1 / 423

California College of the Arts

📸   Photo Gallery

Four students explore historic material in class.

Through "object kits," instructors bring tactile material in the classroom that pair with the lesson of the week.

Two students look at illustration work pinned to a white wall.

Exhibitions happen regularly on campus, highlighting work from our community like the 'YES, WE'RE ILLUS,' survey show.

Exterior view of the Wattis Institute on campus

The CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts is now located directly on campus.

People in a gallery

A look inside the newly built Novack Gallery.

A colorful art exhibition

PLAySPACE Gallery is an interdisciplinary space of innovation and practical learning for CCA graduate students.

Welcome to CCA  Headline Image

Welcome to CCA Headline Image

Two people sitting in a bench in a garden with a large building in the background.

Students like to meet in groups or enjoy solo time within our shared green spaces.

Students sitting on and walking down a large staircase

The expansion offers more space for community gatherings, such as the Gensler Family Courtyard and Wilsey Cascade.

Students work with heavy machinery in the Furniture Machine Room.

There’s so much room for creative freedom in our newly built state-of-the-art shops and studios.

16 floor looms in a large studio.

Students enrolled in weaving classes are assigned dedicated looms for the semester.

Interior Design Studios Headline Image

Interior Design Studios Headline Image

Designed objects sit on tables in a classroom

Student projects from the ‘Materiality & Space’ course await a critique session.

People in a crowd in the middle of a laboratory with computers and robots.

The Digital Craft Lab hosts advanced studios and special projects in the Architecture and Interior Design division.

Student works on 3 ceramic pots

Byron Claxton Jr. (Ceramics) uses our open air maker spaces to finish a project.

A student crouches down in the Backlot, pouring hot water onto a painting on the ground.

Student Hanna Boyd transforms muslin into a sculptural piece with hot water.

People having a conversation in a painting studio

Seniors in Painting & Drawing get individual studio spaces within a larger energetic and collaborative environment.

small_digital_jpg_BFA_Painting_Open_Studios_FA23_33.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_BFA_Painting_Open_Studios_FA23_33.jpg caption

Painting & Drawing Studios Headline Image

Painting & Drawing Studios Headline Image

Students make sculptures in a courtyard

A Sculpture class works outside in our open air maker yards.

First Year Core Studios Headline Image

First Year Core Studios Headline Image

A student closely examines an architectural model within the crowded Nave.

Students and faculty—from interiors and architecture, grad and undergrad, studios and seminars—brought physical models, drawings, and other creative outputs into the Nave for a pop-up mixer.

Students watch their teacher demonstrate use of robotic equipment.

The Digital Craft Lab is one of many state-of-the-art, cutting edge studio spaces available to our students.

Students work with larger design objects in a courtyard.

Architecture and Interior Design students utilize the open air maker spaces outside of the Digital Craft Lab.

A Fashion Design student presents her designs to a panel during critique in the Nave.

The Fashion Design program holds a Senior Review in the Nave to a panel of industry professionals.

A student shows a curved wood structure to a fellow student.

Student Nicole Wong works on a piece in the Bench Room, the Furniture program’s home room for woodworking, furniture design, and fabrication.

Students hold shoe models

Fashion Design and Industrial Design students work together in an investigative studio focused on footwear design.

Student models an outfit in front of a runway audience

CA’s annual runway show—called the Fashion Experience—is a public, professional debut of thesis collections by graduating Fashion Design students.

Two students working in a woodshop

In the Furniture program, students learned specialized craft-based skill development and technical woodworking skills.

Three students standing up put blindfolds on three students sitting at a potter’s wheel

The annual Blindfolded Throwing Contest is a beloved tradition in the Ceramics studio that brings people together to celebrate craft and community.

Wide shot of a classroom with students painting at easels.

Painting & Drawing classes take place in spacious studios flooded with natural light.

In a green-screen environment, two students rehearse lines with a director.

Film students learn the art of directing through hands-on workshops that explore mise-en-scene, staging action, and running a set.

Student looks closely through a stereoscope.

A student looks through a stereoscope while during a lesson on early photographs.

A dozen students sit in a classroom.

We're all about hands-on learning, even in art history classes.

A student creates an animation in a computer lab

All of our Animation Studios are made to accommodate all walks of animation, from 2D digital to traditional to 3D to experimental.

small_digital_jpg_CCA_welcome_week_FA23_154.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_CCA_welcome_week_FA23_154.jpg caption

Two dozen students covered in colored powder in a park setting.

CCA India, a student club, hosts an annual Holi celebration in the park to celebrate the start of spring.

Tables line up a large hall for a career fair

The industry comes to campus at CCA's Career Expo, connecting students with employers from the Bay Area and beyond.

Student smiling at camera in front of a colorful sign that says VOTE!

Students, faculty and staff can be a part of the Creative Citizens in Action (CCA@CCA), a college-wide initiative that promotes creative activism and democratic engagement through public programs, exhibitions, and curriculum connections.

small_digital_jpg_Alt_Commencement_SP23_036.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_Alt_Commencement_SP23_036.jpg caption

Hundreds of people gather in a courtyard facing a stage

London Breed, Mayor of San Francisco, addresses the crowd during our a public celebration of our campus expansion.

Students play a game of Connect Four

Each school year kicks off with Chimera Welcome Week, a series of community events and social activities like Chimerapalooza.

Large robot arm with a student working in the background

Art and architecture blend with science, engineering, fabrication, and architecture in the Digital Craft Lab.

Drone photography overlooking CCA’s Main Building and residence hall, with the San Francisco skyline in the background.

CCA has been a cornerstone of the Bay Area art and design community for more than 100 years.

Photo of a multilevel building

The Simpson Family Makers Building is the home base for graduate programs in Comics, Design Strategy, Fine Arts, Visual & Critical Studies, and Writing.

A studio with a red couch and colorful paintings

Each student in graduate fine arts gets their own individual studio for two years.

CCA’s Campus Headline Image

CCA’s Campus Headline Image

CCA’s Campus Headline Image

CCA’s Campus Headline Image

Humanities & Sciences Division Headline Image

Humanities & Sciences Division Headline Image

A group of Master’s Architecture students and faculty in the Nave Presentation Space with a projected work behind them.

The Digital Craft Lab led a one-day workshop on algorithmic creativity and collaborative processes. Final projects were presented on large-format projections in the Nave Presentation Space.

A person stands on a ladder, hanging an installation of gauzy mesh and prisms. Toward the back of the light-filled space, four people suspend large-scale photographs.

The Nave is a space for site-specific installations, such as the FLOW STATE PAVILLION by MArch students Anbin Liu, Elif Aydinli, Saina Gorgani, Shreya Shankar, and Weisheng Zhong.

small_digital_jpg_Arch_Show_and_Tell_FA24_086.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_Arch_Show_and_Tell_FA24_086.jpg caption

Student work is always on view in The Nave whether its a pop-up exhibition, part of symposium, or class critique.

Student work is always on view in The Nave whether its a pop-up exhibition, part of symposium, or class critique.

Year 1 MFA Design students show their work in the Nave Presentation Space. The Nave and Nave Presentation Space are where almost ever program holds critiques and end-of-year reviews.

Year 1 MFA Design students show their work in the Nave Presentation Space. The Nave and Nave Presentation Space are where almost ever program holds critiques and end-of-year reviews.

We gather in the Nave for almost every major event, such as the launch of the M. Arthur Gensler Jr. Center for Design Excellence in the Architecture Division.

We gather in the Nave for almost every major event, such as the launch of the M. Arthur Gensler Jr. Center for Design Excellence in the Architecture Division.

The Nave and Presentation Space Headline Image

The Nave and Presentation Space Headline Image

Audience members give an applause to two people on stage

MFA Comics hosts the Comics in the City series every summer, where renowned comic artists and cartoonists visit campus to give readings.

An orange robotic arm draws a tree-like form on black paper.

The KUKA robotic arm can be used for projects big and small, including line drawings.

The Nave Alcove is set up with desks, chairs, and moving walls.

MFA in Design final critiques take place in the Nave Alcove.

Biray Ozfrol in the Graduate Design program displays her final project in the Nave Presentation Space.

Biray Ozfrol in the Graduate Design program displays her final project in the Nave Presentation Space.

Cole Ryder (MFA Design 2024) prepares his installation in the Nave.

Cole Ryder (MFA Design 2024) prepares his installation in the Nave.

Three students participate in a mapping excercise outdoors.

Design Strategy students take advantage of the outdoor gathering areas to work on a group excercise.

