Art Degrees at Aberystwyth School of Art
Art degrees: Fine Art, Art History, Museum and Gallery Studies
Aberystwyth offers the rare opportunity to combine the practical and academic study of Fine Art within a flexible modular structure offering a range of degree schemes in Fine Art and Art History, each of which can also be combined here with another subject from European languages and the humanities. Occupying an elegant Edwardian listed building overlooking Cardigan Bay, the School of Art boasts excellent facilities for Art Degree students. These include spacious, well-lit studios, print workshops, a Mac Suite, darkrooms, lecture theatres and seminar rooms, together with galleries for student, staff, and touring exhibitions.
Amongst the degrees currently available here are:
Art Degree Structures
The main difference between studying fine art at this University and studying art at another centre of higher education lies in our commitment to both studio practice and academic study. As an art degree student at Aberystwyth, you wil combine the study of traditional skills and techniques with contemporary theory and practice. We believe that a sound knowledge of past art informs and enhances present practice in art and, equally, that a sound knowledge of how art objects are made helps to inform our understanding of the history of art. We try to achieve this, not by amalgamating both subjects as if there were no differences, but by presenting each as a distinct discipline with its own requirements. It should be noted that the term ‘art history' in our context includes the study of fine art, design and craft. All art degree courses are delivered by staff who are research active artists, art historians and curators.
At the School of Art undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses can be studied in Fine Art, Art History and Museum and Gallery Studies. In addition to the practice and study of art in the personal, social and historical contexts, we are actively involved with ideas concerning the relationship of art to contemporary life and thought. Our proximity to the extensive art collections of the National Library of Wales is a great benefit.
We are one of the few universities in Britain offering joint honours schemes in Fine Art and Art History; these programmes are intended for students who wish to combine their study with another academic subject. A flexible course structure allows you to postpone until the end of the first year your final choice of degree scheme.
The field of the visual arts is an exciting and demanding one, to explore it you need both a developing sensitivity to the visual world and a personal determination to combine analytical, practical and creative study in a systematic way. The academic content of the scheme demands a high standard of written work and studio courses require considerable ability in art practice.
Study and Travel
There are organised field trip visits to galleries and museums in Britain and on the continent. Recent trips have included Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Madrid, Venice and New York City. Travel Awards are available for special projects. Additional fees are charged for field trips.
Employment opportunities related to your Aberystwyth Art degree
The School enjoys an excellent employment record from its graduates. Students have gone on to obtain careers in all areas of teaching and lecturing, in museums, art galleries, libraries and in arts administration, and as designers, researchers, conservation officers, and art therapists in addition to practising as professional artists, photographers and printmakers.
Entry Qualifications
Recruitment for all degree schemes is through UCAS direct from school, foundation and access courses. In addition to the University’s entry qualification requirements, candidates for all courses involving Fine Art must submit a portfolio of art work for assessment. In the portfolios, we are looking for a high standard of drawing and painting from observation, inventiveness and analytical ability, and for prospective students whose work reveals genuine curiosity about the world that surrounds them. It is not necessary for you to have completed a foundation course for entry onto the course.