Creative Arts | Ithaca College

Departments in the Creative Arts:

Studying the Creative Arts:

Students in creative arts programs explore how the arts stimulate our emotions, provoke our thoughts, and guide our actions and beliefs. They examine how artistic works express a range of meanings, from the emotions and ideas of individual creators to the ideas of entire societies. Many classes are performance based, offering students the opportunity to practice and polish the techniques required for artistic production. Other classes invite students to deepen their appreciation of works of art as they develop an understanding of the social, political, and economic contexts in which art is created and in which they themselves create or support artistic production.

What Careers do Students in the Creative Arts Pursue?

Our alumni are professional artists and writers showcasing and publishing their work. They are leaders in art education, curation, administration, and public affairs. They are also K-12 teachers, technical or studio assistants, and professionals in art therapy. They write for newspapers, magazines, new media, and video games. They are graphic designers. They pursue careers in design, editing, marketing, and publicity. In the creative arts, our graduates develop intellectual flexibility. They can adapt to constantly changing circumstances, and they have the confidence and imagination to envision solutions to our society's most pressing problems. They go on to become active, compassionate members of their communities and knowledgeable leaders in their fields, equipped with an invaluable understanding of the relationship between the day-to-day work they do and its impact on the larger world.

Portrait by the artist.

Genevieve Cohn '14 earned a B.A. in art. She has been an artist-in-residence at AiRgentum in Seville, Spain, The Vermont Studio Center, The Ragdale Foundation and The Fiore Art Center. Her work has been exhibited nationally, most recently with Mindy Solomon Gallery in Miami and Steven Zevitas Gallery here in Boston. Shaquille Heath, of Juxtapoz Magazine, described Cohn's work as "little portals to places where the care for womanhood just is. The idea of women co-existing, building communities and worlds without the need to be distinguished, as displayed in her work, feels a bit… futuristic, until coming to the realization that women do this kind of work every, single, day." In addition to her painting, Genevieve is also a Visiting Lecturer at Wellesley College.

Steven Salvatore '08 earned a B.A. in Writing. They are a critically acclaimed author, and the owner of the Queerative—a hub for virtual creative writing workshops providing craft instruction by published authors specifically to LGBTQ+ aspiring writers. Steven's novels include AND THEY LIVED…, CAN’T TAKE THAT AWAY, NO PERFECT PACES: A Novel, and the forthcoming LEMON AT FIRST SIGHT (out May 2025), and the adult romance THE BOYFRIEND SUBSCRIPTION. Steven wrote their first book as a sophomore writing major at Ithaca College. Although Steven jokes that the draft was a scary sight, that book began a process that would continue for nearly a decade. In 2019, an agent picked up the second draft of Can’t Take That Away, a novel that addresses themes of queer youth and acceptance. Can’t Take That Away became Steven’s debut, released March 2021 after Steven received a book deal from Bloomsbury YA.