Art History, Humanities, and the Social and Natural Sciences are an important foundation for any contemporary artist, as they inform one's worldview, broaden one's perspectives and help define and challenge the relationships one has to experience, society and the self. In a significant way, being an artist in the 21st century involves immersing oneself in the ever-changing present- a vast array of interconnected and overlapping contexts, materials, ideas, and messages- as a way to envision a whole new future. The AAC's Academic Studies courses provide students with the tools for navigating this barrage of contemporary stimuli by emphasizing the importance of historical knowledge and critical thinking, while teaching communications and research skills, and instilling in students a curiosity about the diverse cultures and values that shape the world in which we live.

Academic Studies courses- from Literature to Anthropology, Art History to Psychology, Writing to Geometry- provide students with practical and depth-charged basis for making artistic choices and living an artistic life  by providing students with the knowledge base and creative problem solving skills that are crucial in today's world.This is true whether a student goes on to do graduate work  in fields like Art History, Museum Studies, or Fine Arts, or gets a job working for a design firm, print shop, photography studio or non-profit arts organization.

At the AAC, Academic Studies courses not only support, but drive a student's visual practice and aesthetics, enhancing and delimiting the ways they see everything, from entertainment to current events, from technological trends to contemporary thought. To think outside the box, one has to have a sense of the box, and it's Academic Studies courses that help give the box its shape, define its character, and unpack its possibilities.