Subject guide to Art History
Art History at Manchester
Some of the most important archival material and history of art scholarship is written in French or Italian. BA Art History and Modern Languages enables you to develop your skills in one of these languages and directly access primary and secondary sources.
You'll explore subjects, objects and texts from different cultures and historical periods, from the Ice Age to contemporary art. The department has strengths in Renaissance Studies, Romanticism, modern and contemporary art, as well as the intersections of art and science.
There are regular visits and gallery-based teaching at HOME, Manchester City Art Gallery, and the Whitworth. The Whitworth, Manchester Museum, and The John Rylands Library are part of the University of Manchester, providing students and staff with access to world-famous works by artists including Bacon, Blake, Picasso, Rembrandt, Turner and Van Gogh.
One of the many benefits of studying in Manchester is that it is such a diverse city, which is always helpful when learning foreign languages....you’ll be sure to have some opportunities to practice your language skills outside of university
Zac Mawby / Modern Languages, 2024
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Courses - 2027 entry
BA Art History and Modern Languages is a 4-year degree course, with an integrated Residence Abroad year. Students can study French or Italian and your degree title will state the language studied. For example: BA Art History and Modern Languages (Italian).
For information about entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships and bursaries, please visit the online prospectus.
There are also 3-year course options for the History of Art, which can be taken as a single honours subject or combined with English Literature, History, or Film Studies.
Course structure
BA Art History and Modern Languages provides students with a range of choices. When considering the choices you’d like to make, please note:
- Each year, all students study 120 credits of course units. Each course unit is 20 credits unless indicated.
- The course unit titles for each year of study have been listed.
- Joint honours. The number of credits taken from Art History varies each year. Year 1 is 60 credits. In Years 2 and 4, students can take 40, 60 or 80 credits. The remaining credits are taken from French or Italian.
- Essential course information for students studying a 4-year degree.
Course content
In Year 1, Art History is a joint (60 credits) subject.
Course units cover a wide chronology and different art forms to provide students with an overview of the breadth of study in the history of art.
Art Spaces focuses on the history of institutions where art has been made, collected or exhibited from the early modern period to the present day. Our definition of ‘institutions’ is broad and covers the museum, the academy, the studio, the biennial, as well as textual and virtual spaces in print, broadcast and digital media.
Each Art History Tutorial course unit provides small group teaching and more in-depth study of two periods or areas of art history. Options may include Medieval Italian Painting, Islamic Art, Modernism, Photography, Victorian Painting, Modern Architecture.
Joint Honours students
40 credits taken from:
◆ Ice Age to Baroque: Artworks in History
◇ Rococo to Now: Artworks in History
20 credits chosen from:
◆ Art Spaces
◆ Art History Tutorial 1
◇ Art History Tutorial 2
KEY:
◆ Semester 1
◇ Semester 2
◈ Full Year
In Year 2, Art History can be a minor (40 credits), joint (60 credits) or major (80 credits) subject.
In early November, the field trip course unit enables students to visit a European city and study some of the major collections held in museums and galleries as well as the city’s architecture, monumental sculptures, and church decoration. Students need to have a valid passport, and there are some additional travel-related costs.
Students can also apply for a month-long internship at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. There are two places available for students, and applications are competitive.
Joint Honours students
40 credits taken from:
◆ European Art History Field Trip
◆ Art in Theory
0, 20 or 40 credits chosen from:
◆ Made in India: Modern and Contemporary Art
◆ Core Themes in Animated Film and Visual Culture of Post-war Japan
◆ The Italian Renaissance
◇ Digital Ways of Seeing: Theory and Practice
◇ The Neo-Avant Garde and the Crisis of Medium, 1945-1974
0 or 20 credits chosen from:
◆ Free choice units in the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures or University College for Interdisciplinary Learning. Some course units are delivered in semester 1, some are delivered in semester 2.
KEY:
◆ Semester 1
◇ Semester 2
◈ Full Year
This is the Residence Abroad year and students live in a country where their chosen language is spoken. Opportunities vary from year to year, and some opportunities are selective.
Please see Residence Abroad for information about funding and finance, the support provided to students to find suitable study or work placements, and for videos and blog posts from current students.
In Year 4, Art History can be a minor (40 credits), joint (60 credits), or major (80 credits) subject.
The History of Art Dissertation (12,000 words) is optional, but it is a popular choice. It is a guided research project, and students develop their own research question, receiving support and advice from a supervisor. Contact hours are low (11 hours) and independent study hours are high (384 hours).
Joint Honours students
40, 60 or 80 credits chosen from:
◈ History of Art Dissertation (40 credits)
◆ Art After Modernism: Approaching Contemporary Art since the 1960s
◆ Picasso
◆ The Art of Clothing in Renaissance Italy
◆ We Will Be: Black British Art in the 1980s
◇ The Art of Medieval Manuscripts
◇ Victorian Bodies: Art, Science and Modernity in Britain
◇ Digital Art
0 or 20 credits chosen from:
◆ Free choice units in the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures or University College for Interdisciplinary Learning. Some course units are delivered in semester 1, some are delivered in semester 2.
KEY:
◆ Semester 1
◇ Semester 2
◈ Full year