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The course allows you to study art history from a perspective which is both highly focused in its attention to particular cultures and contexts and global in its frame of reference. You will be able to study aspects of the western tradition from Egyptian and Roman antiquity to the present, the arts of Islam and the visual cultures of the Indian subcontinent, Africa, the pre-Columbian Americas and the cultures of the Pacific. Other areas covered include the history of photography and the development and management of museum collections. One feature is its world art structure and ethos, which avoids privileging any one particular tradition or geography over others and which seeks exploratory and explanatory bridges to relate disparate visual production across cultures and over time. The visual is considered from a variety of perspectives: anthropological, archaeological, historical and museological as well as art historical. You will be encouraged to engage with art and architecture of many kinds in a spectrum of contexts, and there will be possibilities to study buildings, works of art and artefacts first-hand at UEA, in the Sainsbury and University Collections, in the city of Norwich and the art-rich county of Norfolk, and on field trips in Britain and abroad. You may also take advantage of the ERASMUS programme to transfer your studies to a European university such as Pisa or Berlin for one or both semesters of your second year.
World Art Studies and Museology Undergraduate Brochure (PDF)
BA History of Art (Part time)
Attendance
Part Time
Award
Degree of Bachelor of Arts
School of Study
Course Organiser
Mr. John Mitchell
The course allows you to study art history from a perspective which is both highly focused in its attention to particular cultures and contexts and global in its frame of reference. You will be able to study aspects of the western tradition from Egyptian and Roman antiquity to the present, the arts of Islam and the visual cultures of the Indian subcontinent, Africa, the pre-Columbian Americas and the cultures of the Pacific. Other areas covered include the history of photography and the development and management of museum collections. One feature is its world art structure and ethos, which avoids privileging any one particular tradition or geography over others and which seeks exploratory and explanatory bridges to relate disparate visual production across cultures and over time. The visual is considered from a variety of perspectives: anthropological, archaeological, historical and museological as well as art historical. You will be encouraged to engage with art and architecture of many kinds in a spectrum of contexts, and there will be possibilities to study buildings, works of art and artefacts first-hand at UEA, in the Sainsbury and University Collections, in the city of Norwich and the art-rich county of Norfolk, and on field trips in Britain and abroad. You may also take advantage of the ERASMUS programme to transfer your studies to a European university such as Pisa or Berlin for one or both semesters of your second year.World Art Studies and Museology Undergraduate Brochure (PDF)
Our teaching received a 96% satisfaction rate in both the 2012 National Student Survey and the 2013 Guardian University Guide league table.
Our students are able to study a wider range of artistic cultures, periods and forms than in any other art history department in the UK. The School is particularly renowned for its broad approach to art, encompassing ancient, medieval, Renaissance, baroque, modern and contemporary European art, American art, African art, Asian art and Pacific art. Staff, students and researchers in the School are interested in the history of art, as well as archaeology, anthropology, cultural heritage, and museum studies.We engage with all forms of visual and material creativity from oil painting, sculpture and drawing through to architecture, photography, video and installation art. We teach small groups of students in a friendly, supportive and open environment, supported by great facilities. This is why the Guardian University Guide consistently ranks us among the top departments in the UK for student satisfaction with teaching and feedback, for staff-student ratio and for the quality of student resources.
The School has a long-standing international reputation for excellence; ranked 1st in the UK for world-leading research in the latest Research Assessment Exercise, we are one of the most important and highly-rated History of Art departments in the UK. Our graduates go on to high profile posts in such prestigious institutions as the British Museum, V&A, Tate and Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, as well as leading History of Art departments, publishers and the commercial art world.
The School of Art History and World Art Studies is based in Norman Foster’s world-famous Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, an icon of modern design, which contains an astounding art collection with major internationally-renowned works by artists such as Francis Bacon, Edgar Degas, Jacob Epstein, Henry Moore and Pablo Picasso. Students work in close proximity to this collection, “perhaps the greatest resource of its type on any British campus” according to the Times Good University Guide.
- 95% of our History of Art graduates (and 88% of the School’s BA graduates overall) go on to work and/or postgraduate study within 6 months of graduating. We are therefore the highest-rated department in England (and joint first in the UK) for History of Art graduate prospects
- 100% of our History of Art graduates (and 97% of the School’s BA graduates overall) said they thought staff had made the subject interesting. This figure was matched by just one other History of Art department in England
- Almost 90% of the School’s BA graduates said that they had received the advice and support they needed to do well in their studies, a figure exceeded by just two other History of Art departments in the UK. This is probably because – as the survey reveals – our students get more lectures, seminars, tutorials and general contact time with academic staff than students at many other leading History of Art departments in the UK
- 96% of our History of Art graduates said they had been provided with the IT resources they needed for their studies, a figure matched by just one other History of Art department in the UK
- Finally, 94% of the School’s BA graduates overall said they were highly satisfied with the quality of their degree course, continuing our tradition of providing a first-class university education in History of Art as well as Archaeology, Anthropology, and Museum and Gallery Studies.
This is the first year of your level 1 study. Students are required to complete 360 credits comprising 120 credits each at levels 1, 2 and 3. Students may select 20 to 80 credits per year, provided that the overall course requirement is met by the end of their final semester. Up to 40 credits at level 2 may be taken outside the School. The selected modules in years 3 to 7 must include ART-5019A, and ART-5020B. ART-6012B must be taken in the final year of study.
