Fine Art with Contemporary Cultural Theory BA

Course overview

You’ll explore and challenge your idea of art by engaging with a broad array of artistic practices and theoretical ideas. We approach fine art as a collection of forms, concepts and creative methods for addressing some of the most pressing questions society is faced with today. You’ll investigate the interconnections between art and the larger social dynamic that shape our culture, such as ethnicity, class, gender, sexuality, being human and our relationship to nature and the environment. On this course you’ll split your time between studio practice and the theory and analysis of culture.

You’ll become equipped to act in the world as artists and creative global citizens, innovators in your respective fields of making. We’ll prepare you to be a socially conscious graduate with an array of relevant and transferrable skills.

By immersing yourself in a range of art techniques and practices, you’ll experiment with your own creativity and discover your personal style. You’ll be given a dedicated studio space to work from, allowing you lots of opportunity to embrace a multitude of materials and methods. Through a range of professional development programmes, such as our weekly visiting art talks and surfacing skills workshops, you’ll discover what kind of practitioner you want to be.

Entry requirements

A-level: ABB

Other course specific tests:

International Baccalaureate

Career opportunities

We have a strong commitment to enhancing student employability and embedding transferrable skills that are extendable into a range of careers. Our graduates become ambitious and pioneering artists, curators, critics, journalists and innovative initiators working across a wide range of creative fields.

Many of our graduates combine careers as artists with work in education, museums and galleries and art therapy. They have established new cultural enterprises including The Tetley, Leeds’ contemporary art space. Others use their knowledge and skills to launch careers in fields including journalism, broadcasting, marketing, technology, business or design. Our graduates have gone on to postgraduate study including fine art, curating and museum studies, arts marketing, art and business, art and design PGCE, interactive design, gaming, animation and art and ecology. Many have completed PhDs and are teaching in higher education institutions around the world. As a School we have an engaged research community made up of MA and PhD students working across fine art practices, art history, cultural studies, gallery, museum and heritage studies.

We are dedicated to helping you achieve your career ambitions - you'll be able to work closely with our exhibiting and research active staff in the School to source opportunities to gain experience, develop your skills and build networks. The optional Study Abroad or Year in Industry also offers opportunities to gain transferable skills, develop your experience and create strong working relationships.

Leeds for Life is our unique approach to helping you make the most of university by supporting your academic and personal development. Find out more at the Leeds for Life website.

The Careers Centre and staff in your faculty provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.

For my dissertation I was able to choose a research area related to the career that I would like to pursue after university. Through this research project I had the opportunity to make professional contacts within arts events management.