BA Fine Art/Art History
About this course
Fine art and art history make for a demanding and richly rewarding combination. Making art and writing about it are complementary activities: understanding the history and critical discourse of art sharpens your thinking as a practitioner, while the experience of making work gives you an intuitive grasp of what art history describes and argues about. Together, the two disciplines develop you as both a creative practitioner and a critical thinker, capable of positioning your own work within a tradition while engaging analytically with the work of others. At Aberystwyth University, this three-year full-time degree develops your practical skills across a range of media, including painting, printmaking, drawing, photography, book illustration, experimental film, installation, and site-specific performance. You will have the opportunity to deepen your practice in the areas that suit your particular interests and voice. On the art history side, you will engage with research, critical interpretation, and the understanding and display of visual culture, through both core modules and specialised or interdisciplinary options including history and curating. The programme offers a combination of studio-based learning, where making is central, and scholarly engagement with visual culture in its historical and critical dimensions. With a typical entry tariff of 136 UCAS points, the degree reflects the department's standing as one of the leading art departments in the UK. Graduates from fine art and art history programmes pursue careers across the arts, cultural sector, and beyond. Practicing artists, curators, gallery educators, arts administrators, museum professionals, auction house specialists, arts journalists, and educators are all destinations. The skills developed across both disciplines, including the ability to think visually, conduct independent research, and communicate about complex ideas, are also valued in design, publishing, digital media, and cultural policy roles. Many graduates build portfolio careers that combine studio practice with other creative and professional work. Postgraduate study in fine art, curatorial practice, art history, or museum studies is a well-trodden path for those who wish to go further.
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