Compulsory Study (40 credits)
Students must study the following modules for 40 credits:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| INTRODUCTION TO ART HISTORY This module provides an introduction to the academic study of art history by looking at how writers primarily in the European tradition have sought to analyse, record and evaluate works of art. We will examine texts from ancient Rome to the 20th century, and consider how accounts of artistsâ lives, descriptions of art works and attempts to trace a historical development of art have all informed the way that art historians think about their subject. In this seminar, we will also consider the problems of relating texts to visual art and ask what themes are relevant to art historians today. | ART-4001A | 20 |
| LEARNING FROM OBJECTS This module helps equip students with the skills and knowledge they need to study objects from around the world, from prehistory to the present day. Drawing on the collections of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and of the Castle Museum and Art Gallery, as well as the architecture of Norwich, we will explore the ways in which materials, contexts and histories affect how objects have been made and used. Through readings, discussions and object handling, we challenge assumptions and preconceptions about different kinds of art. In the process, students develop their abilities in library research, academic writing and referencing, and oral presentations. | ART-4007A | 20 |
Option A Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART This module examines contemporary African art as a vehicle for the expression of Africa's place and predicament in the world. Starting off with a brief discussion of postcolonial film, fashion and photography, we will move on to discuss contemporary arts produced in Africa and its diasporas. Situating the production of contemporary African art in a space between the African state and the art worlds of London, Paris and New York, we will examine work by artists like Cherà Samba, Chris Ofili, El Anatsui, Romuald Hazoumé, Tshibumba, Yinka Shonibare and many others. The leading questions addressed by this module are: what is contemporary African art and what are the issues addressed by this art? | ART-4016B | 20 |
| EARLY ISLAM: TYPES, DYNAMICS AND DIFFUSION This module provides an introduction to the architecture and arts of early Islam. It examines the beginnings of a new faith and state and the evolution of a new art and new architectural paradigms. The historical focus will be on the Umayyad and Abbasid periods, ranging across Asia, into Africa and west to southern Spain. Types, their evolution, variation and diffusion - in architecture, sculpture, mosaic, painting, books, textiles, books, silver plate, ceramics - will be introduced and interpreted. The theme of the module will be ongoing cultural formation and reformation through invention and the appropriation, assimilation and transformation of rival visual traditions, in particular Roman and Persian. | ART-4008B | 20 |
| FACING THE SUBJECT: ISSUES IN PORTRAITURE, 1420-2000 | ART-4013B | 20 |
| FORM AND FUNCTION Most works of art, whether objects, buildings, or performances, are designed to serve a set of purposes. The interrelationship of their forms and their functions may be straightforward and practical, or complex and elusive. Drawing on a range of case studies presented by ART staff, this lecture module examines the connections between the uses, meanings and appearances of art. We will also consider how form and function may change over time, especially in the context of cross-cultural contact. | ART-4003B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY This module presents an overview of some key anthropological theories and their connections with history and archaeology through the works of classical and contemporary authors. It will examine various anthropological approaches to topics such as nature, human ecology, material culture, art, ritual, religion, globalization and socio-political complexity. This module is compulsory for V0LO students. | ART-4014A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY This module is intended as a general introduction to archaeology. Seminars will examine the concepts behind the study of archaeology, the way that archaeologists gather and record data and the way in which they interpret those data. The first session is an introduction in which you will be given the tools you need to complete the module. The next eight sessions will focus on how archaeologists collect and analyse data, that is, the practice of archaeology. The following three sessions will introduce some of the major theoretical issues of the last 30 years that have challenged the way in which we interpret the archaeological record. | ART-4015B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ART HISTORY This module provides an introduction to the academic study of art history by looking at how writers primarily in the European tradition have sought to analyse, record and evaluate works of art. We will examine texts from ancient Rome to the 20th century, and consider how accounts of artistsâ lives, descriptions of art works and attempts to trace a historical development of art have all informed the way that art historians think about their subject. In this seminar, we will also consider the problems of relating texts to visual art and ask what themes are relevant to art historians today. | ART-4001A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO GALLERY AND MUSEUM STUDIES This module introduces some of the key concepts and tenets underpinning art galleries and museums. One half of the module considers the ways in which museums engage visitors with their activities and their displays. The other half examines the reverse process, by reviewing the history of museums and considering the impact that society has on their development, structure and objectives. The teaching on this module uses the Castle Museum and Art Gallery and the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts as case studies, in addition to considering a range of galleries and museums around the world. | ART-4009B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO MODERNISM, RUSSIA C. 1910-1932 This module introduces some of the key concepts of modernism (such as 'abstraction','construction') by examining a range of material produced in Russia in the early part of the 20th century - painting, sculpture and architecture, and also design, photography and photomontage. The module examines the work of Kazimir Malevich, Vladimir Tatlin and Aleksandr Rodchenko amongst others. | ART-4004B | 20 |
| LEARNING FROM OBJECTS This module helps equip students with the skills and knowledge they need to study objects from around the world, from prehistory to the present day. Drawing on the collections of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and of the Castle Museum and Art Gallery, as well as the architecture of Norwich, we will explore the ways in which materials, contexts and histories affect how objects have been made and used. Through readings, discussions and object handling, we challenge assumptions and preconceptions about different kinds of art. In the process, students develop their abilities in library research, academic writing and referencing, and oral presentations. | ART-4007A | 20 |
| MAKERS AND MAKING The process of making works of art â from objects to performances, bodies to buildings â involves a range of materials, activities and ideas. Through a series of lectures by members of ART staff, students on this module learn about the physical and technical properties of different materials as well as their social, economic and symbolic significance. We also consider the people involved in designing, crafting and creating such art, including their working methods and social status. | ART-4002A | 20 |
| RENAISSANCE PAINTING AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES IN EUROPE Fourteenth and fifteenth-century Italy was shaped by the growth of urban centres and the development of new political, social, and sacred institutions. New patrons and uses for artworks prompted a wealth of artistic activity that responded to and also forged contemporary values, beliefs and identities. Bankers, merchants, mercenaries, and religious institutions exploited the power of art and architecture to promote their professional interests, ambitions, and families. Focusing on spacesâpalaces, churches, city squaresâthis module explores evolving forms and functions of painting, sculpture and architecture made by a range of artists including Giotto, Donatello, and Michelangelo. We will also consider exchanges and cultural links between Italian and Europe centres. | ART-4010B | 20 |
This is the second year of your level 1 study
Compulsory Study (40 credits)
