Art Careers in Canada

Arts attendance levels were very high in 2016, with nearly nine in ten Canadians (86%) attending an art gallery, arts performance, artistic or cultural festival, or movie theatre.

Arts and culture accounted for 3% ($55 billion) of Canada's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2014, more than the accommodation, food, agriculture and forestry industries.

As a group, artists routinely exhibit a higher level of educational achievement than the national labour force.

Sources: hillstrategies.com, canadianartscoalition.com, canadianart.ca, macleans.ca.

Careers for Arts Students

Portage College Fine Arts program cultivates the strong foundational skills needed for various careers available in the arts and culture sector, including:

Animator, fine artist, art curator, illustrator, architect, tattoo artist, museum interpreter, video game designer, textile designer, commercial artist, art teacher, interior designer, photographer, clothing designer, art director, art archivist, art historian, art therapist, book illustrator, art professor, creative art director, graphic novel artist, cultural planner and many more.

Credentials

Certificate

Admission Requirements

High School Diploma with 

English Language Arts 30-2

Use this chart to check Provincial high school equivalencies accepted at Portage College. Note: This is just a guide.

Mature Status:

• English Language Arts 30-2 OR

• CAAT D test, including Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension, and Language, with a score of Stanine 5 or greater
• Applicants must be 19 years of age and out of high school for one year
• Interview with Coordinator
• If the applicant does not have Art 30 and is a mature student, a portfolio is required for the Coordinator's interview.

Transferability

Yorkville University upon completion of the two-year Artisan Entrepreneurship Diploma and one-year Fine Arts Certificate Program.

Contact the Program Advisor for more information.

Program Start/End Dates
August 28, 2023 to April 26, 2024 (Fall and Winter term)

Application Deadline
August 15, 2023

Location
Lac La Biche Campus

Domestic Student Fees
Application Fee $53.50

Fall Term
Fee payment deadline August 15, 2022

Winter Term
Fee payment deadline: December 15, 2022

Total tuition & mandatory fees for year: $5,741.74

Part-time Fees
Tuition is calculated using “cost-per-credit” one credit is $159. Calculate the cost by multiplying the number of credits per course by $159.

Visit  Portage Bookstore for textbooks and supplies

International Student Fees
Application Fee $160.00

Fall Term
Fee payment deadline: August 15, 2022

Winter Term
Fee payment deadline: December 15, 2022

Total tuition & mandatory fees for year: $15,908.79

Visit  Portage Bookstore for textbooks and supplies

Tuition Deposit (non-refundable for oversubscribed programs and international only)
Domestic Students - $100
International Students - $1500

Need help funding your education? Check out our  funding options.

Other purchases may be necessary in order for students to complete their courses/program.

Click here to view Other Fees for Service

• ART EXPOSE

  Course ID: VISA 172

  Name: ART EXPOSE

  Hours: 20

  Credits: 1

  Students work together to produce the Art Expose, which is a two-day exhibition of all the work students have completed throughout the year. Students are required to participate in the planning, setting up, and hosting of this event. Additionally, students will participate in a local field trip that provides experience visiting galleries, speaking to practicing artists, and visiting other venues related to the production and sale of art and crafts

• INTRODUCTION TO DRAMA AND TO POETRY

  Course ID: ENGL106

  Name: INTRODUCTION TO DRAMA AND TO POETRY

  Hours: 45

  Credits: 3

  English 106 is designed to teach critical writing, critical reading, and critical thinking while studying canonical literary texts from the sixteenth to the twenty-first centuries. This course combines the study of literary works with instructional texts to teach students to express themselves more clearly in writing and in speech. The creators of this course also hope that students develop an appreciation for fine literary works.  

   

  This course will present plays and poems from a variety of historical periods and from a variety of cultural contexts. Particular emphasis will be placed on the development of correct writing style, rhetorical skills, and thinking skills required for academic study.  

   

  A minimum of thirty percent of class time will be devoted to writing instruction, which may take any or all of the following forms: grammar and punctuation instruction, informal writing exercises, writing workshops, stylistic and rhetorical analysis, research skills, peer editing, and group writing projects. The total amount of writing will be no less than 3,000 words.  

   

  Prerequisite: 60% in ELA 30-1
• INTRODUCTION TO PHOTOGRAPHY AND DIGITAL ART

  Course ID: PHTO 101

  Name: INTRODUCTION TO PHOTOGRAPHY AND DIGITAL ART

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  This course provides an introduction to the fundamentals and techniques of digital photography including: camera controls and operation, camera equipment and accessories, basics of digital camera technology and software, processing and printing of photographs, and presentation of photographic artworks. Students will also learn about the history of photography through examining the artwork of various photographers and the evolution of various photographic processes utilized by these artists.