Students sit at desks facing the instructor and a TV screen

Program chair Justin Lokitz addresses students in the Design Strategy home room, where the cohort meets during residency.

Three students look at an artwork in one of the MFA Dogpatch studio spaces.

Each full-time, in-resident MFA student is provided a personal studio in the CCA Dogpatch graduate complex, located in the historic Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco.

View of studios

Each full-time, in-resident MFA student is provided a personal studio in the CCA Dogpatch graduate complex, located in the historic Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco.

A corner of a grad student’s studio space that has art work pinned to the walls, filing cabinet and chairs

A peek inside interdisciplinary artist Zedekiah Gonsalves Schild (Graduate Visual and Critical Studies/Graduate Fine Arts).

Two people sitting down in conversation behind a beaded sculpture.

Woody Othello (MFA Fine Arts 2017) and current graduate student Ashley Spencer catch up in her studio.

A dozen computers in a classroom

Classes and workshops also take place in our state-of-the-art computer labs.

A dozen adults sit on couches facing each other, holding notebooks and phones

The Humanities & Science home room is a mixed use space. Here you can join an open mic night, catch up on readings, meet with your mentors, and so much more.

An angled view from the third floor of a building overlooking a group of students in a courtyard.

Views of campus from outside of the Humanities & Science home room.

Seven adults standing up with one arm raised

Theater actor and educator Nancy Shelby visits a graduate writing class to lead a performance workshop.

Graduate Housing and Dining Headline Image

Graduate Housing and Dining Headline Image

Campus Galleries Headline Image

Campus Galleries Headline Image

Colorful banners hang above Mission Street in San Francisco.

Welcome to the lively and colorful Calle 24 Latino Cultural District in the Mission neighborhood.

California College of the Arts Banner Image

California College of the Arts Banner Image

A Comics artist sits at the front of an audience giving a reading

Every summer, our graduate Comics program takes over the Silver Sprocket store in the Mission District for our annual CCA Comics Festival.

People eating at a food truck park

Students love SPARK Social for its selection of food trucks, mini golf, and more.

large_digital_png_SF_SFMOMA_iphone_SU22_4272.png accessibility description

large_digital_png_SF_SFMOMA_iphone_SU22_4272.png caption

large_digital_png_SF_SFMOMA_iphone_SU22_4272.png accessibility description

large_digital_png_SF_SFMOMA_iphone_SU22_4272.png caption

Student sits at the front of a crowd doing a reading of her comics

A graduate student reads her comic at the CCA Comics Festival at Silversprocket in the Mission District.

Museums & Galleries  Headline Image

Museums & Galleries Headline Image

An aerial view of CCA's backlot with colorful chalk drawings of abstract shapes, painted containers, potted plants, and picnic tables decorating the concrete area. The main building recedes in the background.

The city is your campus. CCA is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, a one-of-a-kind cultural and innovation hub—the ideal landscape to study the theory and practice of art, design, architecture, and writing.

An exterior view of the Montgomery Building; teal vinyl reads California College of the Arts.

The heart of CCA’s campus is the Montgomery Building, which is located in San Francisco’s vibrant Design District.

Three students examine three-dimensional woven paper forms in a classroom.

Students in Matt Kendall’s Materiality and Space 1 course look at colorful, three-dimensional paper models.

A student’s work is critiqued in the Nave.

A panel critiques an Interior Design student’s work, which includes mark-making tests on paper and sculptural forms.

Three Interior Design students cluster around a small plywood model on the floor; classmates and panelists form a half circle around them and critique their work.

Final critiques in the Interior Design program include panelists and experts.

Framed within the model, two students examine a bridge-like structure composed of interlocking wooden pieces.

Two students look at a wooden architectural project at the 2021 Architecture Show and Tell Mixer, a chance to gather and share work in the Nave.

Two students look at an architectural drawing with a faculty member.

Moments in the studio mean opportunities for collaboration and faculty-student conversation.

Two students hold up a black, porous 3D-printed sample against a window overlooking the Embarcadero.

Led by Negar Kalantar, associate professor of Interior Design, the TranStudio partnership enables Interior Design students to push material technology as part of Autodesk’s Artist in Residency (https://www.cca.edu/newsroom/cca-and-autodesk/) program.

Writing student reads their work.

Writing & Literature students read their work as part of the Commencement Exhibition.

A student presents their work in the bustling Nave during finals week.

Finals week for architecture students means presentations and pinups in the Nave.

A young woman superglues a plexiglass and balsa wood architectural model.

Architecture student Claire Leffler works on a plexiglass and balsa wood model in the Nave.

A wide shot of students clustered around faculty Margaret Ikeda and Mark Donahue in the architecture studios.

Architecture students in the Materials and Methods course taught by faculty Margaret Ikeda and Mark Donahue.

Students sit in a circle outside on CCA’s Backlot with Critical Ethnic Studies Chair Shylah Pacheco Hamilton in the center.

Students discuss implications of colonialism during a meeting of the Diversity Studies course Radical Redesign led by Associate Professor Shalini Agrawal, under the leadership of program Chair Shylah Pacheco Hamilton.

In the Nave Alcove, a small group listens to artist SiouxBean around a table with fruit, grains, and vegetables.

Performative artist SiouxBean shares their work as part of the Fluid Mutualism Symposium, examining connections between food, clay, and culture, specifically in Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) communities.

Three students work on cutting and collaging materials; a screen behind describes the related writing exercise.

Students reflect on border crossing through a making-and-writing project in Lydia Nakashima Degarrod's Critical Ethnic Studies class.

A group of students in a classroom explore topics related to cognitive science.

A recent social science and history class explores cognitive science - from vision and language to memory, learning and consciousness.

A Furniture student presents a conical sculpture to a small panel in the Nave.

The end of the semester means final Furniture crits in the Nave Alcove.

Ten students holding up giant letters in the air.

Students explore identity, typography, and scale in professor Mark Fox’s Advanced Graphic Design Studio.

Students work at long wooden tables in the Graphic Design studio. Colorful posters and large-scale letters decorate the space.

David Hisaya Asari leads the Typography 3: Information course, where students learn to understand the intention, purpose, and function of visualizing data and information.

Two students stand in front of a display of posters in the Nave.

The white walls of the Nave are often transformed by installations, such as this graphic display of posters.

Several dozen print outs and posters adorn the corner of a classroom.

Consider your classroom walls a smorgasbord of inspiration. Students are free to pin up new work, works in progress, and random clippings to inspire each other and create a stimulating creative environment together.

Sendy Santamaria’s (BFA Illustration 2018) black-and-white mural of leaves and trees coming together to spell out “illustration” in the center.

Alum Sendy Santamaria’s (BFA Illustration 2018) naturally-inspired mural fills the Illustration homeroom with welcoming and calming energy.

A class works together in an Illustration classroom.

Students work side-by-side with faculty in an Illustration classroom.

Five students pin up illustration work for a critique in the open Nave space.

Students in Randy Chavez’s Studio 1 Narrative class pin up work for a critique.

Five students play with hand-made marimas around a wooden table in the Bench Room.

In the Acoustic Objects course led by associate professor Corey Jones, Furniture and Industrial Design students play their crafted bluetooth speakers and marimbas.

A student stands in front of a while wall displaying 14 works of art and a large mural.

The Illustration department put together a pop-up exhibition in the Nave of recent work by faculty, alumni and current students.

Two seated, masked students prototype individual projects at long desks in the Industrial Design studio.

Students Oliver Grant and Samantha Linden work on Industrial Design projects in the studio.

A group of students and faculty member Corey Jones display their bluetooth speaker projects in their hands—and even one on their head—in the Bench Room.

In the Acoustic Objects course, Industrial Design and Furniture students hand-made Bluetooth speakers, marimbas, and other sound sculptures.

Students talk to the public, presenting concepts and prototypes for final projects in booths draped with black cloth.

Students present concepts and prototypes for their thesis work at the annual Commencement Exhibition.

A student glues mushrooms onto an organic sculpture in the Industrial Design studios.

Marina Kyle (BFA Industrial Design 2022) puts the finishing touches on their interactive project, Muselium, which outputs melodies from electronic signals in mushrooms.

Two students sit on the floor with large-scale, colorful objects and pillows; a pin-up board behind them includes documentation and inspiration for the project, titled Playwell.

Grace Sieg (BFA Industrial Design 2022 presents her thesis project, Playwell, which is a set of plush play objects for kids.

A student shares work during critique, gesturing toward a wall with images below vinyl reading”What does this Meme?”

