MA History of Art

Program Overview

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Birkbeck's History of Art MA program trains students to critically analyze and research art and its histories, fostering visual acuity, critical debate, and research skills. It offers a diverse range of modules, allowing students to focus on specific areas and periods of interest, and provides opportunities for museum visits, guest speakers, and research involvement. Graduates are prepared for careers in museums, galleries, education, and other creative arts fields.

Program Outline

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Degree Overview:

• The program combines rigorous investigation of the visual arts with creative exploration of their connections to culture, politics, and society.
• It allows students to focus on areas and periods of particular interest, including early and modern (including contemporary) periods.
• The program develops students' visual acuity and understanding of art's histories, stimulates critical debate, and stretches their research skills.

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Objectives:

• Train students to conduct rigorous investigation of the visual arts.
• Equip students with the skills to creatively explore the connections between art, culture, politics, and society.
• Enable students to focus on specific areas and periods of interest within the history of art.
• Develop students' visual acuity and understanding of art's histories.
• Foster critical debate and research skills among students.

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Description:

• The program is taught by internationally recognized experts who are defining the field and conducting groundbreaking research.
• It offers a diverse and vibrant student body of all ages and backgrounds.
• Students benefit from museum and site visits, visiting speakers, screenings, and opportunities to get involved in research and community outreach activities.

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Outline:

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Structure:

• Full-time (1 year) or part-time (2 years) program.
• On-campus study.
• Starts in October 2024.

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Content:

• Covers a wide range of topics within the history of art, from early to contemporary periods.
• Allows students to choose from a variety of option modules to focus on their specific interests.
• Includes a research exercise and a dissertation.

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Course Schedule:

• Two to three evenings a week, October to July (full-time).
• One to two evenings a week, October to July (part-time).

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Modules:

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Compulsory Module:

• Frameworks: Histories and Theories of Art, Architecture, Photography

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Indicative Option Modules:

• Art and Devotion in Fifteenth-Century Italy
• Art and Identity: 'Race', Ideology, Culture
• Art in the Age of Giotto: evidence and interpretation
• Art Museums in a Global Age
• Curating Difficult Histories: Museums, Exhibitions, Art Activism
• Curating the Nineteenth Century
• Display, Exhibition and Spectacle in London, 1750-1850
• Fashioning the Body
• Gender, Modernity and the City
• Ideas Transmission History
• Impressionism Now
• Inventing the Victorians
• Modernity's Waste Spaces
• Museum Cultures Work Placement
• Queer and Black Photography in 1980-1990s Britain
• Sacred Space, Abrahamic Faith
• Silk Threads: Weaving Global Art Histories of Medieval Textiles
• The Art of Persuasion: Religious Imagery and the Catholic Reformation
• Visual Cultures of Disability

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Research Exercise:

• Students conduct a research project on a topic of their choice.

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Dissertation:

• 15,000-word dissertation on a research topic related to the history of art.

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Assessment:

• Coursework, including essays and a research project.
• A 15,000-word dissertation.

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Teaching:

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Methods:

• Formal lectures, seminars, and practical classes and tutorials.
• Research presentations by outside speakers.
• One-to-one tutorials.
• Guest speakers and student presentations.

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Key Teaching Staff:

• Dr Suzannah Biernoff
• Dr Dorigen Caldwell
• Professor Fiona Candlin
• Professor Annie E Coombes
• Professor Mark Crinson
• Professor Patrizia Di Bello
• Professor Steve Edwards
• Dr Mara Polgovsky Ezcurra
• Dr Robert Maniura
• Professor Lynda Nead
• Dr Zoë Opačić
• Professor Kate Retford
• Dr Sarah Thomas
• Professor Leslie Topp

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Unique Approaches:

• Emphasis on student-led discussions and research.
• Focus on developing critical thinking and writing skills.
• Opportunities to engage with contemporary art and artists.

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Careers:

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Potential Career Paths:

• Museum/gallery curator
• Arts administrator
• Advertising account executive
• Community arts worker
• Multimedia specialist
• Higher education lecturer

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Opportunities:

• The program prepares students for a variety of careers in the creative arts, media, and education.
• Students have the opportunity to apply for a work placement in one of London's thriving museums, galleries, or archives.
• The program offers study trips to various cities, including Florence, Paris, Venice, Vienna, Rome, Berlin, and Moscow.
However, they may make material changes to their offerings in the event of unforeseen circumstances.
• Entry Requirements
• Fees

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Part-time home students: £5,400 per year Full-time home students: £10,800 per year Part-time international students: £9,915 per year Full-time international students: £19,830 per year