In 1785, the Dominicans made the first attempt to invest art and painting with academic value and formal presence and not merely an accessory to missionary work.

Thus in 1935, the Dominicans merely reestablished the fine art school with the primary goal of meeting the ever-present and increasing demand for good catholic artists.

[2] From 1935 to 1939, students chose from two areas specialization, interior design and public school arts.

[2] UST was the first Philippine school to introduce interior design as a fine arts major in 1954.

[4] The college has produced numerous national artists like Victorio Edades, Jerry Navarro Elizalde, and Ang Kiukok for Visual Arts.