Interaction Design seniors present thesis work during the annual Commencement Exhibition.

Dean Helen Maria and a student interact with wooden objects on a LED-lit table.

Dean of Design Helen Maria Nugent and a student engage with Ggul-Jaem 꿀잼, a tabletop game by Jamie Catt, Nat Kasman, Heather Lee, and Jieying Yang.

A gray-and-green carpeted room with modular desks, chairs, and rolling walls.

The Interaction Design Studio includes space for collaboration, prototyping, and pinning up work.

Three students present a video work to a seated panel of industry experts and students.

Three students present a collaborative project centered on the future of work to a panel of industry experts and their classmates.

A student works on sculpting an object for an Animation class.

Animation workshops explore different methods of stop motion animation, from producing clay models to and working with the Dragonframe Animation software.

Close up of hands on a pottery wheel.

Be ready to get your hands dirty. We begin with the basics: hand building, coil structures, slab construction and glazing.

Two student-cinematographers film an actor on stage in dramatic blue lighting.

Film production courses focus on the conception, preproduction, and production processes involved in producing moving image work.

A student and faculty member smile while filming a panning shot.

As you learn how to make films from start to finish, you’ll hone filmmaking processes and cinematography techniques.

A dark, carpeted space is illuminated by purple and blue light; a mural on the front wall reads "Game Arts Homeroom" and is decorated with puzzle pieces and a mouse icon.

The Game Arts Homeroom is a drop-in space for gaming and collaborating.

A close-up of a hand-made board game and cards in light primary colors.

You can choose to focus on analog game making. Here’s a game from the Game Arts Showcase at the end of the spring semester.

An upward-tilted shot of students Joel Lithgow and Joseph Blake constructing a gazebo-like armature in the Nave.

Joel Lithgow (BFA Individualized Studies 2022), with help from Joseph Blake (BFA Printmedia 2022), works on Lithgow’s gazebo installation, Shades of the Garden Campus, as part of CCA’s Fluid Mutualism Symposium.

A faculty member points at a detail in a student’s painting.

Faculty member Bryan Keith Thomas works closely with a painting student in the studio.

A person views a layered projection on a white wall in the Nave Alcove. Large-scale paintings are on the floor and chairs surround the installation.

Individualized Studies students Gordon Fung and Ernest Strauhal collaborated on their installation Re-genesis as part of CCA's Fluid Mutualism Symposium.

A class critiques a large-scale black painting that includes a line drawing of an animal and text like “Find Out Now,” “Go,” and “You Won’t Believe.”

A painting class critiques a fellow student’s work in the Nave.

Various paintings dry in painting racks.

Painting racks store works in progress, in close proximity to the classroom and private upper division studios.

Various students review small cyanotypes on a white table; a large-scale one hangs behind them on a wall.

In faculty member Nelson Chan’s Junior Tutorial/Senior Project course, students explore the creative process through individualized critique and the exchange of ideas. Work by Tung-Lin Tsai.

Chair Curtis Arima demonstrates wax casting in a kiln.

The Streich Zone is a multifunctional room for the Jewelry and Metal Arts program, where enameling, forming, and fabricating take place. Jewelry and Metal Arts Chair Curtis Arima shows how the kiln works in a casting demonstration.

A close-up of a student engraving a metal ring with an engraver.

A student engraves a fine detail into a metal ring.

A close-up of irregular scraps of copper.

There’s even beauty in our jewelry studio’s scraps.

Various tools in the Jewelry and Metal Arts studio.

The main jewelry classroom is equipped with 18 professional jeweler’s benches with flex shafts, a communal soldering area (pictured here), two drill presses, a bench shear, a rolling mill, and various hand tools designed for metalsmithing.

A student decides which negatives to print before heading into the darkroom.

Use Omega D-5 enlarging stations and RC print washers in the Black-and-White Darkroom.

A student laughs while pulling a gradient print while a class watches.

Faculty Michael Wertz and Thomas Wojack teach the art of poster making and printing.

A close-up of hands submerging a screen during the paper-making process.

A student makes paper in a class.

A student mixes printmaking ink in an intro class.

You’ll learn all aspects of printmaking in introductory classes, such as color theory and mixing.

Sparks fly as Laurus Myth, in protective welding gear, fuses parts of a metal frame together.

Sparks fly in the welding studio as MFA studio manager Laurus Myth fuses parts of a metal frame together.

A top-down view of pink and white threads on a dobby loom.

Textiles studio and ephemera. Oakland campus, April 2022.

PJ Parker holds up a creature mask in the Nave.

PJ Parker with a creature mask he had been creating for associate professor Mia Feuer’s Sculpture 1 course.

Two students talk in front of a box-like sculpture on a pedestal.

Whether on campus or off, exhibitions are opportunities to present work professionally. Here, faculty member Mia Feuer’s Sculpture 2 course exhibits In Dark Places at Oakland’s Mac Fine Arts Gallery in December 2021.

A close-up view of a student working on a flower-like sculpture made of wire, beads, and plastic.

Sanjhal Jain working on a sculpture in the Backlot as part of the Sculpture 1.

A student sets up work on the digital jacquard loom.

A student prepares to weave on the digital Jacquard loom.

A student pins up black-and-white comic strips on a white wall.

Comic students have the freedom to explore different visual styles and storytelling techniques as they find their own voice in the medium.

A close-up of a student working on a digital comic on an iMac.

Students develop a strong digital skillset grounded in industry-standard software.

Writing and comics students brainstorm ideas for a collaborative comic in a classroom.

Opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborations abound at CCA, such as this workshop with Comics and Writing students.

An A-frame sign, which says CCA Pop-up Comic-Con, at the entrance to our Montgomery Building.

There are plenty of opportunities to show—and sell—your work at on-campus events like Homecoming and off campus at San Francisco-based comics festivals and fairs.

Students work at various looms in the Weaving Studio.

Our weaving facilities include floor looms and computer-operated dobby looms. Courses such as Vagabond Weaving and Zeros+Ones highlight the intersections between these hand and digital technologies.

Curator Nancy Lim sits at a desk and points to a recent catalog about Vija Celmins; former faculty Christina Linden stands to her left.

Our proximity to museums like the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) means curators, such as Associate Curator Nancy Lim, visit classes to share their real-world experience.

A group of six, colorful books arranged by size on a wooden shelf.

Our library contains zines, artist books, catalogs, and more to mine for research and inspiration.

A student looks closely at a large textile mounted to a wall; the space behind shows a large gallery space with another viewer taking in other works.

The CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary brings internationally renowned artists for talks, research and events—including our own faculty! Textiles Professor Josh Faught exhibited recent work in a solo exhibition called Look Across the Water Into the Darkness, Look for the Fog.

A student stands at a podium reading work.

A graduating student reads work at the annual Commencement Exhibition.

Stacks in the Simpson Library.

Stacks in the Simpson Library.

Two students sitting on the floor weaving

Ingrid Henderson (MFA Fine Arts 2023) and Carolina Cuevas (MFA Fine Arts 2023) participate in a group exhibition at the newly opened Institute of Contemporary Art San Francisco.

An interior view of one bedroom and the common area.

Welcome home!. Blattner Hall was built in 2018, and has modern features and spacious apartment style units flooded with natural light. Photo by Bruce Damonte.

The exterior of  Blattner Hall.

This apartment-style residence hall caters to continuing undergraduate and transfer students.

An exterior view of the interior courtyard that includes orange-and-wood tables and benches and greenery.

Two outdoor courtyards offer space for gathering with classmates and roommates.

Two beige chairs are arranged around a flatscreen television in the student lounge.

The ground-floor lounge is a space for residential life events and community gathering.

Evening view of Market Street from the top of Twin Peaks.

Experience everything the Bay Area has to offer during your grad school years. Photo by Emanuel Ordonez (Photography).

Bird’s eye view of art and people in the atrium of Minnesota Street Project.

Minnesota Street Project is one of the SF art community’s hubs for events and exhibitions. It was also the venue for our MFA Fine Arts thesis exhibition in 2019.

Interior view of SFMOMA.

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art anchors the downtown art scene. Between its size, compelling exhibition schedule, and internship opportunities, it’s an endless source of inspiration.

Exterior view of Thee Parkside bar - a building painted in red with white lettering painted on the side.

Thee Parkside is *thee* spot for students, staff and faculty to grab a drink after class or celebrate milestones.

A student claps a slate in front of a DSLR camera, signifying the first take of a scene in a green-screen environment.

