Academy of Fine Arts and Design (VŠVU)

Established in 1949, the Academy of Fine Arts and Design (VŠVU) is a modern, fully-accredited institute of higher education which provides complex education in the field of fine arts, design, architecture and conservation at undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels. Study is practice-based, with wide instruction in theory and history of art and architecture.

The Academy comprises 11 Departments and occupies three buildings – the Neo-Baroque palace on Hviezdoslavovo námestie 18 in the city centre (Rector´s Office, Foreign Relations Office, Department of Architecture, Department of Painting); the main building of the Academy, situated above the city on Drotárska cesta 44 (20 minutes by public transport); and part of the Department of Painting, located on Koceľova ulica 23 in the downtown area (15 minutes by public transport).

As an educational and cultural institution, VŠVU’s mission is to prepare young people for a professional career in the field of art, design and architecture. Courses are open to every student who proves the required level of artistic talent and knowledge, regardless of national, ethnic, gender, religious or other diversities. VŠVU is strongly dedicated to freedom of artistic expression and quality of study for both Slovak and foreign students.

Through its faculty and students, VŠVU co-operates with many other art institutions in Slovakia, including its higher education partners Comenius University and the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (VŠMU) in Bratislava, the Academy of Art in Banska Bystrica and the Faculty of Arts of the Technical University in Košice in common activities and educational projects. Numerous organisations in the industrial, architectural and cultural sector have been partners to its departments.

Internationally VŠVU is a member of ELIA, the CUMULUS Association and the European Textile Network, and participates in the Socrates/Erasmus and CEEPUS programmes and in bilateral co-operation with individual art schools and universities throughout Europe and worldwide. It facilitates student and faculty mobility with more than 43 partner institutions.

The Academy organises international workshops, symposia, conferences and exhibitions on a regular basis.