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Fine Art MA

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Key Facts

  • Level

    Master'sPG MA

  • Duration

    Full Time: 1 year
    Part Time: 2 - 4 years

  • Starting

    September

Updated 12/12/2024

Apply Now Open Days

Updated 12/12/2024

Get in touch

For questions regarding study and admissions please contact us:

UK STUDENTS ENQUIRIES

study@northampton.ac.uk
0300 303 2772

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ENQUIRIES

international@northampton.ac.uk
44 (0)1604 892134

Overview

Our Fine Art masters programme enables you to evaluate and develop your creative practice to the highest standards. It develops theoretical awareness, critical thinking and independent arts practice to a professional level.

The Fine Art masters course at UON facilitates critical debate between artists working within and across media areas including painting, photography, digital imaging, printmaking, sculpture, installation and site-specific art. Alongside your studio-based enquiry, you will undertake related research into the broader context of contemporary art practices and theoretical debates.

Highlights

  • A personal studio space for each student enrolled on the Master’s in fine art course.
  • Access to comprehensive specialist resources with technical instruction and support, including one of the country’s leading printmaking workshops.
  • Research active staff with a range of specialisms, expertise and subject knowledge.
  • National and international level visiting speakers.
  • International study trips, typically one European option and one long-haul destination.
A minimalist gallery space features white walls displaying four paintings and an installation hanging on the right. The floor is smooth grey, and the ceiling has grid-like tiles.

View of exhibits in UON MA Fine Art show

A white and grey art exhibition space showing two woven installations. One is hanging from the wall and the other is tall, cylindrical and is freestanding. The walls and ceiling are white, and the floor is a light grey.

UON MA Fine Art exhibits

Two abstract art pieces featuring vibrant orange and yellow are displayed on a plain white wall. Sunlight creates a bright streak across the left side of the wall.

UON MA Fine Art pieces in an exhibition

A white-walled art gallery showing three canvases of various figures of various bright colours, including orange and green. The floor is grey, and the gallery is well-lit with ceiling lights. The hallway extends further into the building.

UON MA Fine Art canvases

Art installation with sheer, flowing fabrics in various shades of red and gold hanging from the ceiling, with small lights on the floor illuminating the space.

UON MA Fine Art installation

A modern art gallery displaying large landscape canvases of a shoreline, with six large framed prints on the right wall and two smaller works visible in the background.

UON MA Fine Art canvases

A blue and white abstract artwork is mounted on a dark grey wall. To the right, a textured black sculpture is displayed on a white wall. A window is partially visible in the background.

Exhibits in an UON MA Fine Art show

A gallery room with white walls displaying three black and white landscape photographs, each depicting a waterfall scene. The ceiling has white tiles and fluorescent lighting.

UON MA Fine Art pictures

Entry Requirements

Applicants for Fine Arts masters will normally have an honours degree with a first or upper second classification in Fine Art. Under exceptional circumstances, other candidates will be considered. Applicants whose first language is not English may be required to demonstrate proficiency in written and spoken English.

  • Prospective students should present a portfolio of work together with supporting evidence that is representative of their current creative practice.

    For more information on how to make an application, please visit our How to Apply page.

    If you are an International student and would like information on making an application, please see our How to Apply page.

  • All International and EU students applying for a course with us must meet the following minimum English language requirements:

    • Minimum standard – IELTS 6.5 (or equivalent)
      for study at master’s level.

    For information regarding English language requirements at the University, please see our IELTS page.

Course Content

  • This MA Fine Art course has been designed to contribute towards achieving the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:

    SDG11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

    For both full and part-time students, the Fine Art Master’s course begins with two modules, ‘Fine Art Practice’ and ‘Extended Fine Art Practice and Research Methodologies.’ The module ‘Fine Art Practice’ will enable you to identify the practical and theoretical parameters of your studio practice. ‘Extended Fine Art Practice and Research Methodologies’ will provide you with a grounding in different research-based methods appropriate to Fine Art. During the first trimester, full-time MA Fine Art students will also be enrolled on ‘Interfacings,’ a module which examines the theoretical and cultural underpinnings of contemporary art.

    During the second trimester, both full and part-time students will be enrolled on ’Fine Art Practice and Context,’ a 40-credit module that typically culminates in a public exhibition. At this point full-time students will also undertake ‘Independent Study in the Arts,’ a module which will enable you to undertake a project focused around a defined topic.