Quiet on set! Students prep for “take one” with the official slate.

A wide shot of four people in conversation on stage in a dark lecture hall filled with attendees.

Semester-long lecture series by program bring visiting practitioners to the stage, supplementing your coursework with real-world conversations. Here, artists Sarah Hennies, Kadet Kuhne, and Carla Lucero discuss their sonic practices.

Under purple lights, a sound artist performs with chimes on stage.

Beyond traditional lectures and artist talks, programming also includes sonic performances.

A dark space with a purple slide up on a screen; someone stands at a podium with CCA vinyl.

A crowd gathers for an event in the Timken Lecture Hall.

A close-up of hands holding a flexible fabric made on a 3D printer.

Material research is at the heart of the MAAD program, as seen here with 3D printed samples.

Students projection map work onto a screen at night.

Light is a tool to create immersive designs that can be precisely mapped to structures and forms.

A student holds an architectural model close to his face.

The entire Architecture division comes together for a Show & Tell once a semester where they can present a physical model, drawing, or work in progress.

Two MArch students are interviewed by a local news crew.

San Francisco’s ABC7 News interviews two MArch students about turning education into action and how they create workable solutions for the environment at CCA.

Malik Sapp sits at a computer in the MFA Design studio.

Malik Sapp (MFA Design 2023) gets some focus time in the MFA Design Studio, a colorful and creative home base for the program.

Photo of desks set up in the MFA Design s studio.

Gather here in the Grad Center to meet with your faculty mentors and cohorts.

Photo of the calendar in the MFA Design studio.

Stay stimulated with events and workshops organized by the program.

Students pose with their project group in the Nave Alcove.

DMBA Strategy’s Experience Studio final pop-up exhibition was a chance to come together and explore projects from the cohort.

Two students review a final project in the Nave alcove.

Students take a look at a project come to life called ‘Wax Nostalgic,’ a mock-up of a record store where customers can design a personalized vinyl record.

Two students stand in front of a crowd presenting work on the walls and a large monitor.

MDes in Interaction Design provides students with the most in-demand design toolkit: a combination of powerful design, process skills, and understanding of organizational systems that empowers them to address important complex challenges.

An empty room with a long table, chairs, and white board behind it.

Imagine a better future from here. In this think-tank studio space, you’ll have everything you need to get your ideas off the ground.

A couple dozen students and faculty gather in a room.

We believe interaction design should not only benefit commerce but also have a positive impact on society.

A student holds up a clapboard.

The MFA in Film program is a laboratory for you to develop your work, a sustainable career, and, by extension, to make a real impact on the future of cinema.

A student poses in front of their publication on a mirrored table at the MFA in Design Book Fair.

Students from Helen Ip’s Advanced Type and Experimental Publication course held a book fair of their work in the student lounge.

A room filled with tables, chairs and bookshelves.

Welcome to the DMBA studio, where students gather once a month to learn about microeconomics, managerial accounting, organization culture, business models & marketing strategies, and so much more.

Student adjusts a camera in a film production class.

Show the world your POV! The MFA in Film program encourages you to continuously question and refine your ideas and working methods while strengthening your intuitive and conceptual capabilities.

Two students holding boom mics on the production stage.

You’ll graduate with conceptual skills, technical dexterity, and professional networks that will help you pursue a lifelong career in filmmaking.

Two students see how their project looks via a monitor.

In your screenwriting class, you’ll master narrative and documentary screenwriting and exit the class with a script ready for production the following semester.

A dozen students standing in an art gallery.

Alumna Naz Cuguoğlu (MA Curatorial Practice 2020) gives the current Curatorial Practice and Visual and Critical Studies cohort a tour of an exhibition she curated at the nearby /slash art gallery.

Six people sit and talk at a table.

Anthony Huberman, director and chief curator of the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, leads a discussion with the Art and Experiences class in the Wattis bar/library.

Two students paint and install artwork in a gallery.

Meghan Smith (MA Curatorial Practice, MA Visual and Critical Studies 2023) and Marco Bene (MA Curatorial Practice 2023) install their co-curated exhibition ‘plaYplaYplaY.’

Four students stand outside the Wattis Institute.

The Curatorial Practice class of 2021 gets ready to install their thesis exhibition at the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts.

A small room with colorful posters lined up on the wall and a black couch, black table, and black chairs.

The Visual and Critical Studies program offers a rigorous yet supportive context for you to develop four interrelated areas of expertise: attentive viewing, critical thinking, cogent writing, and visually enhanced public speaking.

A speaker stands at a podium in front of a room full of people.

In the spring semester of your thesis year, you’ll formally present your research to the public. The day-long VCS Symposium groups graduating students into thematic panels moderated by prominent scholars. (Photo by Tamara Suarez Porras).

A group of students and faculty work with materials in the Architecture studio.

Student-faculty mentorship is a large part of the MAAD program, guiding your individual research throughout the year.

Gallery view of the 2022 MFA exhibition at the Wattis.

The spring semester always culminates with a much anticipated group exhibition.

Close up of informational pamphlets on a table.

Our expert faculty help you perfect your writing and drawing skills, while you study everything from comics theory to publication design.

A student works on a comic via a tablet and  computer.

Expect access to state of the art digital equipment to achieve the best visuals possible for your work.

The terrace with a dramatic purple and orange sunset.

The terrace offers views and vibes, especially at sunset. Photo by Richard Barnes.

A person orders online at a stanchion in the busy cafe.

Save time by ordering your food in advance.

A few people order coffee at a counter. A pillar in the center of the frame reads DoReMi Coffee bar in teal vinyl.

Coffee? The DoReMi bar has you covered for your caffeine fixes.

This corner of the graduate complex includes a room for screenprinting and sewing

The CCA Dogpatch graduate complex includes a wide range of manual and digital tools to support work and creative growth in all artistic forms.

A corner of a grad student’s studio space that has art work pinned to the walls, a chair, L-shaped desk lined with paintbrushes and ceramics.

A peek at Elizabeth Godbey’s (MFA Fine Arts/MA Visual And Critical Studies 2023) studio space.

An exterior view of Founders Hall.

Founders Hall offers a contemporary dormitory design, downstairs dining, and convenience—it’s right next door to the Main Building. Photo by Richard Barnes.

A staged bedroom in Founders Hall.

Available room options in Founders Hall include a private studio or a three-bedroom suite.

Emily Garcia (MFA Writing 2022) holds up an object, shaped like a banner, that she made in class.

Michael Wertz’s class ‘Forming Ideas’ is all about playing with form and learning to make different books and book objects. “I’ve never had more fun expanding and playing with the written word.” — Emily Garcia (MFA Writing 2022)

Exterior view of the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts.

Welcome to the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, aka “the Wattis.”

The bar/library at the Wattis has a gallery wall, bar, bar stools, and long table.

A space to think (and drink), the bar/library can be used as a quiet study spot, meeting room, or gallery receptions.

Gallery visitors look up at colorful large-scale paintings.

Linda Fenney’s (MFA Fine Arts 2022) large-scale paintings on view in the CCA MFA Exhibition 2.

Colorful sculptures fills a gallery at the Wattis.

From the CCA MFA Exhibition 1, featuring the work of class of 2022 artists Corrie Willie, Nicki Shockz, and Irene Cai.

Four students in stained lab coats and teal gloves pose in a lab,

You’ll learn traditional techniques like dyeing with organic and synthetic materials.

A close-up of a student documenting a laser cut model in an Orbiculight.

Architecture student Anbin Liu uses the Orbiculight to document his model from all angles.

Close up of a painted wooden sculpture on display in the Nave.

“Taking furniture classes really boosted my confidence and opened the doors wide as to what my illustrations could exist on,” says Esther Elia (BFA Illustration 2019).

Associate Professor Jasmin Darznik leads a roundtable discussion with her class.

New York Times best-selling author and Writing Chair Jasmin Darznik teaches a range of classes, from the Literature of San Francisco to Writing for Designers.

Professor Tom Barbash stands at a podium reading to an audience.

Professor Tom Barbash is one of many acclaimed faculty members of the program, which includes the voices of multiple genres, aesthetic traditions, and vibrant writing communities.

A student holds up a large piece of wood with diagonal patterns cut out.

Industrial Design student Giovanna Spilman shows a work in progress made on the CNC router.

A student shows her mirrored installation to a faculty member.

Janel Mitchell (BFA Graphic Design 2022) presents 'Proximity,' an installation created out of laser-etched mirrors with LED lights that are audio activated to simulate the existence of a black body threatened by any police contact.

