School of Visual Arts

Students pose for a picture around a table at a club fair. Students pose for a picture around a table at a club fair.
Red and blue wave of glass. Red and blue wave of glass.
An art student sits in a chair at their workspace, intently examining something in their hands. An art student sits in a chair at their workspace, intently examining something in their hands.
A pink-clad, feminine looking cartoon superhero wields a Sailor Moon-looking scepter A pink-clad, feminine looking cartoon superhero wields a Sailor Moon-looking scepter
Students working with pencils on easels in a hand lettering class. Students working with pencils on easels in a hand lettering class.
Colorful, fantastical cartoon with stained glass panels and an analog wall clock with angel wings flying in midair Colorful, fantastical cartoon with stained glass panels and an analog wall clock with angel wings flying in midair
Three people crowded around a table at a fair look at a art portfolio. Three people crowded around a table at a fair look at a art portfolio.
Peach colored paper is intricately woven and bent around itself to look like one giant curvy sheet of a lasagna sheet. Peach colored paper is intricately woven and bent around itself to look like one giant curvy sheet of a lasagna sheet.

Accelerate Your Collaboration Skills

Accelerate Your Creativity

Accelerate Your Critical Thinking

Accelerate Your Artistic Awakening

Accelerate Your Ingenuity

Accelerate Your Creative Vision

Accelerate Your Professional Growth

Accelerate Your Inventiveness

Learn More Apply
The 3rd Avenue and East 23rd Street Corner Signs with an official “SVA Way” sign underneath (Left); The 23rd Street building with two SVA NYC banners hanging above as students walk below.

Welcome to our urban campus, a slice of New York City life.

We are School of Visual Arts

SVA is a leader in the education of artists, designers, and creative professionals.

By the Numbers

75+

Years Educating

Artists

56

Countries

Represented

46

States

Represented

30

Degree-Granting

Programs

1,500+

Course 

Offerings

35

Extracurricular

Clubs

9:1

Student-to-Faculty

Ratio

43,000

Global Alumni

Community

Best Fine Arts Programs

U.S. News & World Report Best Grad Schools Rankings

#1 Best 2D Animation School In the World

The Rookies Global School Rankings 2024

Best Colleges in New York in 2023-2024

Research.com Best College 2024

Our Community

Major happenings from around the College, including news, events, exhibitions, and more.

An odd mobile hangs from the top of the image centered around a young woman looking to the right. Surreal shapes and objects float around her including a chameleon. An odd mobile hangs from the top of the image centered around a young woman looking to the right. Surreal shapes and objects float around her including a chameleon.

On-Campus Exhibitions and Events This April

A magazine cover featuring an image of a statue that is bisected by a blurry band of red

In Memoriam: Nona Faustine

A rather abstract piece conisting of mostly white, blue, and orange with some other colors mixed in. It looks like a hallway of speakers.

The Five: Joe Quesada, Sarah Sze, Katie Cercone, and More SVA Artists in the Press

A poster with the words: "Prompt: What comes first, the chicken or the egg?" there's a shaky line-art drawing of an egg with chicken feet and a beak.

A Good Egg: Pablo Delcan on His New SVA Subway Poster

READ MORE FEATURES

Currently On View

Début 25

A digital event poster with "Debut 25" in yellow dot matrix-style typography on a deep blue dotted background. The design mimics an electronic marquee, with event dates "March 22 - April 29" and a dotted border.

SVA Gramercy Gallery

Mar 24 - Apr 29

First-Year Foundation Show

This black-and-white photograph captures a serene yet haunting urban scene enveloped in heavy fog. Tall, slender palm trees stretch toward the sky, their leaves softly blurred by the mist. A modern high-rise building looms in the background, its sharp edges softened by the fog, giving it a ghostly, ethereal quality. In the foreground, a person dressed in dark clothing stands on a grassy hill, holding a leash as their dog joyfully runs ahead. The contrast between the dark figure and the bright fog emphasizes their isolation within the scene. Further up the hill, a small figure in white appears, adding a sense of mystery and scale. The interplay of light, shadow, and fog creates a quiet, dreamlike atmosphere, inviting viewers to contemplate the relationship between urban life and nature, as well as the solitude found within bustling environments.

BFA Photography and Video

Mar 31 - Apr 18

Reception: Apr 14, 3:00 - 5:00pm

BFA Comics + BFA Illustration: Senior Show

A brown and white dog lies happily on his back in a small field of highly stylized flowers. The dog is surrounded by their favorite things, including a dragonfly, empty food cans, plastic toys, and discarded socks.

SVA Chelsea Gallery

Apr 2 - 12

SEE MORE EVENTS

    Have you seen a movie, screening, or attended an event here? The SVA Theatre has been home to red carpet Hollywood premieres, award shows, film festivals, conferences, and theatrical events. It features two theaters, an elegant lobby and green room designed by Milton Glaser.

    View on TikTok

    Take a look at BFA Illustration student Jess’ (corvicophony on instagram) senior studio space and hear their experience with the senior studio. We love how their thesis is progressing!

    View on TikTok

    SVA’s Fine Arts Printmaking Manager, Alejandro Chen Li gives us a quick tour of the College’s Printshop. The Printshop is a unique communal environment where students across SVA can come together and print! Printmaking at SVA is a Fine Arts elective that is open to Undergraduate and Graduate students from all majors. We offer classes in Silkscreen, Lithography, Etching, Woodcut, Letterpress, and Bookmaking.

    View on TikTok

    @SVANYC’s Latest TikToks

    A sneak peek at what our faculty and students are up to, day in and day out!

VISIT OUR TIKTOK VISIT OUR YOUTUBE

There is no creative culture of New York City without SVA.


LAURIE CUMBO

Commissioner of Cultural Affairs, New York City