Course summary

Our Birkbeck’s BA Art History offers the opportunity to study the visual arts as a central element of human endeavour in an accessible, engaging and flexible way. It is taught by world-leading scholars and makes the most of the amazingly rich art collections, monuments and study facilities of London. Why choose this course?

• On this course you will explore the cultural and political contexts of artworks, buildings and exhibitions, and think more broadly about the role of images within society.

• We teach art history as a rich and dynamic topic, encompassing architecture, installation, exhibitions, print culture and digital media as well as painting, sculpture and photography.

• You will be taught by experienced and skilled teachers who are also published writers of groundbreaking art history in periods from medieval to contemporary.

• Birkbeck was ranked as one of the top four universities in the UK for its Art and Design research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.

• The teaching and research of history of art was established almost half a century ago at Birkbeck. Today, we are an internationally respected centre in this area. Keep up to date with our activities on the Birkbeck History of Art blog. We offer information evenings for prospective students interested in our History of Art courses throughout the year. As well as regular gallery and museum visits, we offer an exciting study trip abroad every spring.

• As a student here you are encouraged to become involved in our lively research culture through the Centre for Museum Cultures, the History and Theory of Photography Research Centre, the Architecture, Space and Society Centre and the Vasari Research Centre, which has pioneered the field of digital art history.

• We typically have some bursary funding available from our annual application to the Royal Female School of Art Foundation, which supports undergraduate students who are experiencing short-term financial hardship.

• a sophisticated use of written and spoken English

• an advanced critical ability in the use of theoretical perspectives

• the ability to use analytical tools

• the initiative to collect and organise complex materials and the ability to write up clear, well-presented reports or fluent critical arguments.

• arts management

• conservation and policy

• education

• marketing

• publishing

• the museums and heritage sectors

• research and academia.