Philosophy and Art History

Philosophy and art history is a pairing with deep intellectual roots. Aesthetics, one of the core branches of philosophy, has been concerned with questions about beauty, representation and the nature of art for millennia. At the same time, art history has always drawn on philosophical frameworks to interpret the meaning and significance of visual works.

Studying the two disciplines together allows you to move between them with ease, bringing philosophical rigour to the interpretation of art and bringing art historical examples to bear on philosophical questions.

At the University of Essex, the three-year full-time degree develops your skills in philosophical argument and art historical analysis simultaneously. The philosophy component introduces you to the major areas of the discipline, including ethics, epistemology, metaphysics, political philosophy and the philosophy of mind, developing your ability to construct and evaluate arguments with precision. The art history strand develops your knowledge of the history and theory of visual art, architecture and design across different periods and cultures, and your ability to interpret and contextualise works of art within their historical and social settings.

Together, as the programme notes, the disciplines offer a unique approach that is particularly valuable in a society increasingly shaped by visual culture and visual forms of communication.

Graduates of philosophy and art history programmes work in art galleries and museums, auction houses, arts administration, education, journalism, publishing, philosophy-related roles in technology ethics and policy, and the creative industries. The analytical and communication skills the combination develops are broadly transferable. Postgraduate study in philosophy, art history, aesthetics, museum studies or heritage management is a natural continuation.