Fine Art (Painting)

Program Overview

MA Fine Art (Painting)

Overview

The MA Fine Art (Painting) course is designed to support the development of your own research in painting. Teaching on this course takes the form of one-to-one tutorials in the studio, seminars, talks and practical and theoretical workshops.

What you'll learn

The course will help you identify, explore and develop your individual position as an artist. You’ll take a holistic approach, embedding theory, research, and historical and contemporary practice into your work.

This studio-based course will draw upon the specialist resources available in our unique painting methods room, and on our highly reputed material and technical expertise in making.

You’ll work in an interdisciplinary environment alongside other students of MA Fine Art and MA Design specialising in Photography, Media, Curatorial Practice, Ceramics, Visual Communication, Graphics, Illustration and Textiles, allowing you to contextualise your work in relation to current debates.

Course structure

MA Fine Art (Painting) at Bath Spa runs over one year and is divided into three trimesters.

Trimester one

You’ll interrogate your existing knowledge and develop skills in an environment that encourages playfulness and artistic risk-taking. You can experiment freely in our wide variety of specialist facilities, open studio and workshop spaces – with expert technical support.

Trimester two

Building on your work in the first trimester, we’ll support you to reflect upon your developments in the studio and refine your working strategy. You’ll be encouraged to pay greater attention to the presentation of your practice and to test how finished works relate to each other in, as well as to the spaces of, exhibition sites.

Trimester three

You’ll work in the studio with increasing independence as you establish a professional practice. You’ll devise and complete your Master’s Project, working to a proposal which contextualises your work within your specialist discipline and leads to your final Degree Show.

Course modules

This course includes or offers the following modules. Please check the programme document for more information on which modules are core, required or optional.

• Research Methods
• Theory and Professional Context
• Practice 1 (Fine Art)
• Research Practice
• Theory and Professional Practices
• Practice 2 (Fine Art)
• Masters Project

How will I be assessed?

Your progress is evaluated throughout the course and at the end of each trimester via a mixture of exhibitions, verbal/visual presentations, research folders/blogs and written assignments.

How will I be taught?

You’ll learn through lectures, talks, taught sessions, individual and group tutorials, and studio critiques and seminars. Guest lectures and seminars with internationally renowned designers, artists and industry professionals will help you determine where your current practice sits within the industry.

Our collaborative structure also means that you’ll learn from each other – for instance, Illustration and Textiles students might engage in debates with Fine Art students. Technical Demonstrators provide teaching and support in our workshop facilities across a wide range of subject specialisms. Your learning is also supported by specialist librarians.

Opportunities

Fieldwork

Bath School of Art, Film and Media offers fieldwork opportunities throughout the academic year.

Competitions and awards

There are several awards and competitions at Bath Spa that MA Fine Art students can enter:

• The Porthleven Prize
• Peter Kinley Prize for Painting
• Betty and Peter McLean Prize (for ceramics)
• Freelands Painting Fellowship (open to postgraduate students who studied BA Fine Art at Bath School of Art, Film and Media)
• Emerge studio residency

Careers

Students on our MA Fine Art programme find employment in a range of relevant areas, including:

• Professional artists and designers
• Studio and freelance design
• Retail and display management
• Curating
• Art criticism
• Arts administration
• Museum and gallery work
• Education.

Recent graduates also have set up their own group studios and exhibition spaces. Others go on to pursue further research or a PhD.

Facilities and resources

Where the subject is taught

The course is taught at our Locksbrook Campus.

Resources

As a postgraduate Fine Art student you’ll benefit from access to comprehensive digital workshops and specialist art and design facilities, including:

• Our student service point at Locksbrook, where you can purchase subsidised art and design materials, hire out equipment for free and collect Library resources
• Access to our Library at Newton Park
• Specialist technical facilities across all of art and design
• Access to studio space where you can work on projects and refine your practice and your research.

Our workshops

Locksbrook Campus is a Grade II listed building designed by Nicholas Grimshaw in 1976. It has now been transformed into an innovative, open plan space, redesigned to meet 21st century environmental standards, with technical workshops surrounded by flexible studio spaces and large social areas.

Locksbrook has received both a RIBA South West Award 2021 and RIBA National Award 2021, recognising and celebrating what an amazingly inspirational space it is to come together to design, make, do, create and learn in.

Fees

2025 entry

• UK full time: £9,950
• UK part time: £4,975
• International full time: £18,560

Additional course costs

You may need to pay additional course costs over and above your tuition fees, for example, for specialist equipment or trips and visits. Please check the course Programme Document (linked under the main image on this page) for details of any additional costs. You can also read our Additional Course Costs Policy for further information.

Funding opportunities

Please visit our Funding pages for an overview of the funding options that may be available, including scholarships and bursaries.

Entry requirements

We're looking for energetic and self-motivated individuals who can work on their own but see the value in collaboration with others. You should enjoy asking questions and solving creative problems.

Typical offers and subject-specific requirement

You’ll need a good first degree in Fine Art or equivalent experience, and experience of how fine artists, and the field of Fine Art, work. See our Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) web page to learn more.

You’ll be selected on your potential to thrive on the course, as demonstrated by your portfolio and interview.

How do I apply?

Ready to apply? Click the "apply now" button in the centre of this page.

Interview and portfolio guidance

With your application form you should provide images of recent work, either in an attachment or through a link to an online resource. These should be clearly marked with size, date and medium. You should also write a short statement outlining why you want to study for an MA at Bath School of Art, Film and Media and what attracts you to the course. Find out more about submitting a portfolio.

We encourage you to come to Locksbrook, if possible, so that we can meet in person and show you the campus. At interview, you'd usually bring some examples of your work. We'll ask you about the artists you look at and exhibitions you've visited.

We'll discuss your work, how you hope to develop your ideas and the facilities you'll need. If it's not possible for you to attend in person, we offer online interviews, supported by a digital portfolio.

When to apply

Many of our postgraduate courses have a limited number of student spaces. To avoid the disappointment of the course being full, we recommend that you apply now.

Late applications (generally those made after 31 July) will only be considered if places remain on the course.

Related courses

• MA Fine Art (Ceramics)
• MA Fine Art (Curatorial Practice)
• MA Fine Art (Photography)
• Fine Art (Media)