PhD Art History and Theory

For our PhD in Art History and Theory, we offer supervision across a range of fields and have a long tradition of postgraduate training in all the major areas of European art and architecture from 1300 to the present, and in the art and architecture of Latin America and the United States. Essex Art History features a dynamic group of art historians investigating the production and reception of images and built environments, across cultures and media from the early modern period to the present. While we adopt a diverse range of approaches in our writing and teaching, our work demonstrates a commitment to three key ideas:

The social and political implications of art, architecture, and visual culture

All forms of visual culture – from paintings to building interiors, from medical imagery to tattoos – emerge from and contribute to the mediation of social and political forces. Scholars at Essex investigate the role of art, architecture, and other forms of visual culture in the assertion, negotiation, and contestation of power in relation to a variety of topics. These include the planning of tyrants' cities in the Italian Renaissance; the entanglement of the historical avant-garde with the politics of Fascism; and the production of objects by contemporary activists in pursuit of social change. Throughout our work, we emphasise issues of autonomy, agency, dissent, and the contestation of the public realm.

Space, place, and locale

Art historians at Essex are strongly concerned with the conceptualisation, production, experience, and representation of spaces and places. We investigate topics that include the ideologies that drive urban change; architectural metaphors in software design; the fusion of real and imaginary places in religious paintings; the design of exhibition spaces and the implications of curatorial practice; and the varied locales and landscapes of the county of Essex itself.

Art produced beyond its historic institutions

We are committed to bringing the approaches of art history into contact with other disciplines and discourses in order to interrogate objects of our shared visual and material culture, including body art, wax casts, activist placards, and Fascist floor mosaics. Our transdisciplinary approach facilitates critical engagement with an array of artworks and visual culture that stand both within and beyond the traditional canons of art history.

Please note: part-time research study is also available, and we also offer an MPhil in this subject.

Our expert staff

The support provided by your supervisor is a key feature of your experience as a research student. Your supervisor will guide you through the different stages of your research degree. Initially, your supervisor helps you to develop your research topic and plan; then, you participate in regular one-to-one meetings to comment on drafts, resolve problems and maintain progress on your research.

It is well worth getting in touch with a potential supervisor before applying for your course.

We are a dynamic group of art historians who investigate the production and reception of images and built environment, across cultures and media, from the late medieval period to the present day.

Our staff's research interests include activist art, modernist art and totalitarianism, the relationship between art and science, the artistic status of body modification, art and the environment, critical heritage, and the visual culture of social problems. We also have significant experience in curation and public engagement. Recent projects include:

Specialist facilities

By studying within our School of Philosophical, Historical and Interdisciplinary Studies, you will have access to a range of outstanding facilities to aid your learning and research.

We provide good facilities for postgraduate study, with access to a range of resources and support mechanisms to foster progression. Our School is home to the Centre for Curatorial Studies, which brings together research in the field of museology, exhibition studies and curatorial practice, and also delivers our postgraduate courses in each of these areas.

We are also home to the Essex Collection of Art from Latin America (ESCALA).

Your future

Many of our graduates are now working in academic institutions, in national or regional museums or galleries, or in other arts-related professions, both throughout the UK and abroad. Several graduates are now Professors in leading art history departments such as CUNY, while others have worked as curators at high-profile museums such as the Tate Modern.

UK entry requirements

You will need a good honours degree and a Masters degree, or equivalent, in a related subject. A well-developed research proposal is also essential.

You will normally be required to attend an interview/Skype interview for acceptance, and acceptance is subject to research expertise in the department.

English language requirements

Course structure

A research degree doesn't have a taught structure, giving you the chance to investigate your chosen topic in real depth and reach a profound understanding. In communicating that understanding, through a thesis or other means, you have a rare opportunity to generate knowledge. A research degree allows you to develop new high-level skills, enhance your professional development and build new networks. It can open doors to many careers.

We understand that deciding where and what to study is a very important decision for you. We'll make all reasonable efforts to provide you with the courses, services and facilities as described on our website and in line with your contract with us. However, if we need to make material changes, for example due to significant disruption, we'll let our applicants and students know as soon as possible.

Assessment

Our PhDs are conceived as a structured, three-year programme of advanced study and research. Supervision is by regular individual tutorials, and the award of a research degree depends solely on the merits of your final research output, a c. 80,000-word thesis.

The development of your research project is supported and monitored via Supervisory Boards, which happen twice a year for full-time students. Here, your supervisor and another member of staff discuss your research with you, progress is assessed against milestones, and training or other support needs are identified. We also provide a number of training opportunities and support services, which aid your studies and help prepare you for employment.

Dissertation

We aim to have all our full-time PhD students submit within four years.