Tom Brown from IDEO gives a lecture in the Nave Presentation Space.

The multi-purpose room off the Nave is flexible to host critiques, installations, and lectures, such as this conversation between IDEO’s Tim Brown (IDEO) and Emmy-nominated producer Barry Katz.

An overhead view of the crowded Nave.

The atrium space becomes an exhibition space toward the end of each semester, with every available wall and pedestal used to display work.

Pedestrian view of the Main Building with cars lined up in front.

Fun fact: the Main Building used to be a Greyhound bus maintenance facility. Keeping true to our sustainability values, we repurposed all 51,000-sq ft of it into our campus’s primary grounds.

Pedestrian view of the Hubbell Street studios and classrooms.

Some of our classrooms and studios are just a super short walk away from the Main Building.

Chair Brian Price points at work pinned to the wall while the class listens around him.

MArch studio crits are often held in the Nave, such as Chair Brian Price’s introductory course.

Four students sit and discuss something around a small white table with plants around them; others stand and converse off to the right.

The DMBA program hosts a pop-up in the Nave Presentation Space.

Two students sit on a slope looking at the SF skyline and Bay Bridge.

Living in San Francisco is an endless adventure and during your time here, you’ll learn how to look at life from a new angle.

Exterior view of Makers Cafe, with tables lined up outside the building.

Makers Cafe, our dining hall, is where we come together to refuel and renourish ourselves through both food and personal connections.

A group of people look at sketches and mood boards pinned up on the wall.

Working professionals in the fashion and apparel industry come by for a critique or “crit” of final projects by students in Fashion Design.

A dozen students play in an inflatable bounce house.

Sometimes the Nave also turns into a bounce house! Chimerapalooza, our annual festival hosted by student life, is one of the highlights of the Fall semester.

A photo of CCA’s backlot with concrete being removed.

We’ve started to build our campus of the future—and this is just the beginning.

Pedestrian view of the Main Building with cars lined up in front.

The Main Building used to be a Greyhound bus maintenance facility. Keeping true to our sustainability values, we repurposed all 51,000 square feet into our campus’s primary grounds.

 Courtney Odell stands in her studio in front of her artwork and supplies on the floor and walls.

Graduate school offers time and space to push your creative practice. Here's Courtney Odell (MFA Fine Arts 2020) in her personal studio at CCA’s Dogpatch MFA Studios.

Wide shot of students and faculty in the Architecture studio.

We believe in an energetic and productive studio culture where student work is nurtured with both respect and critical attention.

Exterior view of the SF Center for the Book.

We’re excited to partner with the renowned SF Center for the Book! This special, storied spot is a hidden gem and we’re so lucky to be able to hold classes here.

Bird’s eye view of the Presidio in San Francisco.

Location matters, especially in grad school. The West is the best place for creative people to connect to ideas and industries, peers and professionals.

A close-up of students writing on post-it notes.

Sticky notes are the best tool for ideation, allowing everyone to pitch in ideas in a concise way.

Students writing ideas and adding sticky notes.

Back to the drawing board! White boards are an essential part of the studio experience where you’ll work closely with your cohort to explore ideas and brainstorm.

A dozen students stand on the production stage holding film equipment preparing for a shoot.

The Production Stage is a 2,100-square-foot black box space that features a permanent audio visual system, a stage floor, green screen cyclorama with a lighting grid and many various production tools.

A group of presenting VCS graduates stand with CCA professors near vinyl that reads 2019 VCS Spring Symposium.

A large focus of the VCS program is connecting with scholars at surrounding Bay Area institutions. Graduating students present their research papers together at the annual VCS Symposium.

Photo of Blattner Hall’s exterior from the street level.

Blattner Hall is a four-minute walk to the main building and also has 24-hour security and front desk support.

An exterior view of the interior courtyard that includes orange-and-wood tables and benches and greenery.

Two outdoor courtyards offer space for gathering with classmates and roommates at Blattner Hall.

Four speakers sit on a stage in front of an audience.

Consider Timken Hall another one of your classrooms. Forums, workshops, and lectures are a huge part of the program.

A group of people stand backlit looking outside at a domed structure they constructed.

Faculty and students across graduate Architecture and Writing programs collaborated on an all-day symposium and workshop called Ecopoiesis, which addressed climate change through cyanotype printmaking and poetry. This event was produced in partnership with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and Presidio Trust.

Four students look at a wall-sized photo of a landscape.

Trips to local museums like the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art connect CURP students with the Bay Area art scene.

Woman putting up posters on wall.

PLAySPACE co-director and current graduate student Samantha Hiura works on an exhibition *playfully* titled ‘F*CK!’ about radical queer expression

A crowd gathers at Christine Wong Yap’s exhibition opening.

A CCA tradition, Wednesday night exhibition openings are a chance to gather together and see new work.

The exterior of the CCA Campus Gallery during the evening opening, with silhouetted crowd against the pastel blue and pink walls.

The CCA Campus Gallery is *the* place to see work from the CCA community and visiting artists.

Artist Christine Wong Yap adjusts a ladder while installing her exhibition in the CCA Campus Gallery.

Christine Wong Yap (BFA Printmaking 1998, MFA Printmaking 2007) installs Recognitions / 认 • 知:, a multimedia exhibition exploring belonging.

An instructor holds a torch over an open kiln in front of a group of people.

Program Chair Curtis Arima gives a casting demonstration in the Jewelry and Metal Arts shop.

Christine Wong Yap stands on a ladder painting a large-scale mural of San Francisco.

Alum Christine Wong Yap paints a mural for her exhibition ‘Recognitions / 认 • 知.’

A student swings a handheld device and ball over a ceramic object.

In this crossover class assignment, Ceramics and Game Arts students worked together to create new game concepts.

A crowd gathers in a pastel-painted gallery for the opening of Recognitions / 认 • 知, a solo exhibition by Christine Wong Yap.

The CCA community gathers together for new openings at the CCA Campus Gallery, such as alum Christine Wong Yap’s belonging-centered exhibition, ‘Recognitions / 认 • 知.’

A student holds a paintbrush to a larger canvas painting.

Grey Dey (BFA Painting & Drawing 2023) sets up a pop-up studio in The Nave to work on a large painting.

An architectural rendering featuring a building, mezzanine area, and people walking on the ground level.

Double Ground’s top level features open courtyards and green space. Courtesy of Studio Gang and Kilograph.

The words “California College of the Arts” engraved on a large slab.

Street view of the construction site.

A student standing up works on her sculpture, while a student in the background works on the wheel.

Whether you prefer hand building or wheel throwing, there’s plenty of room for both in this studio.

A student spraying glaze onto her Ceramics object.

The glaze room also has a spray booth available for use.

CCA lettermark in teal against a white background

CCA lettermark in teal against a white background

Two men load artwork into a kiln.

The kiln room includes electric and gas kilns of varying sizes.

Students in front of a classroom point to a screen.

Students in the Game Arts I course present game concepts to their classmates and instructor.

An instructor points to artwork on a screen while speaking to a class.

Faculty Maryam Yousif presents a new assignment to her class.

A teacher holds a block of sediment while talking in front of a group of students.

Adam Marcus’s ‘Materialities of Care’ course gets their hands *dirty* in the Makers Yard.

A large metal sink with signs and containers.

This area of RayKo Photo Center is for developing film.

 A student using a large scanner

A student uses the Digital Darkroom at RayKo Photo Center.

Dozens of colored yarn and thread in a cabinet.

Rows and rows of colorful yarn and thread line the studio’s walls.

Students working at computers

Students use the upper level of the RayKo Photo Center to work on computers, printers, and scanners.

 Students working around large tables.

This room at RayKo Photo Center is for screen printing, making paper from scratch, and mixed media printmaking.

Student drawing on a lightbox.

A student sketches on a lightbox.

Angled view of the Jewelry and Metal Arts studio

Workstations are available as you learn different techniques to shape a variety of metals.

Two students working in the Jewelry and Metal Arts studio.

The main jewelry classroom is equipped with 17 professional jeweler's benches with flex-shafts, a communal soldering area, two drill presses, a bench shear, a rolling mill, and various hand tools designed for metal-smithing.

A wall lined with hammers, pliers, and other tools for metal smithing.

The tools of the trade are all at your fingertips.

Dozens of students with their laptops sitting in groups.

Students eagerly fill up the Nave Alcove for a design sprint sponsored by Google.

Five students sit at a table with paper and post-its.