Students must study the following modules for 40 credits:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| FORM AND FUNCTION Most works of art, whether objects, buildings, or performances, are designed to serve a set of purposes. The interrelationship of their forms and their functions may be straightforward and practical, or complex and elusive. Drawing on a range of case studies presented by ART staff, this lecture module examines the connections between the uses, meanings and appearances of art. We will also consider how form and function may change over time, especially in the context of cross-cultural contact. | ART-4003B | 20 |
| MAKERS AND MAKING The process of making works of art â from objects to performances, bodies to buildings â involves a range of materials, activities and ideas. Through a series of lectures by members of ART staff, students on this module learn about the physical and technical properties of different materials as well as their social, economic and symbolic significance. We also consider the people involved in designing, crafting and creating such art, including their working methods and social status. | ART-4002A | 20 |
Option A Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN ART This module examines contemporary African art as a vehicle for the expression of Africa's place and predicament in the world. Starting off with a brief discussion of postcolonial film, fashion and photography, we will move on to discuss contemporary arts produced in Africa and its diasporas. Situating the production of contemporary African art in a space between the African state and the art worlds of London, Paris and New York, we will examine work by artists like Cherà Samba, Chris Ofili, El Anatsui, Romuald Hazoumé, Tshibumba, Yinka Shonibare and many others. The leading questions addressed by this module are: what is contemporary African art and what are the issues addressed by this art? | ART-4016B | 20 |
| EARLY ISLAM: TYPES, DYNAMICS AND DIFFUSION This module provides an introduction to the architecture and arts of early Islam. It examines the beginnings of a new faith and state and the evolution of a new art and new architectural paradigms. The historical focus will be on the Umayyad and Abbasid periods, ranging across Asia, into Africa and west to southern Spain. Types, their evolution, variation and diffusion - in architecture, sculpture, mosaic, painting, books, textiles, books, silver plate, ceramics - will be introduced and interpreted. The theme of the module will be ongoing cultural formation and reformation through invention and the appropriation, assimilation and transformation of rival visual traditions, in particular Roman and Persian. | ART-4008B | 20 |
| FACING THE SUBJECT: ISSUES IN PORTRAITURE, 1420-2000 | ART-4013B | 20 |
| FORM AND FUNCTION Most works of art, whether objects, buildings, or performances, are designed to serve a set of purposes. The interrelationship of their forms and their functions may be straightforward and practical, or complex and elusive. Drawing on a range of case studies presented by ART staff, this lecture module examines the connections between the uses, meanings and appearances of art. We will also consider how form and function may change over time, especially in the context of cross-cultural contact. | ART-4003B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY This module presents an overview of some key anthropological theories and their connections with history and archaeology through the works of classical and contemporary authors. It will examine various anthropological approaches to topics such as nature, human ecology, material culture, art, ritual, religion, globalization and socio-political complexity. This module is compulsory for V0LO students. | ART-4014A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGY This module is intended as a general introduction to archaeology. Seminars will examine the concepts behind the study of archaeology, the way that archaeologists gather and record data and the way in which they interpret those data. The first session is an introduction in which you will be given the tools you need to complete the module. The next eight sessions will focus on how archaeologists collect and analyse data, that is, the practice of archaeology. The following three sessions will introduce some of the major theoretical issues of the last 30 years that have challenged the way in which we interpret the archaeological record. | ART-4015B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO ART HISTORY This module provides an introduction to the academic study of art history by looking at how writers primarily in the European tradition have sought to analyse, record and evaluate works of art. We will examine texts from ancient Rome to the 20th century, and consider how accounts of artistsâ lives, descriptions of art works and attempts to trace a historical development of art have all informed the way that art historians think about their subject. In this seminar, we will also consider the problems of relating texts to visual art and ask what themes are relevant to art historians today. | ART-4001A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO GALLERY AND MUSEUM STUDIES This module introduces some of the key concepts and tenets underpinning art galleries and museums. One half of the module considers the ways in which museums engage visitors with their activities and their displays. The other half examines the reverse process, by reviewing the history of museums and considering the impact that society has on their development, structure and objectives. The teaching on this module uses the Castle Museum and Art Gallery and the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts as case studies, in addition to considering a range of galleries and museums around the world. | ART-4009B | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO MODERNISM, RUSSIA C. 1910-1932 This module introduces some of the key concepts of modernism (such as 'abstraction','construction') by examining a range of material produced in Russia in the early part of the 20th century - painting, sculpture and architecture, and also design, photography and photomontage. The module examines the work of Kazimir Malevich, Vladimir Tatlin and Aleksandr Rodchenko amongst others. | ART-4004B | 20 |
| LEARNING FROM OBJECTS This module helps equip students with the skills and knowledge they need to study objects from around the world, from prehistory to the present day. Drawing on the collections of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and of the Castle Museum and Art Gallery, as well as the architecture of Norwich, we will explore the ways in which materials, contexts and histories affect how objects have been made and used. Through readings, discussions and object handling, we challenge assumptions and preconceptions about different kinds of art. In the process, students develop their abilities in library research, academic writing and referencing, and oral presentations. | ART-4007A | 20 |
| MAKERS AND MAKING The process of making works of art â from objects to performances, bodies to buildings â involves a range of materials, activities and ideas. Through a series of lectures by members of ART staff, students on this module learn about the physical and technical properties of different materials as well as their social, economic and symbolic significance. We also consider the people involved in designing, crafting and creating such art, including their working methods and social status. | ART-4002A | 20 |
| RENAISSANCE PAINTING AND CULTURAL EXCHANGES IN EUROPE Fourteenth and fifteenth-century Italy was shaped by the growth of urban centres and the development of new political, social, and sacred institutions. New patrons and uses for artworks prompted a wealth of artistic activity that responded to and also forged contemporary values, beliefs and identities. Bankers, merchants, mercenaries, and religious institutions exploited the power of art and architecture to promote their professional interests, ambitions, and families. Focusing on spacesâpalaces, churches, city squaresâthis module explores evolving forms and functions of painting, sculpture and architecture made by a range of artists including Giotto, Donatello, and Michelangelo. We will also consider exchanges and cultural links between Italian and Europe centres. | ART-4010B | 20 |
This is the first year of your level 2 study
Compulsory Study (20 credits)
Students must study the following modules for 20 credits:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CRITICAL THINKING The main purpose of this module is to develop your critical skills as they pertain to thinking, reading, writing and looking. To deliver this, the module falls into two main sections. The first focuses on one particular methodology â object biographies â used in archaeology, anthropology, museum studies and art history. We shall examine this methodology in detail, breaking it down into its component sections. We shall then consider its strengths and its weaknesses; that is, we will subject it to a thorough critical evaluation. Then, in the second half of the module we shall focus more broadly on what critical thinking is, both in general and within each of the four disciplines taught in the School of World Art Studies. Building on this, the module ends by focusing on how you can apply critical thinking to your own thinking, reading, writing and looking. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5019A | 20 |
