation, an art/business hybrid cartel focused on theoretical models of information technology and data visualization. C5 projects, performances and publications have shown internationally in numerous exhibitions including: Siggraph, the Walker Art Center, San José Museum of Art, Ars Electronica, Stanford University Museum and Museo Nationale de Bella Arte. Steve has work in collaboration with public artists including Mel Chin, Ann Chamberlin and Buster Simpson.
Rajorshi Ghosh
Associate Professor
Ghosh is a US based artist, researcher and educator interested in novel intersections of visual language and critical making. His work is primarily research driven that has sought to expand the vocabulary of human experience and perception with striking aesthetic outcomes.
Ghosh’s site-specific video installations, films and works with software have been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions at museums and galleries around the world. His work is part of many private and public collections, both, within the US and abroad, and has been reviewed in major international publications including the Artforum International, Los Angeles Times, Blouin Artinfo New York, Architectural Digest and The Indian Express among others. Ghosh received his master’s degree in Design and Media Arts from the University of California Los Angeles for which he was awarded the Inlaks Scholarship. He has previously taught at UCLA and Ohio University before moving back to California as Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Art and Art History at San Jose State University.
G. Craig Hobbs
Associate Professor
Art 319 | gcraig.hobbs@sjsu.edu
G. Craig Hobbs’ video projection mapping workshops involve collaboration with artists, students and communities working across cultures and borders. His recent collaborations with Yannick Jacquet of AntiVJ, VPM3D, Robin Lasser, Migratory Cultures, 2014-2019 and 3rd Space Labs, Social Weavers, 2016-18, Hidden Lily, 2018-19 combine workshop and peer-to-peer learning to develop community-based public artworks addressing issues of globalization and technology through video projection mapping and cultural exchange.
Hobbs produces large-scale public art, installations, and films. His past collaborations include: Natalie Jeremijenko, Usman Haque, Blast Theory, Andrea Polli, Yung-Ta Chang, AntiVJ, Robin Lasser, Thomas Dolby and fabric | ch, among others. Hobbs received his BFA from California Institute of the Arts and his MFA from the Digital Arts and New Media program at University of California, Santa Cruz. He has served as a visiting professor at Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers in Paris, France and as researcher and lecturer at the University of California, Santa Cruz and California College of the Arts (CCA) in San Francisco. Hobbs is currently Associate Professor of Digital Media Art (DMA) and Director of the Paseo Prototyping Challenge and Festival at San José State University in San José, California.
Rhonda Holberton
Department Chair
Associate Professor
ART 319 | rhonda.holberton@sjsu.edu
Rhonda Holberton holds a MFA from Stanford University and a BFA from California College of the Arts. Her multimedia installations make use of digital and interactive technologies integrated into traditional methods of art production. In 2014 Holberton was a CAMAC Artist in Residence at Marnay-sur-Seine, France, and she was awarded a Fondation Ténot Fellowship, Paris.
Her work is included in the collection of SFMoMA and the McEvoy Foundation and has been exhibited at CULT | Aimee Friberg Exhibitions, FIFI Projects Mexico City; Yerba Buena Center for the Arts; The Contemporary Jewish Museum, SF; Berkeley Art Center; San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art; and the San Francisco Arts Commission. Holberton taught experimental media at Stanford University from 2015-2017 and is is currently Assistant Professor of Digital Media at San Jose State University. She lives and works in Oakland.
https://www.rhondaholberton.com/
James Morgan
Senior Lecturer
ART 325 | james.morgan@sjsu.edu
James Morgan is an artist, educator and researcher.
He has an MFA in Digital Media Art from the CADRE Laboratory for New Media.
Joel Slayton
Professor Emeritus and Founding Faculty (DMA)
Joel Slayton is a pioneering artist and researcher. He is the Founding Director of the CADRE Laboratory for New Media at San Jose State University.
Between 2018-2019 he was a Stanford University Sterling Visiting Scholar in Department of Chemical Systems and Biology in the School of Medicine.From 2008-2916 he served as the Executive Director of ZERO1, a Silicon Valley based arts organization, and between 1997-206, Joel was the Founder and President of C5corp. Joel serves on the Board of Directors of LEONARDO/ISAST (International Society for Arts, Science, and Technology) and is a Senior Fellow of the Silicon Valley American Leadership Forum.