In this design sprint sponsored by Google, students got insights into universal design and accessibility.

A student stands on a stage projecting a comic strip onto a screen.

The summer residency concludes with lively graduate thesis readings in Timken Hall.

Teacher in a yellow t-shirt standing in front of a classroom of students.

Program chair Justin Hall gives a lecture on comics history.

People lying on the ground with their head inserted onto a ceramic object.

Visitors engage with a ceramic object by Cathy Lu in an exhibition organized by The National Museum of Women in the Arts.

 A person bangs on a large percussion instrument.

Aside from visual art, the Wattis also hosts unique and compelling performances and programs almost every month.

Exterior street level view of the windows looking into an art gallery.

peek through the windows of the critically acclaimed ‘Drum Listens to Heart’ exhibition that debuted fall 2023

 16 computers in a classroom

In this Animation lab for sound design classes, you’ll work on 24” iMacs with Pro Tools 11 software.

Students draw on lighttables

The Intro Animation Lab has iMacs, Cintiqs, Light Tables and various other tools.

 Long tables with colorful pieces and spray bottles  on top of them.

The studio also has multiple large printing tables.

A computer and recording equipment in a small room.

Our soundbooths are professional studios for sound recording and design.

A small room with a green screen, iMac computer, and a model for a stop motion animation project.

We have four suites that can you can reserve to work on stop motion or experimental animation projects.

A group of individuals collaborating in a sewing room, stitching fabrics and bringing designs to life.

Fashion Design students leave CCA with a clear understanding of tools, techniques and methodologies for designing wearable artifacts for the human form.

 An expansive room featuring sewing machines and tables, ideal for crafting and sewing endeavors.

Cloths, fabric, fiber, paper, threads are your best friends in the fashion labs.

One of our many exciting pieces of equipment in the lab is the FeltLOOM, used to felt denim + other fabric scraps to create unique fabric with less impact on the world.

One of our many exciting pieces of equipment in the lab is the FeltLOOM, used to felt denim + other fabric scraps to create unique fabric with less impact on the world.

A room with a TV, computer, and game shelf.

The homeroom has an Xbox One with Game Pass access, Nintendo Classic with 30 games, as well as a large selection of classic board games

Classroom with people seated at tables.

Through focused student and faculty collaboration, we take advantage of the space between disciplines and reimagine problem-solving in ways that are unconventional and unexpected.

Wide view of an art exhibition

PLAySPACE, The Paulette Long and Shepard Pollack Art Community Experiment, is a graduate student-run exhibition program located in the back of the Nave, in N21

A presenter pointing to a presentation in front of a group of students.

Justin Lokitz leads a presentation in his Business Models & Marketing Strategies course.

Students line a First Year hallway working on graphite drawings.

The Drawing Studio focuses on this fundamental skill and practice, which is integral in art, design, and architecture practices and relevant to all CCA programs.

An altar composed of photos and perforated paper cut outs and flowers.

Clubs and student organizations use the flexible space to celebrate community and honor cultural traditions. Here, Manos Abiertas shares their ofrenda altar for Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead).

Three students dressed in black walk toward the end of a light-filled hallway.

Friendships, collaborative partners, and future networks will blossom from students’ shared experience of starting college at CCA.

Two students present their colorful, wearable jumpsuits.

The foundational First Year Experience helps students discover what matters to them artistically and personally. In this case, a jumpsuit’s “blank canvas” leads to colorful, unique expressions.

An overhead view of two students working on their Protest Prosthetics project in a white presentation space.

The First Year Core Studios include space for presenting work during a critique, sharing ideas, and even spreading out, as seen here.

A group of writing students collaborate around a table in a space decorated with colorful posters.

Students collaborate in the Visual Critical Studies homeroom in the 184 Hooper Building.

The Critical Studies class closely reviews paper lanterns, which illuminate a dimly-lit space.

Lanterns of Sorrow is a project from Senior Adjunct Professor Nakashima Degarrod's Critical Studies seminar, honoring those lost in the global refugee crisis.

Artists Sarah Hennies, Kadet Kuhne, and Carla Lucero discuss their work in Timken Hall.

Undergraduate students benefit from the MFA Writing program’s acclaimed reading series, which includes lectures in Timken Lecture Hall, craft talks, and workshops with novelists, poets, and memoirists from all over the world.

A wide shot of students pinning up work on the walls and floor of the Nave.

Undergraduate students review work from Architecture Studio 1, a course focused on the formal, spatial and tectonic characteristics of architectural design.

A wide shot of students seated in the Architecture studio, listening to two professors lecture.

A moment in the Materials and Methods studio taught by Mark Donohue and Margaret Ikeda, which introduces the basics of non-structural material for architecture.

A student gestures at a pin-up installation of her work during an Interior Design critique.

An Interior Design student presents work during finals week.

A wide shot of students learning how to use a tabletop 3D printer in the Digital Craft Lab.

Architecture students learn how to use the clay 3D printers in an Ecological Tectonics workshop in the Digital Craft Lab.

A student uses a bandsaw in the Metal Shop, with sparks flying dramatically around him.

Sparks fly as Jack Morningstar (BFA Furniture 2020) uses a vertical bandsaw in the Metal Shop.

A group of students engage in lively discussion, lining the Nave in two-by-two rows of chairs.

Associate Professor in Critical Ethnic Studies Shalini Agrawal’s Radical Redesign course identified areas or opportunities within design work to radically reorient it toward inclusion.

A black-and-white mural of branches and leaves reveal the word “Illustration” in organic cursive.

Adjacent to classrooms, the Illustration homeroom features individual workspaces, models, books, and a mural by Sendy Santamaria (BFA Illustration 2018).

A class looks at an installation of posters and vinyl in the Nave Alcove.

Graphic Design students review an installation of colorful posters and vinyl graphics from Assistant Professor Christopher Hamamoto’s undergraduate advanced studio in exhibition design.

An exterior view of Founders Hall.

Students live on campus for their first two years at CCA. Founders Hall offers welcoming rooms, downstairs dining, and convenience (it’s across the street from the Montgomery Building!). Photo by Richard Barnes.

A view of a staged Double Studio room in Founders Hall.

First- and second-year students are paired up in a double studio room, which includes a bathroom and a shared living and sleeping area.

tudents eat pizza on the Founders Hall terrace.

The fifth-floor terrace is a place to hang out and take in San Francisco’s iconic skyline.

Four students laugh together at a low table in Makers Cafe.

Makers Cafe is the perfect spot to grab a bite to eat with friends or fuel up on coffee.

The terrace with a dramatic purple and orange sunset.

The terrace offers views and vibes, especially at sunset. Photo by Richard Barnes.

Three students work at a wooden table, adding blue tape to plastic shoe molds.

Fashion Design and Industrial Design students tape shoe molds in Adjunct Professor Caroline de Baere’s investigative studio focused on footwear design.

A painting class works on easels in a light-filled studio.

Students learn fundamental techniques and explore stylistic approaches in Associate Professor Karla Wozniak's introductory Painting and Drawing course.

Balloons, flags, and colorful dots surround a teal-and-white poster that reads “First Gen CCA 1.”

The Office of Student Success celebrates CCA's first-generation college community in a celebration held annually on November 8.

A wide shot from the top of Potrero Hill looking at downtown San Francisco.

The view from Potrero Hill offers sweeping city views with a perfectly framed downtown skyline.

Three students eat outside of Makers Cafe with 80 Carolina in the background.

Across the street from Founders Hall and Makers Cafe, you’ll find all the support you need. The 80 Carolina building is where you can meet with staff from Financial Aid, Admissions, Student Life, and International Student Affairs and Programs.

An aerial view of California College of the Arts with San Francisco in the background

The city is your campus. CCA is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, a one-of-a-kind cultural and innovation hub—the ideal landscape to study the theory and practice of art, design, architecture, and writing.

Four masked students sit at a table with a red tablecloth, candy, and collateral. Large letters on the wall behind them read SCC: Students of Color Coalition.

The Students of Color Coalition meets weekly to support and embrace the unique perspectives of students and artists of color at CCA.

Two students talk with Noki Seekao with the crowded Nave behind them.

Director of Student Life Noki Seekao welcomes new students at Chimerapalooza.

Three students embrace, their faces covered in colorful dust.

CCA India’s Holi celebration welcomes spring with an afternoon of Indian snacks, Bollywood music, and color-filled fun.

A student talks with two employers at the 2019 Career Expo.

Get face-to-face time with creative industry leaders at the Office of Career and Employer Engagement’s annual Career Expo, which is open to students and alumni.