Option A Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| "THE ARTS IN BRITAIN FROM SUTTON HOO TO THE BOOK OF KELLS, c. 600-850" This module will focus on the visual arts and architecture in the British Isles beginning with the age of Sutton Hoo and the arrival of Christianity from Ireland and Rome. The formation of new kingdoms, the establishment of the church, contacts with Continental Europe and the enduring life of indigenous cultural traditions all contributed to the development of extraordinarily various, inventive and sophisticated new visual paradigms, in building, in stone carving, metalwork and the arts of the book. | ART-5021A | 20 |
| AMERICAN ART AND AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY 1900-1950 This unit examines the relations between art and photography in the United States in the first half of the 20th century. The central debate in American modernism has concerned the role of the medium and considering photography in relation to the other visual arts permits a reassessment of this debate. Artists and photographers examined include Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia OâKeeffe, Marcel Duchamp, Diego Rivera and Walker Evans. | ART-5023B | 20 |
| ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD METHODS The aim of this module is to provide students interested in archaeology with a good grounding in field practice. This module builds on what you learned in Introduction to Archaeology by reinforcing your understanding of the archaeological process. You will examine the principles of archaeological field techniques, including desk-based data gathering, field prospection, post-excavation analyses and dissemination. Archaeology is a discipline that relies upon the successful integration of the largely scientific act of data collection (fieldwork and subsequent analyses) against the largely theoretical and conceptual elements of interpreting the archaeological record. Getting the balance right is a perennial issue and one that will be explored in this module. The module is tutorial based but students will be expected to undertake some practical work during the semester. | ART-5006B | 20 |
| ART AND ARCHITECTURE IN VENICE The fascination that Venice holds for many is intensified by the cityâs fragility. Once the centre of a vast empire, the city is sinking as the waters of the Adriatic rise and the resident population continues to dwindle. As the lagoon city crumbles, it has been recreated in the desert of Las Vegas as âa Venice more real than Venice itself.â The model for this new development was the stunning topography of the Renaissance city, then a commercial and cultural crossroads. Venice was described as the âtheatre of the worldâ: a stage teeming with people âwho come together from various nations, in fact from all of the world.â Protected against foreign invasions by its strategic site, Venice maintained its independence for a millennium until the entry of Napoleon in 1797. The remarkable longevity of this maritime republic was sustained by its mixed constitution and an array of rituals, institutions, and artworks designed to promote social order and guard against internal strife. This module provides a foundation for the study of Venetian art and architecture undertaken in Venice for 14 days in the co-requisite module ART-2V10. It is an introduction to the history of the city, its architecture and art and to a number of related contexts, economic, political, social and cultural. We will examine the distinctive pictorial and architectural traditions and innovative strategies developed by artists and architects including the Bellini, Giorgione, Lotto, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Codussi, Sansovino, Palladio and Longhena. Civic ritual, costume and printed imagery are further areas of inquiry with which to explore issues of identity, ethnicity, technology, tourism, festivals, and popular culture. | ART-5007B | 20 |
| CATEGORIES AND CONCEPTS This module introduces students to some of the most significant methodologies (âconceptsâ) in the analysis of art, before considering some of the intellectual âcategoriesâ which have been â and continue to be â central to thinking about cultural and artistic forms. The module offers both an introduction to some of the major approaches adopted by scholars in the humanities and social sciences, and a conceptual toolkit with which to engage critically with art and its meanings. Ideas and texts addressed in the module are drawn from a range of disciplines, including critical theory, politics, philosophy and aesthetics. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5020B | 20 |
| CONCEALING AND REVEALING: ANCESTORS, SPIRITS AND KINGS This module investigates what is represented in African art objects. Sometimes what is revealed by objects when in use is secondary in importance to what is concealed. The external agencies which motivate and empower objects may often lie in the domain of spirits. Kings themselves are often also regarded as spirits. How does that come through in the regalia kings wear, the places they live in and their decorative schemes? The module examines figural sculpture, the arts of divination and masquerade, shrines and funerary monuments. African Islam and Christianity are examined as further arenas for artistic and architectural expression. The final sessions look at the body as a site of artistic intervention and particularly at how it comes to articulate the complexities of identity in contemporary contexts. | ART-5018B | 20 |
| CONTEMPORARY GALLERY AND MUSEUM STUDIES As contemporary arts practice evolves, the space and functions of the museum are also changing. This module looks at the contexts of displaying contemporary art since the 1960s, including artist-led interventions in museums and galleries. These artistic interventions are relevant to museum professionals and art historians alike, because they go beyond the critique of museumsâ public spaces to question how museums work behind the scenes. Students on this module will gain an insight into contemporary art curating, the contribution that artists make to international debate, and some of the strategic issues that face museums and galleries today. | ART-5011A | 20 |
| CRITICAL THINKING The main purpose of this module is to develop your critical skills as they pertain to thinking, reading, writing and looking. To deliver this, the module falls into two main sections. The first focuses on one particular methodology â object biographies â used in archaeology, anthropology, museum studies and art history. We shall examine this methodology in detail, breaking it down into its component sections. We shall then consider its strengths and its weaknesses; that is, we will subject it to a thorough critical evaluation. Then, in the second half of the module we shall focus more broadly on what critical thinking is, both in general and within each of the four disciplines taught in the School of World Art Studies. Building on this, the module ends by focusing on how you can apply critical thinking to your own thinking, reading, writing and looking. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5019A | 20 |
| ERASMUS SEMESTER ABROAD A semester abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5002A | 60 |
| ERASMUS SEMESTER ABROAD A semester abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5003B | 60 |
| ERASMUS YEAR ABROAD A study year abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5004Y | 120 |
| FIELDWORK, ART AND ARCHITECTURE IN VENICE WHILE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE ART-2V08. In this module, two intense weeks will be spent visiting, studying and discussing some of the principal monuments and works of art in the city. Formally and informally we shall inspect and analyse most of the major and some of the minor buildings, paintings and sculptures as well as certain aspects of the topography and urban fabric of Venice. A number of underlying and overarching themes and issues will run through the module, but inevitably the structures of sessions and the lines of inquiry we follow will be dictated by the monuments themselves and by the aspects of their physical presence, materials, shape, design, iconographic content, siting which are most readily and effectively considered on location. As a guide, at current figures we expect the trip to cost in the region of 900 pounds | ART-5008B | 20 |
| IMAGE, WORD AND MODERNITY IN BRITAIN, c.1800-1918 In this module, we will examine the interaction between the visual and the verbal in British culture during the nineteenth century, looking at images and/or texts produced by William Blake, the Pre-Raphaelite circle, Algernon Swinburne, Edward Burne-Jones, the English social realists, James McNeill Whistler, Aubrey Beardsley and Oscar Wilde, Walter Sickert, the Bloomsbury group and artists/poets of the First World War. In turn, we will consider the ways in which art historians, poets, novelists, literary critics and theorists have considered the often-vexed relationship between image and word. Thus, while largely chronological in form the course requires students to engage with the theoretical and critical literature on image/word relations, and considers issues such as the title, the calligram, ekphrasis, visual humour and the aesthetics of texts. | ART-5012A | 20 |
