why are we?

The Common College of Art is a response to the rising costs and ongoing/accelerating corporatization of art education. All over the world, universities are reducing contact hours, raising their tuition fees, and building expensive campuses with no regards to the specifics that art education requires. 
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Art is increasingly becoming a luxurious career option for those who can afford it, while working class students face the added pressure of finding a tenuous balance between studying and working in order to afford their tuition and cost of living.

The quality of teaching is impacted too: teachers are given few resources they have to use scarcely, students spend less and less time learning together, and most of the learning hours are spent on independent study, which can easily turn into an isolated practice. 

Finally, the administration of art universities is becoming more opaque to students, discouraging them from understanding the challenges art education is facing, taking initiative in their learning, and asking for change and support.

"At the Common College of Art, our goal is to make quality art education accessible, free, and non-discriminatory for all."

what do we do?

The Common College of Art uses art education to imagine and strive towards a better world by giving artists the space to develop skills and exchange ideas.

We believe in the importance of building a constellation of relationships with individuals and collectives around the world to help everyone better serve their local communities.

To mobilize people around the world to bring free and accessible art education to their own communities, we make all of our syllabi free for anyone to access, and we are working towards offering additional support and resources for those looking to offer art and community building workshops  across the world.

Currently, we are physically located in and work with communities in and around the Greater Toronto Area.