  Prerequisites: Students are required to provide their own digital camera for this course. The digital camera can be a DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) camera, mirrorless camera, bridge camera, or a point-and-shoot camera. Digital cameras for this course must also have a flash and manual settings to control aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. Please contact Portage College Fine Arts for further information.

• INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART I

  Course ID: ARTH101

  Name: INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART I

  Hours: 45

  Credits: 3

  This course is an introduction to the history of visual arts and design from the earliest evidence to the fourteenth century. The concentration will be on the history of art in the Near East and Europe: Western Art. Since there has been contact between these areas and the Indian sub-continent and the Far East, and since these have been influences on the later history of Western Art, the art of Asian cultures during this period will also be briefly considered. 

   

  Prerequisites: 60% in ELA 30-1
• INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART II

  Course ID: ARTH102

  Name: INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART II

  Hours: 45

  Credits: 3

  This course provides an introduction to the history of visual arts and design from the 14th Century to the present day. While the course can be taken on its own, it also follows ARTH 101, which surveys the history of visual arts and design from the earliest times up to the 14th Century. ARTH 102 starts at a period that is academically considered to be the origin of our modern age and follows the development of the visual arts to the types of art, design, and architecture that are being created around us in our contemporary world.

   

  Prerequisites: 60% in ELA 30-1
• INTRODUCTION TO THE NOVEL AND THE SHORT STORY

  Course ID: ENGL108

  Name: INTRODUCTION TO THE NOVEL AND THE SHORT STORY

  Hours: 45

  Credits: 3

  English 108 is designed to teach critical writing, critical reading, and critical thinking while studying canonical literary texts from the eighteenth to the twentieth-first centuries. This course combines the study of literary works with instructional texts to teach students to express themselves more clearly in writing and in speech. The creators of this course also hope that students develop an appreciation for fine literary works. This course will present novels and short stories from a variety of historical periods, and from a variety of cultural contexts. Particular emphasis will be place of the development of correct writing style, rhetorical skills, and thinking skills required for academic study. A minimum of thirty percent of class time will be devoted to writing instruction, which may take any or all of the following forms: formal written assignments, informal writing exercises, writing workshops, stylistic and rhetorical analysis, research skills, peer editing, group writing projects, and ungraded writing. Students will write two formal essays that will be graded, including an analytical and a research paper. The total amount of writing will be no less than 3,000 words. Prerequisites: ENGL 106 or other 3 credit junior English

• VISUAL ARTS I - DRAWING

  Course ID: NATA166

  Name: VISUAL ARTS I - DRAWING

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  The focus of this course is on the exploration of a variety of wet & dry drawing materials and the development of basic drawing skills. Students will be introduced to fundamentals including line, shape, volume, value, texture, perspective and composition. This exploration and skill development will be done through observational and imaginative drawing. Prerequisites: none

• VISUAL ARTS II - PAINTING

  Course ID: NATA167

  Name: VISUAL ARTS II - PAINTING

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  This is an introductory painting course that familiarizes students with a variety of techniques, concepts and processes in painting. The focus will be on using acrylic paint to develop an understanding of color and composition. This will be done through a series of projects that feature a variety of genres, compositional concepts and visual strategies. Prerequisites: none

• VISUAL ARTS III - PRINTMAKING AND MIXED MEDIA

  Course ID: NATA168

  Name: VISUAL ARTS III - PRINTMAKING AND MIXED MEDIA

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  In this course, students will complete exploration modules in each of the following mediums; printmaking and mixed media compositions. Students will study various printmaking processes with an emphasis on learning basic materials and exploring the potential of this art form. Additionally, students will explore the use of mixed media in primarily 2D compositions. Prerequisites: none

• VISUAL ARTS IV - SCULPTURE

  Course ID: NATA169

  Name: VISUAL ARTS IV - SCULPTURE

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  In this course, students will complete exploration modules in each of the following mediums; clay and welded metal sculpture. The focus of the clay module will be on basic hand-building kills as well as introductory ceramic concepts including firing and glazing. In the welding module students will be introduced to the use of metal and basic welding techniques and concepts for the creation of art. Prerequisites: none

• VISUAL ARTS V-MAKING/2D COMPOSITION

  Course ID: NATA173

  Name: VISUAL ARTS V-MAKING/2D COMPOSITION

  Hours: 75

  Credits: 3

  This course builds on the skills and knowledge acquired in Visual Arts I & II. Further development of drawing and painting skills will be accomplished through using a variety of mediums; including watercolor and focusing on strategies that help students produce visual expressions that reflect interpretive and expressive outcomes. Students will work on developing personal styles.