Develop a rigorous art practice — focusing 80 credit hours on making fine art or animation and interactive work — with UMass Lowell's B.F.A. in Art. In small classes led by practicing artists, you’ll build a strong foundation in drawing, painting, sculpture, photography and mixed media while also exploring areas like UXUI (User ExperienceUser Interface) design, animation and digital media. Gain professional experience through internships with museums, galleries and creative firms like Draft Kings and iRobot. In the senior year, you'll prepare a portfolio and be ready to enter your chosen art discipline at a professional level.The Department of Art & Design offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in Graphic Design and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in Art.The BFA in Art and Graphic Design are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). The Animation and Interactive Media concentration at UMass Lowell provides students with the education they need to be successful professionals in the field of animation and interactive media. Through a diligent sequence of core courses (degree pathway), students are introduced to the language of several disciplines and various fields of studies in Transmedia Arts. Whether they focus on web design, animation or interactive media, UML students will greatly benefit from this concentration, which covers a wide variety of skills including visual imagery, critical thinking, problem solving, and new technology methodologies. Animation and Interactive Media are vibrant and rapidly evolving fields of cultural production. Both of these disciplines play key roles in art (video, installation, net art, etc.), design (user experience, interaction), entertainment (films, games), and communication and journalism (infographics and data visualization). Animation and Interactive Media are two sides of the same coin: the former focusing on time-based narratives and emotional communication and the later involving user feedback and affect. Combining the two disciplines will make each practice stronger and prepare students to become animators, game designers, communicators, and artists. Assignments focus on sequential imagery techniques as well as interactivity in arts and as arts. In addition to the core courses students can take advantage of courses in web design, motion graphics, animation, interactive design, graphic design, game design, data visualization and advanced independent studies.