For Emerging Artists, Student Life is City Life

Studying art and design isn’t all about easels or autoCAD. Forget the image of the isolated creative genius toiling alone over a project in the studio. Today’s most successful young artists and designers immerse themselves in the cultural scene – constantly observing, engaging, asking questions, networking, collaborating and developing their own contributions to the creative community.

For many emerging creatives, work and play are synonymous, and take place everywhere. In a city like Toronto, enterprising students can quite literally attend a gallery opening on any given evening, explore fashion, film or food from dozens of different cultures or spend a little spontaneous downtime in any number of museums.

Located in the heart of Toronto’s cultural corridor, OCAD University – Canada’s largest school of art and design – provides unparalleled informal learning opportunities for its students. The OCAD U student card is all they need to get into the renowned Art Gallery of Ontario, right next door. Students show their own work in OCAD U’s Student Gallery, a bustling hub of artistic and social activity. And the whole campus galvanizes around some of Toronto’s largest events – from the weeklong Toronto Design Week to the city’s all-night festival of contemporary art, Nuit Blanche.

Whether they’re studying to become a practicing artist or designer, or going the more scholarly route through OCAD U’s new Art History program, networking is critical to long term career success.

“For our students, the city really is their playground,” says Deanne Fisher, OCAD U’s Associate Vice-President, Students. “The great news is all that playtime actually pays off in the end. Those contacts they make in the cultural scene are the same people they’re going to work with when they graduate.”