Paris was THE capital of the nineteenth century, according to Walter Benjamin.  This module explores the city’s changing spaces and considers its residents, both bourgeois and avant-garde, who witnessed its exciting transformation into a modern capital.  It will examine how Parisians became a ‘spectacular’ society through the process of creating a city that was self-consciously modern.

How did artists working at the turn of the twentieth century respond to the legacy of Impressionism as the quintessential art of modern life? We will attempt to discover what it really meant to be 'modern' in turn-of-the century Europe and how artists responded to the dramatic political, social and technological changes that we call modernisation.

How did our society decide what counts as ‘art’ and what is ‘culture’? Is there really such a thing as high vs low culture? What are the political stakes of these divisions? This module looks at the shift in ideas from ‘art history’ to visual and material cultural studies. This module will engage with these debates and teach you new methods for seeing, interpreting and understanding art, design, craft, performance, fashion, film and videogames. These new ways of seeing are often driven by new theoretical ideas , and allow us to look at culture to draw out new perspectives on social and political issues of activism and social change, sex, technology, police violence, migration, austerity and crisis, state surveillance, and our relation to animals and the environment.

This module examines the vibrant artistic culture of the Renaissance court, paying particular attention to gender. We will primarily study Italian courts and artists, though comparative material will include courts in Burgundy, France, Spain, and the Holy Roman Empire

As part of this module you have the opportunity to go on a 7-10 day study trip to a European City during which you will visit museums, key building and cultural sites in the city to see art from the Renaissance to the present. The School provide a subsidy for Art History students for this trip, but you will be responsible for covering any additional costs outside of this. Any students not on an Art History or ISC course will be required to cover their own costs. Costs will differ each year depending on the destination and details for the trip.

This module aims at an understanding the problem of naturalism in Baroque art by seeing it in relation to broader transformations in the culture of Europe in the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. We will study the work of major artists – including Caravaggio, Bernini, Velázquez, Poussin, Rubens, Rembrandt, and Vermeer - as well as others less well known. Topics examined through the lens of art and its relationship to nature will include: how artists negotiated the new demands placed on art by the Council of Trent; debates about the relative merits of naturalism and classicism; the evolving social status of the artist; theories of imitation and originality; the emergent art market in the Protestant Netherlands; the visual culture of the triumphant Catholic Church in Baroque Rome; the role of artists in the construction of a ruling identity.

Did you know that the not-for-profit sector is expanding fast in the UK, and offers meaningful jobs that can contribute to positive social change and ecological sustainability? This module introduces you to this sector and the concept and practice of social entrepreneurship using case studies of initiatives that have helped local communities, disadvantaged people and the environment. It also gives you the opportunity to develop your skills and use your creativity and imagination to design your own project or enterprise.

In this work-based learning module, you’ll work as part of a small team to deliver a real public history project that’s been commissioned by an external body, for example, a community group, local history society, charity, museum, archive or company. Outputs could include a small exhibition, website, podcast or pamphlet – but communicating the past can take almost any form! You’ll be able to bid to a dedicated funding pot to produce any materials you need (much like heritage organisations themselves do) and receive academic credit for it. You’ll be supported throughout by staff and have access to representatives of the commissioning organisation, gaining invaluable real-world experience to enhance your academic learning. It’s also really rewarding and enjoyable – a chance to take your interest in history and skills as a historian out of the university and into public spaces.

What do you know about depth psychology? How do psychoanalysis and analytical psychology provide new understanding of society, culture and politics? Build your knowledge about depth psychology - psychological thinking that introduces the concept of a deep unconscious. Understand Freud’s theories and their significance in social and cultural analysis.

What do you know about depth psychology? How do psychoanalysis and analytical psychology provide new understanding of society, culture and politics? Build your knowledge about depth psychology - psychological thinking that introduces the concept of a deep unconscious. Understand Jung’s theories and their significance in social and cultural analysis.

What are the problems with class analysis? And how can you understand citizenship rights? Are they useful for analysing inclusion and exclusion, how do they relate to gender, and where does migration fit into the picture? Build your understanding of race, class and gender by learning more about how these concepts relate to social inequality, rights and identity.

What are the problems with class analysis? And how can you understand citizenship rights? Are they useful for analysing inclusion and exclusion, how do they relate to gender, and where does migration fit into the picture? Build your understanding of race, class and gender by learning more about how these concepts relate to social inequality, rights and identity.