Skip to main content.
Skip to main content.
Bard BerlinBard Berlin
BCB
  • About sub-menuAbout Us
    About BCB

    Discover Bard
    College Berlin

    Learn More
    • About Bard College Berlin
      • At a Glance
      • History
      • Governance
      • Accreditation
      • OSUN
      • Employment
    • Discover
      • People
      • Apply
      • Donate
      • COVID-19 Safety
      • Search
    • Networks
      • Open Society
        University Network
        (OSUN)
  • Academics sub-menuAcademics
    BCB Academics

    Bard College Berlin offers high-quality small-group teaching in the humanities and social sciences.

    • Degree Programs
      • BA in Economics, Politics,
        and Social Thought
      • BA in Humanities,
        the Arts,and Social Thought
      • BA in Artistic Practice
        and Society
      • Concentrations
      • Core Curriculum
      • German Studies Program
    • Semester and
      One-Year Programs

      • Academy Year Program
      • Project Year Program
      • Arts and Society in Berlin
      • LAB: Liberal Arts Berlin
      • Begin in Berlin
      • Study Abroad
      • Erasmus and Exchange Agreements
    • More Information
      • Courses
      • Internships
      • Certificates
      • Language and Thinking Program
      • Summer Programs
      • Academic Services
  • Admissions sub-menuAdmissions
    BCB Admissions

    Bard College Berlin accepts applications for first-year and transfer admission to its BA degree programs. Students can also apply for one-year programs, such as the Academy Year and Project Year.

    Apply Now
    • Applying to BCB
      • How to Apply
      • Discover BCB
      • Connect with Us
      • Ask a Student
      • Admissions Team
    • Financing Your Studies
      • Tuition and Fees
      • Financial Aid
      • Scholarships
      • Payment Options
  • Student Life sub-menuStudent Life
    Student Life

    The student body at Bard College Berlin is small yet highly international.

    More About Students
    • Campus Life
      • Housing
      • Facilities
    • Services and Resources
      • BCB Orientation
      • Career Services
      • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
      • Gender-Based Misconduct
      • Health & Counseling
      • Internships
      • Student Organizations & Activities
      • Study Abroad
    • For Students
      • Registrar's Office
      • Academic Calendar
      • Student Handbook
      • Jobs & Opportunities
      • Finances
      • Fellowship Opportunities
  • Civic Engagement sub-menuCivic Engagement
    Civic Engagement

    Through Fellowships, conferences, events and community initiatives, the college encourages students to organize and lead their own volunteer projects and to connect with activists around the world.

    Learn More
    • Engagement Programs
      • Program for International Education
        and Social Change (PIESC)
      • Student-Led Projects
      • Community Engagement
      • Institutional Engagement
  • COVID-19
  • News sub-menuNews + Events
    BCB News
    • Newsroom
      • Events
      • Video Archive
      • Bard College Berlin in the Media

    Keep up to date with the latest campus news, learn more about upcoming events, read press articles featuring Bard College Berlin, and explore our photo and video archives.

    Learn More
  • Donate
  • Search
Main Image for Artistic Practice

Artistic Practice

Academics Menu
  • Programs sub-menuDegree Programs
    • BA in Economics, Politics, and Social Thought
    • BA in Humanities, the Arts, and Social Thought
    • BA in Artistic Practice and Society
    • Concentrations
  • SOY sub-menuSemester and One-Year Programs
    • Academy Year Program
    • Project Year Program
    • Arts and Society in Berlin
    • LAB: Liberal Arts Berlin
    • Begin in Berlin
    • Erasmus and Exchange Agreements
  • Abroad sub-menuStudy Abroad
    • Erasmus
    • Bard Network
    • International Guest Students
    • Outgoing Students
  • Courses sub-menuCourses
    • Current Courses
    • Course Archive
  • Summer sub-menuSummer/Winter Programs
    • Summer Theater Intensive
    • Berlin Summer Studio
    • Winter Language Intensive
  • LT sub-menuL&T Program
    • Faculty
    • Events
  • Other sub-menuOther Programs
    • German Program
    • Internships
    • Certificates
The BA program in Artistic Practice and Society* not only considers the question of what art “is” but the issue of how the categories that have framed it can be reexamined: the juxtaposition of nature with culture, of academic research with artistic creativity, and the tensions between art and political expression or organization. Students take courses addressing these subjects, alongside the development of their own artistic practice.

