Art History with Curating

This BA Art History with Curating gives you the opportunity to study the visual arts as a central element of human endeavour, and develop professional skills to participate in the curation and display of art. You will be taught by world-leading scholars using the incomparably rich art collections, monuments and study facilities of London, as well as Birkbeck’s own Peltz Gallery.

Why choose this course?

• This course will help you pursue your interest in the museum industry and the visual arts, and expand your knowledge of human culture, art history and curating.

• You will be taught by experienced teachers who are published writers of groundbreaking art history in periods from medieval to contemporary, as well as qualified curators.

• You will gain familiarity with the conceptual and technical aspects of curating to support you in making the first steps towards working in the arts or progressing to postgraduate studies.

What you will learn

This course follows a structured and progressive approach to the study of works of art. You will be guided towards a critical understanding of the visual world around you by active researchers whose expertise ranges from the Middle Ages to now and encompasses a range of media including digital media, painting, sculpture, architecture, photography and installations.

In each year of study you will be offered at least one curating module, taught by a professional who’s active in the field. You will also attend tours of museums, galleries and heritage sites in London and then abroad through an annual field trip.

How you will learn

This course is designed to foster your intellectual independence and curatorial acumen. You will learn in a supportive environment in which we encourage exchange and discussion of thoughts and ideas.

You can study this course full- or part-time. It has classes that take place in the evening. These consist of interactive lectures, small-group seminars, one-to-one tutorials and student presentations supported by rich online resources.

At the end of the course you will complete a dissertation with support from a supervisor.

Foundation Year

If you opt for the Foundation Year route, this will fully prepare you for undergraduate study. It is ideal if you are returning to study after a gap, or if you have not previously studied the relevant subjects, or if you didn't achieve the grades you need for a place on your chosen undergraduate degree.

Highlights

• Teaching and research in history of art was established more than half a century ago at Birkbeck, and we are now internationally respected in this area. Our Gordon Square building – once home to members of the Bloomsbury Group – houses the Jo Spence Archive and Peltz Gallery and hosts the leading journal History of Photography. Our research centres, including the Centre for Museum Cultures and the Murray Centre for History of Art, Architecture and Photography, play a crucial role in generating and disseminating new knowledge.

• 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.

• We typically have some bursary funding available from our annual application to the Royal Female School of Art Foundation.

Careers and employability

On successfully graduating from this course you will have gained an array of transferable skills, including:

• highly developed visual, analytical and curatorial skills

• presentation skills and exhibition planning

• a sophisticated use of oral and written English

• strong collecting and organisational skills for complex materials

• producing clear, well-presented reports and fluent critical arguments using theoretical and historical perspectives.

Graduates can pursue career paths working in:

• the museums and heritage sectors

• arts management

• conservation and policy

• arts publishing and media

• research and academia.

Course modules

For information about course structure and the modules you will be studying, please visit Birkbeck’s online prospectus.