A FIELD GUIDE TO ART STUDENTS:   THE UNDERESTIMATED GREEK The Underestimated Greek looks like the stereotypical frat boy/sorority girl. They come with all the trappings: vacant-sounding diction UGG boots sideways ballcaps popped collars fraternity hoodies nacho cheese-colored skin Because art students are usually snobby hipsters, many (including professors) jump to the conclusions that they are not good artists because they don’t have the correct look and pledged something. Fun Fact: The Underestimated Greeks are the most mocked art student at major university art schools! However, nothing is logical at art school, so naturally these people often are some of the best artists in the program and often have the best attitudes. They also usually leave the Greek system around their junior year out of disgust and become either hipsters and/or pre-med majors. Identifying line (female): “Sorry I’m like, late, I was tanning?” Identifying line (male): “Dude. I’m so hung over.”
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A FIELD GUIDE TO ART STUDENTS:   THE UNDERESTIMATED GREEK

The Underestimated Greek looks like the stereotypical frat boy/sorority girl. They come with all the trappings:

  • vacant-sounding diction
  • UGG boots
  • sideways ballcaps
  • popped collars
  • fraternity hoodies
  • nacho cheese-colored skin

Because art students are usually snobby hipsters, many (including professors) jump to the conclusions that they are not good artists because they don’t have the correct look and pledged something.

Fun Fact: The Underestimated Greeks are the most mocked art student at major university art schools!

However, nothing is logical at art school, so naturally these people often are some of the best artists in the program and often have the best attitudes. They also usually leave the Greek system around their junior year out of disgust and become either hipsters and/or pre-med majors.

Identifying line (female): “Sorry I’m like, late, I was tanning?”

Identifying line (male): “Dude. I’m so hung over.”

Which Art School Should You Attend?

There are assloads of art schools out there, and each one considers itself the most important art school. It’s not clear what the reasoning is behind this assertion, but it largely has to do with:

    superstar faculty (Tim Gunn - Parsons: The New School),
    superstar status (Art Institute of Chicago)
    superstar alumni (The Talking Heads - RISD; John Flansburgh - Pratt).

Would you rather go to a state university with a token art program, but a more well-rounded education overall?  Or would you rather pay through the nose to attend a prestigious art school because it makes you feel more important about yourself? It’s up to you - there’s no real answer. There are pros and cons to both. In the former, you’ll still have to do math, but happily, you can take dunderhead math classes with the football players. And you can also take philosophy classes, English classes, literature classes, science classes. All of those things can enrich your approach. Personally, I went with the state education, because I’m cheap (in-state tuition was great), because I was more interested in the well-rounded education. Strictly speaking about art schools, our arts and architecture department was pretty craptastic. To our credit, however, we did have some rather distinguished alumni from our college. One was a guy who shot a famous National Geographic cover. Another was the world’s most famous book jacket designer. The third will be me.


In reality, the only REAL difference between most art schools is

  •     branding
  •     how much your parents or you are willing to shell out
  •     whether or not you feel like taking math

The biggest advantage to going to a more prestigious art school is the right to brag about it. Do not underestimate this power. If you can get into these schools, with their rigorous portfolio reviews and snotty attitudes, you’ve really earned the right to say things like this:

“I just want to make it clear RIGHT now that there is a HUGE between the San Francisco Art Institute, where I go, and the Art Institute of San Francisco, which is a chain of schools across the country.”

Geez! What IS the difference? Hell if I know. Both take a lot of money from people who want to make things, and make contacts. Some have more superstar alumni than others. However, artists with considerable artistic talent, Norman Rockwell for instance, attended that correspondence school advertised in the backs of magazines asking you to draw a pirate. “Serious” art students eschew Rockwell, calling him a racist creep (which he was), but he certainly wasn’t untalented. Personally, I think they’re jealous that they can’t paint like him. To his credit, Thomas Kinkade is a talented painter, too, if you want a house full of glowing English cottage plates put out by the Franklin Mint.

The bottom line is, art school doesn’t make untalented people talented, nor does it make talented people superstars. It’s there to make you think. It’s there to make you wokr, It’s also there to help you find direction, pussy, and drugs.