Students play with large inflatable objects in a bouncy-house environment in the Nave.

The Office of Student Life’s Chimerapalooza is an annual event that welcomes new students and returning ones at the start of the fall semester.

Front of white modern building with blue skies

Front of white modern building with blue skies

Students in the Nave looking at architecture models on tables

The Nave activated by crowds and student work during an Architecture pop-up event.

An exterior view of Founders Hall: A white building with red linear details.

CCA’s new student residence, Founders Hall, includes Makers Cafe on the ground floor.

An aerial view of CCA's backlot with colorful chalk drawings of abstract shapes, painted containers, potted plants, and picnic tables decorating the concrete area. The main building recedes in the background.

Exit the Nave and you’ll find yourself in a multi-use outdoor area. Currently an open-air maker space, the Backlot will be the centerpiece of CCA’s transformational campus expansion.

A computer lab with several rows of computers and desks.

Some of your Game Arts courses will take place in this PC lab.

A close-up of a student working on a model in the Architecture studio.

A student glues a balsa wood model in the Materials and Methods studio.

The exterior of ARCH Art Supplies in the ground floor of Blattner Hall, with bright yellow signage and a bubble machine.

ARCH Art Supplies has long been the go-to location for CCA students and faculty. It’s located in Blattner Hall, just a few steps out the door for many on-campus residents and a five-minute walk from the main building.

The ground-level entrance to the expanded Double Ground campus on Hooper Street.

CCA's expansion adds more space for creativity—20% to be exact. Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.

Two sets of hands create circular forms from slab-rolled clay.

CCA’s storied Ceramics program is based in San Francisco alongside all other creative disciplines. Photo by Carlos Graña.

Black and white illustration of college campus

Black and white illustration of college campus

Assistant Professor Anthea Black holds a typesetting tray with letterpress print type.

CCA’s letterpress machines, type, and book arts equipment are at the San Francisco Center for the Book, just a few blocks from campus.

An architectural rendering of a maker yard, a flexible outdoor courtyard for collaborating and working with heavy materials.

Outdoor maker yards are new spaces for collaborating with others and working with heavy materials. Rendering courtesy of Studio Gang.

CCA Undergraduate Experience

CCA Undergraduate Experience

CCA Graduate Experience

CCA Graduate Experience

Meet CCA Tour

Meet CCA Tour

Architecture students and faculty view models and drawings on v-shaped tables running the length of the Nave.

The Nave is a space for sharing work, sparking conversation, and hanging out, as seen here in the Architecture division’s show-and-tell mixer.

A person stands on a ladder, hanging an installation of gauzy mesh and prisms. Toward the back of the light-filled space, four people suspend large-scale photographs.

It’s also a space for site-specific installations, such as the FLOW STATE PAVILLION by MArch students Anbin Liu, Elif Aydinli, Saina Gorgani, Shreya Shankar, and Weisheng Zhong.

Teachers standing in front of a crowd.

You’ll be tight with your First Year faculty team, a diverse group of artists and designers who advise and mentor you while acclimating to the college experience.

A dozen students sit at a table making miniature sculptures.

First Year Studios contains five classrooms- Drawing, 2D, 3D. All classrooms contain heavy-duty work tables and large-scale shelving for class project storage and hand tools for wood, cardboard, and general making.

A student touches a delicate paper model held by faculty Margaux Schindler.

Students closely examine paper studies in the Materiality and Space 3 course taught by Margaux Schindler. Projects explore tectonics, research, and synthesis from the angle of sustainable “green” building design.

A senior presents design work in a critique in the Nave.

Fashion senior reviews take place in the Nave, bringing in outside industry leaders as panelists.

A packed crowd watches a look by Hanjuan Kristen Sun on the Nave runway.

CCA’s annual runway show called the Fashion Experience is a public, professional debut of thesis collections by graduating Fashion Design students. This showstopping design is by Hanjuan Kristen Sun (BFA Fashion Design 2022).

Students setting up artwork in an atrium.

Student prep for the annual Design + Architecture end of year exhibition.

The Nave Headline Image

The Nave Headline Image

large_digital_jpg_FYCS_First_Year_Woodshop_FA22_1660.jpg accessibility description

large_digital_jpg_FYCS_First_Year_Woodshop_FA22_1660.jpg caption

large_digital_jpg_FYCS_All_college_honors_SP24_002.jpg accessibility description

large_digital_jpg_FYCS_All_college_honors_SP24_002.jpg caption

Architecture Studios Headline Image

Architecture Studios Headline Image

A student works in a space full of woodshop tools.

Accessible to first-year students only, the First Year Core Studio's woodshop has both handheld power tools and stationary machinery.

A white space with delicate, whimsical sculptures constructed of wire and colorful cylinders.

You’ll be mentored by practicing artists who are deeply involved with the Bay Area arts community. Here is a recent exhibition at the ICA San Francisco by Individualized Studies program chair Peter Simensky.

A professor gestures and talks to a small group standing on the corner near a green street sign that says Rockridge.

Mitchell Schwarzer leads a Rockridge walking tour as part of the Hella Oakland class, a hybrid class investigating the city’s history and current conditions.

A person with curly hair reads Faculty Jasmin Darznik’s book The Bohemians.

Learn from New York Times best-selling authors like Professor Jasmin Darznik.

Writing & Literature Classrooms Headline Image

Writing & Literature Classrooms Headline Image

The exterior of the CCA Wattis Institute for Contemporary Art.

A few blocks from campus, the Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts brings accomplished contemporary artists, academics, and thought leaders to San Francisco. The space also hosts CCA's graduate program in Fine Arts thesis exhibitions.

Three CCA students converse in the Wattis’ warehouse space with Josh Faught’s large-scale weavings on view.

Textiles Professor Josh Faught’s exhibition at the Wattis, Look Across the Water Into the Darkness, Look for the Fog, offered programming specifically for the CCA community.

 Museum guests admire a vibrant mural wall in the entrance of SFMOMA.

Spend the day at SFMOMA exploring iconic modern art and immersive installations.

The photo shows a scenic view of the bridge at Crane Cove Park in San Francisco.

Enjoy a perfect day at Crane Cove Park—relaxing by the waterfront, taking in stunning views, and soaking up the sun!

The photo shows the storefront of Farley's coffee shop, with trees and the sidewalk in front.

Enjoy a cozy coffee break at Farley's in Potrero Hill.

A bus at its station in San Francisco, with buildings visible in the background.

San Francisco offers a variety of public transit options—buses, trains, and trolleys—making it easy to explore the city from every angle.

A line of E-Bikes charging in front of the school's campus, with the campus buildings visible in the background.

Convenient E-Bikes are available both on campus and around the city, making getting around quick and easy!

An exterior view of RayKo Photo Center in downtown San Francisco.

CCA’s Photography and Printmedia programs are based in the RayKo Photo Center, just blocks from museums like the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

Four students work at various stations in the darkroom, two at enlargers and two washing prints.

A long exposure in the darkroom captures the energy of students working.

CCA Campus Headline Image

CCA Campus Headline Image

Tables, chairs, and printmedia equipment in a large room with brick walls and large windows.

This room at RayKo Photo Center is used for intaglio, lithography, relief, and monotype printmaking.

Printmedia Studios Headline Image

Printmedia Studios Headline Image

CCA in the Design District

Take a walk through our neighborhood! Discover the sights, scenes, and studios of San Francisco’s Design District, where CCA calls home.

California College of the Arts Banner Image

California College of the Arts Banner Image

[Location name] Headline Image

[Location name] Headline Image

View of a city from a top of a hill

The campus is adjacent to the charming and scenic Potrero Hill neighborhood.

Street level view of businesses in the Design District.

The neighborhood is a unique blend of historic industrial buildings and new developments.

Street level photo of the Chase Center in Mission Bay

Whether you’re catching a game or a concert or just grabbing a bite, the Chase Center in Mission Bay is a short walk from campus.

Street level photo of the Dogpatch neighborhood

A few bus stops from campus, the historic Dogpatch District is a pillar of the San Francisco art scene, home to numerous galleries, studios, and collectives.

An alley filled with colorful murals on the back of houses.

The Mission is full of vibrant murals, highlighting cultural heritage, social and political statements, and more.

Public transportation  Headline Image

Public transportation Headline Image

 Bus crossing the street

Hop on whenever, wherever. All CCA students get unlimited bus rides as part of your tuition.

People in small groups sitting in the lawn of a park.

