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# New Low-Residency MFA at Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA)
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/new-low-residency-mfa-at-pennsylvania-academy-of-the-fine-arts-pafa/
- Published: 2014-09-16T19:53:08.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-24T16:32:49.000Z
- Description: PAFA’s Low-Residency MFA Program [http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg1LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MiwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZW
- Author: Sponsors
- Tags: Announcement, Art Education, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:03 (2014, 2015, part 1)

[![hattie2](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2014/09/hattie2.jpg)](http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg1LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MiwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZWR1L2xvd3Jlcy8iLCJyZSI6MX0&s=eXQBX5fO2CyLnnxv0Ysrnv-3p6c&ref=hyperallergic.com)

PAFA’s [Low-Residency MFA Program](http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg1LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MiwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZWR1L2xvd3Jlcy8iLCJyZSI6MX0&s=eXQBX5fO2CyLnnxv0Ysrnv-3p6c&ref=hyperallergic.com) is ideal for students who desire the community, support, and rigor of a traditional MFA, but are seeking a more flexible structure to fit their lives and schedules.

Similar to PAFA’s traditional MFA, the Low-Residency program focuses on independent studio work and is interdisciplinary in nature, welcoming a wide range of approaches to art making.

The [Low-Residency MFA](http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg1LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MiwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZWR1L2xvd3Jlcy8iLCJyZSI6MX0&s=eXQBX5fO2CyLnnxv0Ysrnv-3p6c&ref=hyperallergic.com) consists of both on-site and off-site learning. The core of the program is three summer terms completed on the PAFA campus. For these intensive eight-week sessions, students have their own private studio and are engaged in independent work. Individual studio research is complemented by seminar courses, visits with faculty, group critiques, and an outstanding roster of visiting artists.

During the fall and spring terms, students are off-site and supported by a vital online community with virtual studios, critic meetings, and courses in art history, contemporary art, theory, writing, and professional practices.

[PAFA](http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg2LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MywiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZWR1LyIsInJlIjoxfQ&s=d2TAZjhmbc7xpIJNsEsZplGgwqQ&ref=hyperallergic.com) is a school that gives great weight both to ideas and how things are made. The curriculum is focused to help students develop their work materially and conceptually. The Low-Residency MFA provides students with the tools to engage deeply and critically with making their work while thinking about their practice in relation to contemporary and historical art and ideas.

Key to the summer sessions is PAFA’s location in the heart of [downtown Philadelphia](http://engine.nectarads.com/r?e=eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg3LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4NCwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwidXIiOiJodHRwOi8vd3d3LnBhZmEuZWR1L0Fib3V0L0NhbXB1cy9QaGlsYWRlbHBoaWEvNzkzLyIsInJlIjoxfQ&s=grY075j-4JcqZ6gmvb8xH5OmNh8&ref=hyperallergic.com). Seminars connect students with museums, galleries, and artists’ studios. Philadelphia’s proximity to New York and Washington, DC, allows for day trips to see even more.

![](http://engine.nectarads.com/p/eyJhdiI6MTk2MzcsImF0IjoyMCwiYnQiOjAsImNtIjoxNDExMzEsImNoIjoxOTMwLCJjciI6NDQzMTg1LCJkbSI6NCwiZmMiOjUzMDg4MiwiZmwiOjI3NTcyMCwiaXAiOiI1NC44Mi4xOTcuNTgiLCJudyI6MjA3LCJwYyI6MCwicHIiOjE2NjYsInJ0IjoxLCJzdCI6MCwicmUiOjF9/i.gif?r=0827407104710471704)