Art and Design History

Choose Kingston's Art and Design History MA

This course provides an interdisciplinary study of the history of both art and design. As well as advancing your knowledge of developments that have occurred in these vibrant areas of practice in modernity, and in particular the last 50 years, the course will also provide you with transferable skills in history, theory and research.

What will you study?

You will study a series of dedicated taught modules that are concerned with issues of research methodology, subject-specific case studies and creative practice. You will be expected to conduct research around the broad themes and subjects addressed by each module. This will enable you to tailor your own path of study according to your particular interests and aspirations. You can also take part in activities and study trips organised by the School of Art & Design History.

Assessment is by a unique combination of essay, presentation, dissertation and optional project-led research, enabling you to develop your understanding and application of art and design history in ways that are relevant to your research and career aims.

Assessment

Seminar presentations, essays, dissertation (12,00015,000 words), major project (5,000+ words).

Course structure

Please note that this is an indicative list of modules and is not intended as a definitive list. Those listed here may also be a mixture of core and optional modules.

Core modules

* Interrogating Art and Design: Critical Perspectives and Creative Practices
* Modernities: Between Avant-Garde and Altermodern
* Interiorities: Art, Design, Architecture
* The Politics of Design: Artefacts, Identity and Protest
* Major Project

Learn a language

You will have the opportunity to study a foreign language, free of charge, during your time at the University as part of the Kingston Language Scheme. Options currently include: Arabic, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin and Spanish.

What this course offers you
* This course provides an interdisciplinary study of the history of both art and design.
* The dissertation allows you to develop your own interests and gain valuable research skills.
* Field visits and activities supplement your lectures and seminars. Possible destinations include New York, Barcelona, Venice and Paris.
* Many members of staff are professional designers, which keeps your learning cutting-edge.
* Alongside your academic studies, you develop workplace skills in: * problem solving and organisation;
* data collation, review and synopsis;
* communication (oral, written and electronic);
* time management;
* computing; and
* co-operation and teamwork.


* We offer a part-time study option to help you fit your MA around other commitments.

Art and Design History MA: Research areas
* Research in the Contemporary Art Research Centre
* Research in the Design Research Centre
* Research in the Visual and Material Culture Research Centre

Research in the Contemporary Art Research Centre

The Contemporary Art Research Centre explores innovation in contemporary fine art, focusing on:

* art and social context;
* art and technology;
* art and epistemology; and
* art and materiality.

Research in the Design Research Centre

The Design Research Centre provides a creative environment for researchers engaging with the cultural, environmental and presentational contexts of design practice in its widest sense. Research in this diverse area is developed through five interrelated areas:

* Curating the contemporary focusing on new initiatives and perspectives on curating, including the interface between design, craft and fine art;
* Design innovation focusing on the presentational contexts of contemporary design practice;
* Design for environments including design for wellbeing, health and micro-environments, as well as spatial, aesthetic and critical enquiries into building typologies and cultural analysis of urban and leisure environments;
* Design for screen focusing on interdisciplinary and practice-based enquiries into screen-based media; and
* Sustainability multidisciplinary design research into issues of environmental protection and social justice.

Research in the Visual and Material Culture Research Centre

The Visual and Material Culture Research Centre focuses on the practice, histories, and theories of modern and contemporary visual, spatial and material culture. This encompasses:

* art, design, film and architectural practice;
* art and design criticism; and
* the history and theory of visual and material culture.

Since 1997, the group has organised a series of conferences and symposia in collaboration with major London museums and galleries.

Applicants should have a good BA(Hons) degree or equivalent qualification in: * art history; or * design history; or * a humanities subject, such as English literature, film and media studies or sociology; or * a practice-based degree in an area such as fine art with some art history.How to applyFor full details of how to apply, see the Apply for this course page.InterviewsWe normally invite applicants for an interview prior to selection. We can make alternative arrangements for international students based overseas.Prior learning - AP(E)LApplicants with prior qualifications and learning may be exempt from appropriate parts of a course in accordance with the University's policy for the assessment of prior learning and prior experiential learning. Contact the faculty office for further information.English language requirementsAll non-UK applicants must meet our English language requirements. For this course it is Academic IELTS of 6.5 overall, with special conditions in all elements. Please make sure you read our full guidance about English language requirements, which includes details of other qualifications we'll consider.Applicants who do not meet the English language requirements may be eligible to join our pre-sessional English language course.Applicants from one of the recognised Majority English Speaking Countries (MESCs) do not need to meet these requirements. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 6.5 IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more.