Visual and Performing Arts & Design and Creative Practice Programs
Bass students prepare to become exceptional creators, performers and scholars in an exciting environment that grounds them in traditional practices while equipping them with the technological skills to succeed in a globally connected world.
Discover the cutting-edge facilities our Visual and Performing Arts & Design and Creative Practice programs utilize at the Bass School. Whether you’re experimenting with sound in our anechoic chamber, exploring immersive worlds in the VAST Lab, or shaping new forms in the 3D Studio, you’ll find the tools and spaces to bring your vision to life. From motion capture and metalwork to experimental animation and interactive design, our specialized labs, studios, and collaborative environments are designed to spark innovation and support every stage of your creative journey.
Visual and Performing Arts
Students pursue an interdisciplinary study of the arts by selecting among courses in historical context, studio practice, performance ensemble, and ideas and interpretation of the arts. Our BA in Visual and Performing Arts is available in a variety of creative concentrations. Graduate students pursue research and creative practice within an interdisciplinary context. They can focus on film studies, visual art, performing arts, or art history and participate in seminars in other disciplines.
Program Overview: Visual and Performing Arts
BA Concentrations: Art History | Communication Studies | Dance | Film | Interdisciplinary Arts | Music | Photo-Video-Digital | Theatre | Visual Arts
Art History
The Master’s in Art History program at the O’Donnell Institute introduces students to a global history of art through close engagement with artworks held in collections in Dallas-Fort Worth and beyond. We also have an Art History concentration within our BA in Visual and Performing Arts.
Take note: Effective Fall 2025, the Bachelor of Arts in Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication (BA in ATEC) degree program has been renamed the Bachelor of Arts in Media Arts and Design (BA in MAD). This new title better reflects the strengths of our Bachelor of Arts program and improves recognition across the University and in industry.
Arts, Technology, and Emerging Communication / Media Arts and Design
ATEC and MAD programs inspire students to blend art, technology, design, engineering, science, and the humanities to create innovative solutions. Our programs focused on design and creative practice include the BA with Emerging Media Arts concentration and MFA Creative Practice pathway. Emerging Media Arts offers students coursework in digital arts areas such as digital fabrication, projection mapping, new media art and performance, sound, time-based media, and video. Creative Practice explores the production of new art and technology in a studio or design practice in an idea-driven maker-culture environment. Other ATEC and MAD degrees are also available, which allow students to focus less on design and more on other areas.
Program Overview: Design and Creative Practice
BA Concentrations: Critical Media Studies | Emerging Media Arts
MA Concentrations: Emerging Media Studies | MFA Concentrations: Creative Practice
Certificates: Certificate in Applied Experience Design and Research
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Classes
To obtain specific information about classes each semester at The University of Texas at Dallas, visit the UT Dallas Coursebook. For more general information, visit the UT Dallas Undergraduate Catalog or Graduate Catalog.