Information regarding the course

Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts (HGB) was founded by Saxon Elector Friedrich Christian in 1764 as an academy of drawing, painting and architecture, alongside the Dresden Academy and the drawing school at the Meissen porcelain manufactory. This makes it one of the oldest art colleges in Europe.

Today, the HGB Leipzig trains students in the four modularised degree courses Painting/Fine Art Graphics, Book Arts/Graphic Design, Photography and Media Art. Around 600 students are currently enrolled at the college, including the students of the post-graduate classes. The summer of 2009 also saw the establishment of the Masters course Cultures of the Curatorial. This post-graduate course is unique of its kind in Germany and combines application-oriented practical research with academic reflection.

Studies in the four degree courses comprise a standard period of study of ten semesters. The first year of the course is interdisciplinary in nature, enabling the students to familiarise themselves with the entire range of subjects as well as the basics of the selected course. In the second year a subject-specific foundation course is held. Following completion of the core studies the subject-specific studies are intensified in one of the specialized study classes. Students can choose between a total of 16 different classes with various content in the four degree courses.

Art and Media Theory as well as Philosophy are integral components of the course as a whole. The extensive range of theory classes supports and reflects the artistic/practical education. This is tailored to the peculiarities of the individual study stages and subject areas. Since 2008 it has also been possible to take a PhD at the HGB.

Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts is one of the oldest educational establishments for Photography in Germany. In the present-day courses the established and classical processes of photography are complemented by digital applications, which is apparent in both the technical equipment and the alignment of the studies. The focus of the studies is upon the creation of artistic positions and concepts. Great emphasis is placed upon the students' examination of the history and theory of photography. Interdisciplinary activities, guest lectures and project teaching complete the spectrum and make the content of the photography courses some of the most attractive, differentiated and diverse of the German art colleges.

The stance of the teaching on the Painting/Fine Art Graphics course at the HGB is traditionally representational-objective. Interdisciplinary teaching and project-related visiting professors extend this offer in the field of conceptual art and experimental work. The examination of art history and the art of the 20th century up to the present is an integral component of the practical work. This takes place in four specialized classes with varying focal points and artistic positions.

The affinity to the book that characterised the Leipzig academy for one hundred years is no longer the sole expression of the content taught on the Book Arts/Graphic Design course. The teaching is open to all requisites of contemporary and pioneering technologies and media. With a range of subjects including system design, typography, illustration and type design, the HGB Leipzig elevates itself from other German universities, with the latter two subjects in particular handling areas that are scarcely taught elsewhere anymore. Studying in small groups offers the opportunity of intensive learning and personal interaction. Interdisciplinary projects and excursions also take place during the studies, which are moulded by the lecturers of the individual classes.

Established at the beginning of the 1990s, the field of Media Art has progressed rapidly to become one of the most interesting and most heavily-frequented subject areas. Today, this field covers four classes: Media Art, Intermedia, Installation and Space together with the class for Mass Media Research and Art in the Public Media Space. With regard to content, it is not just the examination of the opportunities posed by "new" media in contrast to traditional media or the increasing mechanisation of society by the digital media that form the topics, but also the investigation of space, time, attention, communication and participation/interaction. The reflection of the effects of a medially-conveyed and rapidly accelerating perception on the image of the world and the people within it serves as the basis for this examination.

A particular feature with both a long tradition and great contemporary appeal is the numerous superbly-equipped workshops of the college. Of primary importance here are the 3D laboratory, the audio-visual laboratory, the workshops for xylography, artistic offset printing, lithography, etching and silkscreen printing as well as the workshops for book printing, book binding and hand setting. The goal of the course and teaching - particularly in the printing disciplines - is on the one hand to preserve and pass on the tradition and on the other to develop intense spaces for new image solutions in the contemporary context.

The Institute for Book Arts at the college has a history going back over 55 years. Complex, unusual and highly-innovative publications are created here each year, with these regularly receiving distinctions in national and international competitions.

The college has an extensive specialized library. Users can currently choose from over 50,000 titles and more than 100 current magazines and journals. The media stock from the fields of art history, painting/graphic arts, book design, photography, media arts and related areas is oriented towards the requirements of the students and lecturers as well as being open to other interested parties.

Since 1980 the HGB has had an own gallery in a central location on the site. Alongside the Institute for Book Arts, this constitutes the key interface between college and public. Beyond the fixed annual exhibitions of circuit, under-graduate and post-graduate exhibitions there is also an international gallery programme comprising various formats. Students from all fields are also regularly involved in gallery work in the form of intensive, conceptual collaboration. With this, the space makes a decisive contribution to the examination of topical issues regarding social affairs and art theory.

Each semester the HGB evening academy offers over ten courses in visual arts, photography and design. Post-graduate students of the college lend support as professional course instructors. All those (aged 16 and over) who would like to paint, draw, photograph, film, illustrate, create text or work in the field of commercial art can enrol for one or more evenings per week, having first successfully passed an aptitude test.

Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts is linked with numerous other national and international partner universities and institutions. This means that students wishing to complete part of their studies abroad can currently choose between 45 universities in 19 countries.