Academy of Fine Art
Artistic practice – in the very broadest sense – is at the heart of studies at the Academy of Fine Art. We work across media, disciplines and approaches, exploring questions of form and material in parallel with the different contexts in which contemporary art appears. Whatever form your practice takes, the academy emphasises exploring how your art engages a public.
Every student at the academy gets a studio: an open space for making. Self-motivated experimentation is at the heart of the studies, but there is also an emphasis on collaboration, collective learning and shared knowledge. You will be supported in your making by regular feedback on your work, ranging from regular one-to-one tutorials with professors and guest teachers to ‘group crits’ (in which you discuss work-in-progress with fellow students). KHiO’s many workshops (from ceramics and woodworking to 3D printing and digital video editing) provide the opportunity to develop a range of technical skills, with guidance from the workshop leaders. And you will gain practical experience in exhibiting your work every year, whether in one of KHiO’s gallery spaces or elsewhere.
Each semester you will choose from an extensive range of courses, covering both practical skills and theoretical topics, offering ways to consider your practice in broader contexts and to direct your studies towards topics and techniques most relevant for your own work. Recent courses have covered such diverse topics as the artist as curator, gestures in painting, scores and scripts in performance, organising an artist-run institution, exhibiting sound art in public space, video in the age of social media, or making a photobook.
The Academy has a faculty of internationally-respected artists working in a variety of media. In recent years, Academy faculty have exhibited at high-profile venues and exhibitions.
The Academy regularly collaborates with a variety of Norwegian and international institutions for both teaching and exhibiting. One of our most important partner institutions is Kunstnernes Hus (The Artists’ House) in Oslo. Other recent collaborations have included the Henie Onstad Art Centre, Cinemateket, the Historical Museum (Oslo), the Norwegian Film School (Lillehammer) and the Momentum Biennial. As part of KHiO, the Academy also offers the possibility to collaborate with students and professors from other departments: Dance, Theater, Opera, Design and Art and Craft.
The Academy emphasises the importance of student activities that connect to the local and global art scene, and provides guidance and financial support for student-initiated initiatives that navigate public space. The Academy also puts an emphasis on active student involvement in the programme’s organisation and supports self-organized initiatives, through the platform for public talks Open Forum and Akademirommet (The Academy Room), a student-run exhibition space at Kunstnernes Hus.
Current Academy students and recent alumni are also active in the local artist run scene, establishing venues in Oslo and beyond including Destiny’s Atelier, K4, Plum Trim, Haus der Kunst, Løvens Hule, Khartoum, Podium and more.
Much of the academy’s activity includes a moment of engaging the public, whether in the form of a lecture, a performance or an exhibition - you can see a sample of recent and upcoming events on our public programme page calendar: artacademycalendar.khio.no
Bachelor’s in fine art (BFA)
The Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) is a three-year degree program (180 ECTS) aiming to offer students the knowledge required to become an independent artist.
The Bachelor of Fine Art (BFA) training is a three-year programme leading to a concluding, single-subject degree, which aims to provide the student with sufficient knowledge to get established as an independent artist.
The BA starts with an intensive workshop aimed at developing creative and collaborative skills. For the rest of the first two years of the programme, the emphasis is on exploring and experimenting with processes, ideas, collaborations and various materials. In the third year the focus is primarily on developing and producing a graduation project. During the final year, the student compiles a portfolio of work that investigates the questions, ideas or topics of their choice, or the media and techniques they find most appropriate to their practice.
During the first four semesters, the student will engage in four main types of activity, each of which highlights a central aspect of artistic practice:
- independent practice, with a focus on studio work via individual supervision and group critique
- practical seminars/workshops, including courses and study trips addressing various themes
- theoretical seminars on a variety of topics, learning a critical vocabulary around the student’s own practice
- exhibition practice in the school’s galleries and external showrooms
Apply for admission
Søknadsweb (the application portal) and information about the admission process will be available two months before the application deadline.
Master’s in fine art (MFA)
The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) is a two-year degree programme (120 ECTS) aiming to offer students the knowledge required to become an independent artist. The aim is also to enable students to be active contributors within contemporary art and related areas of society. The programme aims to prepare fine-art professionals for a national- and international-level practice.
The Master of Fine Arts (MFA) training is a two-year programme leading to a concluding, single-subject degree, which aims to provide the student with sufficient knowledge to get established as an independent artist. A further objective is to enable the student to become an active contributor to the field of contemporary art and related areas of society. The programme seeks to prepare fine-art professionals for a career on both the national and the international levels.
The guiding principle of the Academy is close and regular engagement with an internationally renowned faculty of artists, theorists and curators, and a diverse group of students. The programme aims to foster a reflective approach to the artist’s individual practice, as well as to provide contextualisation, dialogue and critical feedback in a dynamic and inclusive environment.
The first year of the programme is structured by a shared course, aiming to tie critical discourse to the student’s artistic processes and the choices we are confronted with when exhibiting. Along the way, the students explore different ways of framing and contextualising their practice, culminating in an exhibition or public project. The second year builds on the learning and experimentation of the first year and includes a thorough focus on the graduating exhibition - which comprises both an individual and group project - as well as life beyond the academy as a practicing artist.
The Master’s programme welcomes students who wish to work in an interdisciplinary, non-medium-specific context as well as those who wish to pursue a particular discipline. We encourage students to participate actively in collaborations with other institutions and art circles. Students are expected to adopt an international perspective and to work on building networks during their studies. Speaking and writing skills are an important aspect of the education, with significant emphasis placed on cultivating research skills, as well as exploring different ways of framing your practice for others. In the second year, the student will produce a research paper rooted in their practice, as well as a text to accompany their graduation exhibition.
There are four strands to the Master’s programme:
- independent practice, with a focus on studio work via individual supervision and group critique
- practical seminars/workshops, including courses and study trips addressing various themes
- theoretical seminars on a variety of topics, learning a critical vocabulary around the student’s own practice
- exhibition practice in the school’s galleries and external spaces
Apply for admission
Søknadsweb (the application portal) and information about the admission process will be available two months before the application deadline.
Student exchange
If you are interested in becoming an exchange student at Oslo National Academy of the Arts, read more at the Student Exchange page.