As a global center for artistic activity and display, Berlin serves as an exceptional laboratory for the program, with courses that include exhibition and performance visits, occasions to observe artists at work, and introductions to the varieties of organization and institution involved in the art world.
Curriculum Overview 

Curriculum Overview 

Foundational courses introduce skills and techniques in a wide range of art forms: painting, drawing and sculpture, video, film, performance, theater and creative writing. Students can take elective courses in sound, dance, ceramics and architecture. These courses in art practice are accompanied by two theoretical foundational modules: one focuses on art history and the social context of art, while the other analyzes art’s relation to science and nature. 

At the advanced level, students can refine their artistic skills in their chosen area of artistic practice, and explore interdisciplinary, collective, or research-based art practices. These courses will be complemented by courses in art history and theory that focus more closely on individual artists, movements and theoretical discourses. Other advanced courses will give the opportunity to learn about art’s relation to the public and to institutions, and to explore forms of intervention and engagement in the arts.

Students graduate with a senior thesis project that will combine a written thesis with a creative project. 

*The BA in Artistic Practice and Society is expected to enroll its first cohort of students in Fall 2023, pending approval from the Berlin Senate.

BCB Course List

Artistic Practice & Society Overview 

Sample Courses

  • Foundational Courses
    • Found Fragments & Layered Lines: mixed-media techniques for drawing and collage
    • Beginners Black and White Photography: The Slow Photo
    • Your Own Point of View
    • Performance Practice
    • Introduction to Twentieth-Century Art: From Van Gogh’s Starry Night to Jeff Koons’ Made in Heaven
    • Memory Matters: The Place of Germany's Past in the Present
  • Advanced Courses
    • Advanced Painting: Oil Paint & After
    • Queering the Capitalocene: (Eco-)feminist Film and Video Art for Earthly Survival 
    • Bertolt Brecht: The Study and Staging of Epic Theater
    • Self-Instructions: Creating Autobiographical Performance with She She Pop
    • Contemporary Art and Urban Development: Historical Archetypes, Present-day Case Studies, and Better Scenarios
    • Through the Looking Glass: Art and the Oneiric
    • Practices and Politics of Contemporary Art: Documenta and Venice Biennial

Study Abroad Opportunities

Study Abroad Text
Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, USA. Architect Frank Gehry.

Artistic Practice and Society students may opt to spend one or two semesters abroad during their third year of study. Of special interest to practicing arts students is Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT), Dublin, Ireland, and Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, which each offer a wide range of practical and theoretical arts courses across a variety of disciplines. 

Arts Faculty

  • Prof. Dr. Dorothea von Hantelmann
    Art and Society
    Germany
    PhD in Art History
    Freie Universität Berlin
  • John Kleckner
    Painting
    USA
    BFA in Painting
    University of Iowa
  • April Gertler
    Photography
    USA
    MFA in Photography
    Bard College
  • Dr. Geoff Lehman
    Art History
    USA
    PhD in Art History
    Columbia University
  • Prof. Dr. Aya Soika
    Art History
    Germany
    PhD in Art History
    University of Cambridge
  • Prof. Dr. Nina Tecklenburg
    Theater and Performance
    Germany
    PhD in Theater Studies
    Freie Universität Berlin
     

Creative Component

"The creative component gives students the opportunity to work on a final thesis project that reflects the interdisciplinary nature of the way they study here at Bard College Berlin."

Prof. Dr. Nina Tecklenburg
Theater and Performance

Ask A Student

Academics Quick Links

Academics Quick Links

Apply Now
Inquire
Download Brochure (PDF)

  • More Information
    BCB at a Glance
    Academic Calendar
    Accreditation
    Educational Mission
  • Academic Projects
    German Public Sphere
    Certificates
    Semester and One-Year Programs
BCB Logo, Address, and Links

Bard College Berlin, A Liberal Arts University gGmbH

Mailing address: Platanenstrasse 24, 13156 Berlin, Germany
Phone: +49 30 43733 0
Fax: +49 30 43733 100
Email: [email protected] 
[email protected]

Directions | Contact Us | Impressum | Cookie Policy | Data Policy

Bard College Berlin is institutionally accredited at the national level in Germany by the Wissenschaftsrat.

In the United States, Bard College Berlin is accredited through
Bard College by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Qualifying students receive both a German BA and an American BA. 
© 2023 Bard College Berlin, A Liberal Arts University gGmbH
Wordpress Blog
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
YouTube