The Department of Art and Design, endowed as the Hite Institute of Art and Design, offers a Master of Arts in Art degree with concentrations in Art History and Critical & Curatorial Studies. The program consists of 31 credit hours of graduate study divided between work in the Core Curriculum and work in either the Art History or the Critical & Curatorial Studies concentration.
The Master of Arts (MA) in Art concentration in Art History provides advanced expertise in the history of art. This course of study prepares students with the course work, language skills, and research experience needed for further graduate study or work in a museum or educational setting. Students in this concentration may select in-depth courses in Renaissance and Baroque Art in Italy, Spain, and Northern Europe; Mexican Art; 19th and 20th Century Architecture; American Art; Film; Modern, Contemporary western, and Contemporary Art and Theory; and Asian and Non-western Art and Architecture.
The Master of Arts (MA) in Art concentration in Critical & Curatorial Studies combines critical theory, contemporary art and exhibition history, and practical exhibition experience to prepare students for work in the expanding fields of contemporary exhibition development and art writing.
Students in the MA program benefit from the Hite Institute of Art and Design's substantial resources, which include multiple galleries on campus and in downtown Louisville, partnerships with local art museums and galleries, as well as an active speaker and colloquia schedule featuring internationally prominent curators, gallery directors, and artists.