Nearly 16 acres large, Mission Dolores Park is the most popular park on this side of the city.

A train station at sunset

Aristotle Elma (Painting & Drawing) captured this dreamy sunset from the BART station.

 A bike dock station in front of a building and a park.

There’s also a bikeshare station located across the street from Blatter Hall.

Exterior shot of a train station

Caltrain’s 4th and King Street station is only one mile away from campus.

 Four people playing in the grass.

Students love Crane Cove Park for its wide lawn and views of the bay.

Dozens of students covered in colored powder in a park.

Jackson Park, right across the street from Blattner Hall, is another student fave for hosting outdoor community events, like CCA India Club’s annual Holi celebration.

 Exterior view of Fitness SF gym.

The SoMa branch of Fitness SF is just half a mile from campus

Exterior of a rock climbing facility.

Caption / Mission Cliffs is a rock climbing gym that’s only a few minutes away from campus.

21_omni.png accessibility description

21_omni.png caption

Exterior view of Wolfe’s restaurant

You don’t have to go far to find good food around CCA.

Exterior view of Thee Parkside bar

Whether it’s coffee in the morning or a drink after classes (for those 21+ up), Thee Parkside is the unanimous go-to spot for CCA students, faculty, and staff.

Three students sitting at a table eating ice cream.

Milkbomb, one of the city’s most unique ice cream shops, is just a block away from Blattner Hall.

Six students eating ice cream.

CCA students get together for soft serve at SomiSomi.

Wide view of the atrium at SFMOMA with murals on the wall.

SFMOMA is one of the largest museums of modern and contemporary art in the United States and a short bus ride away from CCA!

Exterior view of the Museum of Craft and Design

This is the only museum in San Francisco devoted to craft and design.

Exterior view of the ICA San Francisco

Admission to the ICA San Francisco is free, and lots of students, alumni, and faculty have shown work here since its opening in 2022.

Exterior view of Minnesota Street Project

We’re so lucky to be so close to the Minnesota Street Project, a cultural hub for our community.

Overhead view of five students sitting at large tables working on photography and printmedia projects.

While our expanded campus facilities are under construction, Printmedia and Photography courses take place in the historic RayKo Photo Center in the South of Market neighborhood.

Drone photography overlooking CCA’s Main Building and residence hall, with the San Francisco skyline in the background.

CCA has been a cornerstone of the Bay Area art and design community for more than 100 years.

small_digital_jpg_Double_Ground_Exteriors_FA24_10.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_Double_Ground_Exteriors_FA24_10.jpg caption

small_digital_jpg_Double_Ground_Exteriors_FA24_10.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_Double_Ground_Exteriors_FA24_10.jpg caption

Wide shot of a class standing between CCA’s Main Building and Hooper Street Pavillion.

In fall 2024, we opened the doors to our campus extension designed by Studio Gang.

Five students talking outside their classroom

The new buildings feature flex-use indoor/outdoor spaces.

Students work on ceramic projects on shared worktables.

Check out the Ceramics bench room where you can push the boundaries of clay.

Three students wear protective gear and use equipment in the shop

The Furniture Studio’s Machine Room houses a full complement of wood working machinery for milling and shaping solid hardwoods.

Students work on a long worktable

The Furniture Bench Room is a traditional wood-working studio for hand-shaping, steam-bending, vacuum-bagging, and more.

A student sketches on large pieces of paper on a wooden table. In the background, another student tapes and measures a project.

A student drafts plans in the Bench Room, which is the homeroom for Furniture students.

A student works on a Ceramics project by the back wall of a studio

Ceramics is a naturally lit area with lots of space to think and make.

A large crowd watches students on the potterywheel.

The Ceramics studio fosters a sense of play, discovery and community spirit.

Student looks at a table and lamp.

A student looks at the work of Wilder Neely, recipient of the distinguished 2024 Wornick Award.

A lab with large stainless steel equipment, buckelts, and other supplies.

The Dye Lab includes a large-scale light exposure table for silk screens as well as gas stoves for use with both chemical and natural dyes, a closed-ventilation system for dye mixing, and a washout sink.

small_digital_jpg_Textiles_Studio_FA24_09.jpg accessibility description

small_digital_jpg_Textiles_Studio_FA24_09.jpg caption

Over a dozen looms in a large studio

Welcome to the loom room, where each student in weaving classes are assigned to their own dedicated loom for the semester.

A student works at a loom

Textiles majors build a diverse creative practice in which they explore everything from weaving to textile printing to sculptural fiber.

4 blue worktables in an empty shop

An open-access space for sanding, shaping, carving, and finishing unfinished wood, foam, and plastic.

Ido Yoshimoto kneels to demonstrate chainsaw techniques on a wooden stump for two students on the Backlot.

The Furniture program annually selects a practitioner specializing in wood, such as Ido Yoshimoto in fall 2021, to join our faculty as a visiting professor.

Two sandblaster machines; one is yellow and one is purple.

This room also has three sand and media blasters for finishing cleaning metal and other approved materials.

A close-up of a work-in-progress 3D printed clay vessel being extruded.

You’ll stretch your ceramics practice by experimenting with digital tools, such as our four 3D Potterbots. You’ll design shapes, forms, and components in 3D modeling software and watch them materialize on the printer bed.

The Metal Shop offers a space for various metal fabrication techniques such as cold forming, machining, mechanical fastening, and welding.

The Metal Shop offers a space for various metal fabrication techniques such as cold forming, machining, mechanical fastening, and welding.

Corner of a Ceramics studio with a dozen potter wheels and shelves behind it for storage.

Ceramicists of any skill level are welcome to use the pottery wheels at any time.

A metal table in the center of a room with buckets of glaze underneath and surrounded by shelves of glaze ingredients.

Finish your masterpiece in the glaze room where you can find ready-made glazes, safety sinks and a spray booth.

Students making sculptures in an outdoor workspace.

Don’t be afraid to make a mess — we encourage it, especially in our outdoor maker yards.

Heavy metal making equipment in a shop

The equipment in this shop is exclusively geared toward working with metal and includes a well-stocked bench set of bicycle mechanic tools and vise-mounted bike stands.

Heavy equipment in the metal shop

Stationary equipment in the metal shop includes: mills, drill press, bandsaws, belt sanders, pedestal grinders, slip rollers, and so much more.

A room with a few work tables and fireproof store lockerage

The Chemical Casting room is an open-access space for making and utilizing molds which may include materials like Resin, Silicone, Alginate, and Epoxy.

Wide view of a benchroom with fabrication materials.

The Omni Shop is a large, well-lit shop that contains many essential pieces of equipment for student use including saws, jointer/planer, sanders, drill presses, mills, routers, lathes, a vacuum forming machine, and workbenches.

Sculpture Shops Headline Image

Sculpture Shops Headline Image

A student presents her project on her laptop

The Hybrid Lab is a shared interdisciplinary space for making with innovative technology that is built around the principles of being open, fast, and inspiring.

Several students and teachers fill up a lab space, looking at various projects.

Want to make your project a little more ~interactive~? Students have access to sensors, motors, and other digital fabrication materials in the Hybrid Lab.

The Streich Zone is a multifunctional room for the Jewelry and Metal Arts program, where enameling, forming, and fabricating take place

The Streich Zone is a multifunctional room for the Jewelry and Metal Arts program, where enameling, forming, and fabricating take place

Students work at jeweler's benches

The Jewelry/Metal Arts main studio classroom is equipped with 24 professional jeweler's benches each with a Foredom flexshaft, bench vise, and GRS benchpin/bracket.

Students have access to Smith Mini Torches, Smith Versa-Torches, drill presses, shears, rolling mill, 3D printers, laser welder, pulse arc welder, an instructional video monitor, and various hand tools designed for metal-smithing.

Students have access to Smith Mini Torches, Smith Versa-Torches, drill presses, shears, rolling mill, 3D printers, laser welder, pulse arc welder, an instructional video monitor, and various hand tools designed for metal-smithing.

Wooden desks with lights attached

The undergraduate curriculum covers the full range of techniques for production of jewelry, holloware, and small metal sculpture, including soldering, cold connections, forging, casting, enameling, stone-setting, hinges, mechanisms, and production methods.

Close up shot of hammering equipment

A close up look at hammering tools in the Hammer Room.

Wide view of hammering tools in a small classroom

There's a dedicated room for hammering techniques!

StudentBridge Inc. 2025

StudentBridge Contact Privacy Policy Terms of Use Accessibility
linkedintwitterinstagram

StudentBridge Inc. 2025