| INDIGENOUS ARTS AND INDIGENOUS PEOPLES This module begins by analysing what is meant by Indigenous arts and peoples. In particular, we shall consider the link between the anthropology of art and Indigenous identity. The module continues by examining issues related to the interpretation of indigenous arts in wide-ranging geographic and cultural contexts from North America, to India and Australia. It then questions Indigenous peoples' engagement with notions of ethnicity and heritage, as well as the formation of an 'Indigenous media' through film-making. The module aims to foster an inter-disciplinary approach. | ART-5022A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO JAPANESE ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY Building on the Japanese holdings of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, the module will survey major developments in ceramics, lacquer, metallurgy, sculpture, architecture, painting and photography. Cross-cutting themes will include links between ancient and modern, with East Asia and beyond, connoisseurship, collecting and exhibiting Japan's artistic and archaeological heritage. The course offers students a comprehensive introduction to the fascinating art and archaeology of the Japanese archipelago, from Okinawa to Hokkaido, and from prehistory to modern times. | ART-5017B | 20 |
| MATERIAL WORLDS Recent research in archaeology and anthropology has begun to reframe questions posed by the study of material culture and art. This module introduces some contemporary archaeological and anthropological perspectives on the study of material culture. Case studies are drawn from around the world. The module is compulsory for V0L0 and V0LX students. | ART-5009A | 20 |
| NORTH AMERICA /AUSTRALASIA COMPULSORY YEAR ABROAD Year abroad in North America or Australasia. Reserved for students on V354U1 and VOLXU1. | ART-5001Y | 120 |
Option B Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|
This is the second year of your level 2 study
Compulsory Study (20 credits)
Students must study the following modules for 20 credits:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CATEGORIES AND CONCEPTS This module introduces students to some of the most significant methodologies (âconceptsâ) in the analysis of art, before considering some of the intellectual âcategoriesâ which have been â and continue to be â central to thinking about cultural and artistic forms. The module offers both an introduction to some of the major approaches adopted by scholars in the humanities and social sciences, and a conceptual toolkit with which to engage critically with art and its meanings. Ideas and texts addressed in the module are drawn from a range of disciplines, including critical theory, politics, philosophy and aesthetics. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5020B | 20 |
Option A Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| "THE ARTS IN BRITAIN FROM SUTTON HOO TO THE BOOK OF KELLS, c. 600-850" This module will focus on the visual arts and architecture in the British Isles beginning with the age of Sutton Hoo and the arrival of Christianity from Ireland and Rome. The formation of new kingdoms, the establishment of the church, contacts with Continental Europe and the enduring life of indigenous cultural traditions all contributed to the development of extraordinarily various, inventive and sophisticated new visual paradigms, in building, in stone carving, metalwork and the arts of the book. | ART-5021A | 20 |
| AMERICAN ART AND AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY 1900-1950 This unit examines the relations between art and photography in the United States in the first half of the 20th century. The central debate in American modernism has concerned the role of the medium and considering photography in relation to the other visual arts permits a reassessment of this debate. Artists and photographers examined include Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia OâKeeffe, Marcel Duchamp, Diego Rivera and Walker Evans. | ART-5023B | 20 |
| ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD METHODS The aim of this module is to provide students interested in archaeology with a good grounding in field practice. This module builds on what you learned in Introduction to Archaeology by reinforcing your understanding of the archaeological process. You will examine the principles of archaeological field techniques, including desk-based data gathering, field prospection, post-excavation analyses and dissemination. Archaeology is a discipline that relies upon the successful integration of the largely scientific act of data collection (fieldwork and subsequent analyses) against the largely theoretical and conceptual elements of interpreting the archaeological record. Getting the balance right is a perennial issue and one that will be explored in this module. The module is tutorial based but students will be expected to undertake some practical work during the semester. | ART-5006B | 20 |
| ART AND ARCHITECTURE IN VENICE The fascination that Venice holds for many is intensified by the cityâs fragility. Once the centre of a vast empire, the city is sinking as the waters of the Adriatic rise and the resident population continues to dwindle. As the lagoon city crumbles, it has been recreated in the desert of Las Vegas as âa Venice more real than Venice itself.â The model for this new development was the stunning topography of the Renaissance city, then a commercial and cultural crossroads. Venice was described as the âtheatre of the worldâ: a stage teeming with people âwho come together from various nations, in fact from all of the world.â Protected against foreign invasions by its strategic site, Venice maintained its independence for a millennium until the entry of Napoleon in 1797. The remarkable longevity of this maritime republic was sustained by its mixed constitution and an array of rituals, institutions, and artworks designed to promote social order and guard against internal strife. This module provides a foundation for the study of Venetian art and architecture undertaken in Venice for 14 days in the co-requisite module ART-2V10. It is an introduction to the history of the city, its architecture and art and to a number of related contexts, economic, political, social and cultural. We will examine the distinctive pictorial and architectural traditions and innovative strategies developed by artists and architects including the Bellini, Giorgione, Lotto, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Codussi, Sansovino, Palladio and Longhena. Civic ritual, costume and printed imagery are further areas of inquiry with which to explore issues of identity, ethnicity, technology, tourism, festivals, and popular culture. | ART-5007B | 20 |
| CATEGORIES AND CONCEPTS This module introduces students to some of the most significant methodologies (âconceptsâ) in the analysis of art, before considering some of the intellectual âcategoriesâ which have been â and continue to be â central to thinking about cultural and artistic forms. The module offers both an introduction to some of the major approaches adopted by scholars in the humanities and social sciences, and a conceptual toolkit with which to engage critically with art and its meanings. Ideas and texts addressed in the module are drawn from a range of disciplines, including critical theory, politics, philosophy and aesthetics. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5020B | 20 |
| CONCEALING AND REVEALING: ANCESTORS, SPIRITS AND KINGS This module investigates what is represented in African art objects. Sometimes what is revealed by objects when in use is secondary in importance to what is concealed. The external agencies which motivate and empower objects may often lie in the domain of spirits. Kings themselves are often also regarded as spirits. How does that come through in the regalia kings wear, the places they live in and their decorative schemes? The module examines figural sculpture, the arts of divination and masquerade, shrines and funerary monuments. African Islam and Christianity are examined as further arenas for artistic and architectural expression. The final sessions look at the body as a site of artistic intervention and particularly at how it comes to articulate the complexities of identity in contemporary contexts. | ART-5018B | 20 |
| CONTEMPORARY GALLERY AND MUSEUM STUDIES As contemporary arts practice evolves, the space and functions of the museum are also changing. This module looks at the contexts of displaying contemporary art since the 1960s, including artist-led interventions in museums and galleries. These artistic interventions are relevant to museum professionals and art historians alike, because they go beyond the critique of museumsâ public spaces to question how museums work behind the scenes. Students on this module will gain an insight into contemporary art curating, the contribution that artists make to international debate, and some of the strategic issues that face museums and galleries today. | ART-5011A | 20 |
