California College of Arts

With two campuses in California, one in San Francisco and one in Oakland, the California College of the Arts (CCA) is an art, design, architecture, and writing institution. Established in 1907, it enrolls approximately 1,500 undergraduates and 500 graduate students.

 

History

During the height of the Arts and Crafts movement, CCA was founded in 1907 by Frederick Meyer in Berkeley as the School of the California Guild of Arts and Crafts. As a reaction to the industrial aesthetics of the machine age, the Arts and Crafts movement emerged in Europe during the late 19th century. An integrated approach to literature, architecture, and craft was promoted by adherents of the movement. Today, the "practical art school" of Frederick Meyer is an internationally recognised and respected institution, attracting students from around the world.

 

In 1908 the school was renamed California School of Arts and Crafts, and in 1936 it became the California College of Arts and Crafts (CCAC).

 

In 1922, when Meyer purchased the four-acre James Treadwell estate at Broadway and College Avenue, the college's Oakland campus was acquired. Two of its buildings are on the Historic Places National Register. The more conventional, design oriented studios such as art glass, jewelry metal arts, printmaking, drawing, sculpture and ceramic programs are still located on the Oakland campus.

 

In 1940, a Master's program in Fine Arts was created. The university changed its name to California College of the Arts in 2003.

 

Academics

22 undergraduate and 13 graduate majors are offered by CCA. CCA awards the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of Architecture (BArch), Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Master of Arts (MA), Master of Architecture (MArch), Master of Advanced Architectural Design (MAAD), Masters of Design (MDes) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees.

 

The CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, housed in a new facility on Kansas St. near the San Francisco campus, is a forum for contemporary culture. A new owner, Anthony Huberman, formerly of Artist's Space in New York, was hired by the Wattis Institute in 2013.

 

U.S. In 2018, The California College of the Arts was named the 15th best fine arts program in the United States by News and World Report (tied with Stanford University and Temple University). CCA is classified by PayScale as the #1 art school for return on investment in the United States and #4 for average alumni salary (bachelor's degree).