    In the third trimester, full-time students will complete their final research project which will culminate in a public exhibition. Alternatively, students can submit a dissertation which will be 15-18,000 word in length. Over this trimester part-time Fine Art Master’s students complete the ‘Independent Study in the Arts’ module. When part-time students return in their second year of study, they will be enrolled on Interfacings in the first trimester and will then over the MA Fine Art course of the second and third trimesters complete their final research project.

    MA Fine Art Exhibition


    You can study this Master’s in Fine Art full-time or part-time, and you will benefit from well-equipped facilities and links with galleries such as NN Contemporary (Northampton). The Master’s in Fine Art course often offers international study trips, typically one European option and one long-haul destination. Recent visits have included Italy, India, Vietnam and the USA.

    As well as the existing connections between this course and regional galleries and art organisations, we encourage you to engage with external activities and events, nationally and internationally. For example, a group of Fine Art MA students attended a printmaking residency at the world-renowned Frans Masereel Centrum in Belgium. During this time they produced work which was subsequently included in an artist’s book, published by Book Works.

  • MA Fine Art students will have the opportunity to take International study trips, typically one European option and one long-haul destination. Recent visits have included France, Italy, Spain, India, Vietnam and the USA.

    Costs for study visits vary but are always competitive. UK trips would typically cost £10-£50, European trips would typically cost in the region of £250-£450 and a long haul trip such as Hanoi or Calcutta would cost around £800-£900. Some Fine Art MA students have subsidised this further through fundraising activities.

  • How will I be taught on MA Fine Art?

    We take a range of approaches to teaching on the MA Fine Art course, to help you learn in the best way for you. A combination of tutorials, group critiques, research supervision, lectures and seminars will give you theoretical and practical experience.

    What is the learning and teaching schedule?

    During the first and second trimester, specific modules are usually delivered on Mondays 9:30am to 4pm.

    How will I be assessed?

    Our MA in Fine Art is assessed in both theory and practice by assignment, examination, portfolio submission and exhibition. You will produce work throughout the Fine Art Master’s course for informal feedback, which does not contribute to your final grade but will give you the chance to improve your work. The MA in Fine Art has three formal assessment periods in February, May and September, and these will contribute to your final grade.

Fees and Funding

2025/26 Tuition Fees

Fees quoted relate to study in the Academic Year 25/26 only and may be subject to inflationary increases in future years.

  • UK – Full Time: £8,500
  • UK – Part Time: £945 per 20 credits
  • International: £17,495

  • The cost of your materials will not be covered by your tuition fees. It is very hard to approximate these costs, as it depends on what materials you will be using. Traditional art materials can be purchased from the University shop, which has a wide range of art equipment such as paint, charcoal and quality papers. All materials are competitively priced and the shop is run by our Student Union. You will be responsible for locating alternative and specialist materials, which can be locally sourced from building suppliers and our many industry contacts in the region.

     

  • For information on the scholarships available to you, please see our scholarships page.

    For more information about possible funding options, please visit our Fees and Funding pages.

  • If you are starting a postgraduate Fine Arts Master’s course in 2024/25 either full-time or part-time* you may be able to apply for a Master’s loan through Student Finance England.

    *Please note that the maximum period of study allowed for part-time courses is two years.

  • Fees quoted relate to study in the Academic Year 24/25 only and may be subject to inflationary increases in future years.

    • UK – Full Time: £8,250
    • UK – Part Time: £920 per 20 credits
    • International: £16,995

Staff

Richard Hollinshead, Senior Lecturer in Sculpture & Spatial Practice

Senior Lecturer in Sculpture & Spatial Practice
Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Richard Hollinshead
Stefan Gant, Senior Lecturer in Drawing and Digital Practice

Senior Lecturer in Drawing and Digital Practice
Fine Art MA

Stefan Gant
Michelle Keegan, Senior Lecturer in Printmaking

Senior Lecturer in Printmaking
Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Michelle Keegan
Andrew Hewitt, Professor of Art and the Public Sphere

Professor of Art and the Public Sphere
Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Andrew Hewitt
Michael Evans, Senior Lecturer - Painting

Senior Lecturer - Painting
Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Michael Evans
Craig Staff, Professor in Fine Art

Professor in Fine Art
Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Craig Staff

Careers and Employability

The Fine Art MA is excellent preparation for both professional, cultural environments and higher research study.

You may choose to pursue a PhD with us, through traditional or practice-led methodologies, and the fine art masters is a comprehensive and relevant foundation for such study.

Is this course for you?

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