| CRITICAL THINKING The main purpose of this module is to develop your critical skills as they pertain to thinking, reading, writing and looking. To deliver this, the module falls into two main sections. The first focuses on one particular methodology â object biographies â used in archaeology, anthropology, museum studies and art history. We shall examine this methodology in detail, breaking it down into its component sections. We shall then consider its strengths and its weaknesses; that is, we will subject it to a thorough critical evaluation. Then, in the second half of the module we shall focus more broadly on what critical thinking is, both in general and within each of the four disciplines taught in the School of World Art Studies. Building on this, the module ends by focusing on how you can apply critical thinking to your own thinking, reading, writing and looking. The module is taught through a combination of two weekly lectures and one discussion seminar. The lectures offer an introduction to the relevant topic, and end with a question for us to discuss/debate in the final 10 minutes of the lecture period. The discussion seminars will consider key issues in the previous weekâs lectures and the weekly class readings which accompany them. | ART-5019A | 20 |
| ERASMUS SEMESTER ABROAD A semester abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5002A | 60 |
| ERASMUS SEMESTER ABROAD A semester abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5003B | 60 |
| ERASMUS YEAR ABROAD A study year abroad at an approved university within the Erasmus network. | ART-5004Y | 120 |
| FIELDWORK, ART AND ARCHITECTURE IN VENICE WHILE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE ART-2V08. In this module, two intense weeks will be spent visiting, studying and discussing some of the principal monuments and works of art in the city. Formally and informally we shall inspect and analyse most of the major and some of the minor buildings, paintings and sculptures as well as certain aspects of the topography and urban fabric of Venice. A number of underlying and overarching themes and issues will run through the module, but inevitably the structures of sessions and the lines of inquiry we follow will be dictated by the monuments themselves and by the aspects of their physical presence, materials, shape, design, iconographic content, siting which are most readily and effectively considered on location. As a guide, at current figures we expect the trip to cost in the region of 900 pounds | ART-5008B | 20 |
| IMAGE, WORD AND MODERNITY IN BRITAIN, c.1800-1918 In this module, we will examine the interaction between the visual and the verbal in British culture during the nineteenth century, looking at images and/or texts produced by William Blake, the Pre-Raphaelite circle, Algernon Swinburne, Edward Burne-Jones, the English social realists, James McNeill Whistler, Aubrey Beardsley and Oscar Wilde, Walter Sickert, the Bloomsbury group and artists/poets of the First World War. In turn, we will consider the ways in which art historians, poets, novelists, literary critics and theorists have considered the often-vexed relationship between image and word. Thus, while largely chronological in form the course requires students to engage with the theoretical and critical literature on image/word relations, and considers issues such as the title, the calligram, ekphrasis, visual humour and the aesthetics of texts. | ART-5012A | 20 |
| INDIGENOUS ARTS AND INDIGENOUS PEOPLES This module begins by analysing what is meant by Indigenous arts and peoples. In particular, we shall consider the link between the anthropology of art and Indigenous identity. The module continues by examining issues related to the interpretation of indigenous arts in wide-ranging geographic and cultural contexts from North America, to India and Australia. It then questions Indigenous peoples' engagement with notions of ethnicity and heritage, as well as the formation of an 'Indigenous media' through film-making. The module aims to foster an inter-disciplinary approach. | ART-5022A | 20 |
| INTRODUCTION TO JAPANESE ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY Building on the Japanese holdings of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, the module will survey major developments in ceramics, lacquer, metallurgy, sculpture, architecture, painting and photography. Cross-cutting themes will include links between ancient and modern, with East Asia and beyond, connoisseurship, collecting and exhibiting Japan's artistic and archaeological heritage. The course offers students a comprehensive introduction to the fascinating art and archaeology of the Japanese archipelago, from Okinawa to Hokkaido, and from prehistory to modern times. | ART-5017B | 20 |
| MATERIAL WORLDS Recent research in archaeology and anthropology has begun to reframe questions posed by the study of material culture and art. This module introduces some contemporary archaeological and anthropological perspectives on the study of material culture. Case studies are drawn from around the world. The module is compulsory for V0L0 and V0LX students. | ART-5009A | 20 |
| NORTH AMERICA /AUSTRALASIA COMPULSORY YEAR ABROAD Year abroad in North America or Australasia. Reserved for students on V354U1 and VOLXU1. | ART-5001Y | 120 |
Option B Study (20 credits)
Students will select 20 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|
This is the first year of your level 3 study. Your Option Range B 30 credit module may be taken in EITHER the first or second year of your level 3 study.
Option A Study (30 credits)
Students will select 30 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AMERICAN ART AND AMERICAN LANDSCAPE, 1800-1920 During the mid-nineteenth century landscape painting became a central element in American culture. From the formation of American identity to national expansion west, to questions about the modernisation of US society, American landscape painters were key to the representation of the nation to itself. This module looks at the great mid-century American tradition of landscape painting and traces its influence on later American art, from the art of the cities to the inception of the ruralist movement in the early twentieth century. Topics will include, nationalism and national identity and the landscape, the Hudson River School, landscape and city painting, landscapes of east and west, and landscape and the American art world. | ART-6019B | 30 |
| ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE MODERN WORLD This module aims to examine how archaeology relates to contemporary society in various cultural, political and economic contexts. Archaeology, a study of the past through material remains, has informed the ways in which people perceive, understand and use the past. The public image and understanding of the past have, in turn, influenced the ways in which archaeology is practiced and theorised. The module investigates such reciprocal relationships between archaeology and the public, drawing on theories in anthropology and heritage studies, and through case studies from around the world including Japan, Cambodia, Jordan, Australia, Italy, Greece, Kosovo and Britain. Issues addressed include: archaeology and popular culture (e.g. films and games), political use of archaeology, outreach and communication in archaeology, presenting the past in museums, folklore and archaeology, archaeology and the media, and archaeology and economic development. | ART-6020A | 30 |
| ART OF ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA Ancient Mesopotamia is recognisable today by two of its most impressive and powerful cultures; the Sumerians and the Assyrians. Situated between the Euphrates and the Tigris Rivers, Mesopotamia remained largely autonomous for nearly 3000 years, during which time its power and influence over neighbouring regions ebbed and waned. At the heart of Mesopotamian society was competence and skill in a broad range of arts and crafts, but it is most famous for being the world's first literate society. Along with writing, the glue of Mesopotamian society was cultic practice and religious belief, most visibly attested in the art of temples and burials. At all periods art was fundamental to Mesopotamian culture; it coloured their rituals and beliefs, it was integral to their writing system, and was used in both politics and warfare. This module will explore the significance of artistic practice in the development of Mesopotamian society. | ART-6021A | 30 |
| CLEOPATRA'S EGYPT After the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, Egypt became first a Hellenistic Greek kingdom and then, from 30 BC, part of the Roman Empire. These political changes heralded much broader socioeconomic and cultural changes as well. This module examines the art and architecture of Hellenistic and Roman Egypt, looking at the development of new styles and technologies and the interaction of Greek and Egyptian visual forms. In the 'multi-cultural' society of Graeco-Roman Egypt, how does artistic change relate to questions of self-presentation and identity? | ART-6008B | 30 |
| DISSERTATION ART students on this module undertake a research project on a topic related to their specialised interests, in consultation with an appropriate member of ART Faculty, leading to a 9,000 word dissertation. | ART-6012B | 30 |
| GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS PRACTICE Galleries and museums as public bodies have a range of legal, administrative and curatorial responsibilities placed upon them. This module looks at the mechanisms that are in place to respond to these demands, looking at conservation and curation, at educational practice, governance and funding challenges. THIS MODULE IS NOT AVAILABLE IN 2011/12. | ART-6005B | 30 |
| IMAGE, ICON AND IDENTITY This module will look at ways in which identity was invented and manipulated in the Roman world between the age of Augustus and the rise of Islam. The social standing and ambitions of individuals was projected not only through portraiture but also in the architecture and decoration of private residences and in public works. Similarly, the identity of institutions was visually expressed in the forms of building and artefacts and in the ways in which image and ornament were deployed. Representations of divinity and holiness, including the Christian icon, its veneration and rejection, will be considered alongside imagery of person and power from the secular sphere. | ART-6001A | 30 |
| INVASION AND INVENTION: ART IN ENGLAND 1020-1135 Invasion and Invention explores the interrelationship of art and history using eleventh century England as a case study. In theory it ought to be ideal, since it was a period of great political and cultural change. This is where 'invasion' comes in, since an ostensibly Anglo-Saxon realm (the kingdom of England) was ruled by 'Danes' from 1017-1042 and Normans from 1066-1153. As regards 'invention', alongside the apparently reasonable view that history describes what happened in the past is the more realistic view that all descriptions are partial and rhetorical. We shall have a good deal to say about the rhetoric of text and image in the business conveying notions of history, as it was understood at the time. | ART-6002B | 30 |
| PORTRAITURE AND THE POLITICS OF THE FACE IN EARLY MODERN EUROPE (1450-1650) Recent practices and technologies, such as ethnic profiling and face recognition systems, have drawn attention both to stereotyping and to the singular differences that distinguish us from each other. If this scrutiny of physiognomy and facial expressions is symptomatic of our own political, scientific, and cultural milieu, then how did the human face signify when portraiture was developing as a genre in early modern Europe? This question serves as a departure point for the study of visual imagery of the face during a period in which religious conflict, expanding geographical horizons, and social and scientific changes overlapped with efforts to control the increasingly fraught boundaries of the body. Considering work by a wide range of artists from Durer and Anguissola to Caravaggio and the Carracci, this module explores themes such as self-portraiture and embodiment, realism, ethics, and anthropomorphic images. | ART-6013A | 30 |
| PUBLIC ART, PERFORMANCE AND MEMORY Public art and performances are often staged to commemorate historical events. Monuments and commemorations are meant to make us remember the First World War, the Holocaust, the Slave Trade and Colonialism. This module examines why and how nations and communities commemorate the past and the discussions that has generated about memory, memorials and commemorative art. Central to the module is the question how memorial art makes us remember? And, indeed, whether there are alternative ways of remembering in painting, performance or popular music? The module will consider case studies from across the world. | ART-6014A | 30 |
| SPACES OF CONTEMPORARY ART This module takes as its point of departure the proposition that the experiences of space described in David Harvey's critical geography provide a useful means of addressing contemporary art. The module begins with an examination of the contemporary spaces of display, including large temporary exhibitions (the Venice Biennale etc.) and the relatively new institutions which perhaps dominate the work they present (Tate Modern, the Bilbao Guggenheim etc.). We will then turn to look at the ways artists have negotiated these spaces, embracing them through installation work, exploiting them to provide arenas for participation, or resisting them with site-specific displays. We will also consider alternatives which circumvent these spaces such as, for example, through the use of digital technologies. | ART-6010A | 30 |
Option B Study (30 credits)
Students will select 30 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|
This is the second year of your level 3 study. Your Option Range B 30 credit module may be taken in EITHER the first or second year of your level 3 study.
Option A Study (30 credits)
Students will select 30 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| AMERICAN ART AND AMERICAN LANDSCAPE, 1800-1920 During the mid-nineteenth century landscape painting became a central element in American culture. From the formation of American identity to national expansion west, to questions about the modernisation of US society, American landscape painters were key to the representation of the nation to itself. This module looks at the great mid-century American tradition of landscape painting and traces its influence on later American art, from the art of the cities to the inception of the ruralist movement in the early twentieth century. Topics will include, nationalism and national identity and the landscape, the Hudson River School, landscape and city painting, landscapes of east and west, and landscape and the American art world. | ART-6019B | 30 |
| ARCHAEOLOGY AND THE MODERN WORLD This module aims to examine how archaeology relates to contemporary society in various cultural, political and economic contexts. Archaeology, a study of the past through material remains, has informed the ways in which people perceive, understand and use the past. The public image and understanding of the past have, in turn, influenced the ways in which archaeology is practiced and theorised. The module investigates such reciprocal relationships between archaeology and the public, drawing on theories in anthropology and heritage studies, and through case studies from around the world including Japan, Cambodia, Jordan, Australia, Italy, Greece, Kosovo and Britain. Issues addressed include: archaeology and popular culture (e.g. films and games), political use of archaeology, outreach and communication in archaeology, presenting the past in museums, folklore and archaeology, archaeology and the media, and archaeology and economic development. | ART-6020A | 30 |
| ART OF ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA Ancient Mesopotamia is recognisable today by two of its most impressive and powerful cultures; the Sumerians and the Assyrians. Situated between the Euphrates and the Tigris Rivers, Mesopotamia remained largely autonomous for nearly 3000 years, during which time its power and influence over neighbouring regions ebbed and waned. At the heart of Mesopotamian society was competence and skill in a broad range of arts and crafts, but it is most famous for being the world's first literate society. Along with writing, the glue of Mesopotamian society was cultic practice and religious belief, most visibly attested in the art of temples and burials. At all periods art was fundamental to Mesopotamian culture; it coloured their rituals and beliefs, it was integral to their writing system, and was used in both politics and warfare. This module will explore the significance of artistic practice in the development of Mesopotamian society. | ART-6021A | 30 |
| CLEOPATRA'S EGYPT After the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC, Egypt became first a Hellenistic Greek kingdom and then, from 30 BC, part of the Roman Empire. These political changes heralded much broader socioeconomic and cultural changes as well. This module examines the art and architecture of Hellenistic and Roman Egypt, looking at the development of new styles and technologies and the interaction of Greek and Egyptian visual forms. In the 'multi-cultural' society of Graeco-Roman Egypt, how does artistic change relate to questions of self-presentation and identity? | ART-6008B | 30 |
| DISSERTATION ART students on this module undertake a research project on a topic related to their specialised interests, in consultation with an appropriate member of ART Faculty, leading to a 9,000 word dissertation. | ART-6012B | 30 |
| GALLERIES AND MUSEUMS PRACTICE Galleries and museums as public bodies have a range of legal, administrative and curatorial responsibilities placed upon them. This module looks at the mechanisms that are in place to respond to these demands, looking at conservation and curation, at educational practice, governance and funding challenges. THIS MODULE IS NOT AVAILABLE IN 2011/12. | ART-6005B | 30 |
| IMAGE, ICON AND IDENTITY This module will look at ways in which identity was invented and manipulated in the Roman world between the age of Augustus and the rise of Islam. The social standing and ambitions of individuals was projected not only through portraiture but also in the architecture and decoration of private residences and in public works. Similarly, the identity of institutions was visually expressed in the forms of building and artefacts and in the ways in which image and ornament were deployed. Representations of divinity and holiness, including the Christian icon, its veneration and rejection, will be considered alongside imagery of person and power from the secular sphere. | ART-6001A | 30 |
| INVASION AND INVENTION: ART IN ENGLAND 1020-1135 Invasion and Invention explores the interrelationship of art and history using eleventh century England as a case study. In theory it ought to be ideal, since it was a period of great political and cultural change. This is where 'invasion' comes in, since an ostensibly Anglo-Saxon realm (the kingdom of England) was ruled by 'Danes' from 1017-1042 and Normans from 1066-1153. As regards 'invention', alongside the apparently reasonable view that history describes what happened in the past is the more realistic view that all descriptions are partial and rhetorical. We shall have a good deal to say about the rhetoric of text and image in the business conveying notions of history, as it was understood at the time. | ART-6002B | 30 |
| PORTRAITURE AND THE POLITICS OF THE FACE IN EARLY MODERN EUROPE (1450-1650) Recent practices and technologies, such as ethnic profiling and face recognition systems, have drawn attention both to stereotyping and to the singular differences that distinguish us from each other. If this scrutiny of physiognomy and facial expressions is symptomatic of our own political, scientific, and cultural milieu, then how did the human face signify when portraiture was developing as a genre in early modern Europe? This question serves as a departure point for the study of visual imagery of the face during a period in which religious conflict, expanding geographical horizons, and social and scientific changes overlapped with efforts to control the increasingly fraught boundaries of the body. Considering work by a wide range of artists from Durer and Anguissola to Caravaggio and the Carracci, this module explores themes such as self-portraiture and embodiment, realism, ethics, and anthropomorphic images. | ART-6013A | 30 |
| PUBLIC ART, PERFORMANCE AND MEMORY Public art and performances are often staged to commemorate historical events. Monuments and commemorations are meant to make us remember the First World War, the Holocaust, the Slave Trade and Colonialism. This module examines why and how nations and communities commemorate the past and the discussions that has generated about memory, memorials and commemorative art. Central to the module is the question how memorial art makes us remember? And, indeed, whether there are alternative ways of remembering in painting, performance or popular music? The module will consider case studies from across the world. | ART-6014A | 30 |
| SPACES OF CONTEMPORARY ART This module takes as its point of departure the proposition that the experiences of space described in David Harvey's critical geography provide a useful means of addressing contemporary art. The module begins with an examination of the contemporary spaces of display, including large temporary exhibitions (the Venice Biennale etc.) and the relatively new institutions which perhaps dominate the work they present (Tate Modern, the Bilbao Guggenheim etc.). We will then turn to look at the ways artists have negotiated these spaces, embracing them through installation work, exploiting them to provide arenas for participation, or resisting them with site-specific displays. We will also consider alternatives which circumvent these spaces such as, for example, through the use of digital technologies. | ART-6010A | 30 |
Option B Study (30 credits)
Students will select 30 credits from the following modules:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|
Compulsory Study (30 credits)
Students must study the following modules for 30 credits:
| Name | Code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| DISSERTATION ART students on this module undertake a research project on a topic related to their specialised interests, in consultation with an appropriate member of ART Faculty, leading to a 9,000 word dissertation. | ART-6012B | 30 |
Disclaimer
Whilst the University will make every effort to offer the modules listed, changes may sometimes be made arising from the annual monitoring, review and update of modules and regular (five-yearly) review of course programmes. Where this activity leads to significant (but not minor) changes to programmes and their constituent modules, there will normally be prior consultation of students and others. It is also possible that the University may not be able to offer a module for reasons outside of its control, such as the illness of a member of staff or sabbatical leave. Where this is the case, the University will endeavour to inform students.
Entry Requirements
- Qualification:
- BA (Hons)
- Access Course:
- Please contact the university for further information
- HND:
- Please contact the university for further information
Entry Requirement
Students who apply for part-time courses, generally do so with a wide variety of qualifications and experience. For the majority of candidates the most important factors in assessing the application will be past and future achievement in examinations, academic interest in the subject being applied for, personal interest and extra-curricular activities and the confidential reference. We consider applicants as individuals and accept students from a very wide range of educational backgrounds and spend time considering your application in order to reach an informed decision relating your application. Please note, there may be additional subject entry requirements specific to individual degree courses. We encourage applicants to contact the university if they are unsure about the relevance of their qualifications.
Students for whom English is a Foreign language
We welcome applications from students from all academic backgrounds. We require evidence of proficiency in English (including writing, speaking, listening and reading). Recognised English Language qualifications include:
- IELTS: 6.5 overall (minimum 6.0 in Reading and Writing with no less than 5.5 in any component)
- TOEFL: Internet-based score of 88 overall (minimum 20 in Reading and Speaking components, 19 in Writing component and 17 in Listening components.
- PTE: 62 overall (minimum 55 in Reading and Writing components with no less than 51 in any component).
If you do not meet the University's entry requirements, our INTO Language Learning Centre offers a range of university preparation courses to help you develop the high level of academic and English skills necessary for successful undergraduate study.
Special Entry Requirements
Students who have been away from mainstream education for a significant period of time may be required to submit a short essay to help in assessing suitability for the course.
GCSE Offer
Students are required to have GCSE Mathematics and GCSE English Language at Grade C or above.
Fees and Funding
University Fees and Financial Support: UK/EU Students
https://www.uea.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/finance
University Fees and Financial Support: International Students
The University will be charging International students £12,300.00 for all full time School of Art History and World Art Studies undergraduate programmes which start in 2013.
Please click to access further information about fees and funding for International students
Applying for Part-Time Degrees
The University of East Anglia offers some of its undergraduate degrees on a part-time basis. Applications are made directly to the University: More information and an application form can be found at our Part-Time Study pages. For further information on the part-time application process, please contact our Admissions Office at admissions@uea.ac.uk.
Each year we hold a series of Open Days, where potential applicants to our Undergraduate courses can come and visit the university to learn more about the courses they are interested in, meet current students and staff and tour our campus. If you decide to apply for a course and are made an offer, you will be invited to a School specific Visit Day. Applicants may be invited for interview or audition for some courses.
For enquiries about the content of the degree or your qualifications please contact Admissions at 01603 591515 or email admissions@uea.ac.uk We can then direct your enquiry to the relevant department to assist you.