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Department of History of Art

Dynamic teaching and expertise in the visual arts, architecture and art theory.

A student looking at art in the Spring Lane Building

Study with us

Our courses in history of art offer an unusually rich array of module choices and specialisations. These cover many historical periods, geographical locations and art historical debates.

This means you'll be set up to succeed across a diverse range of careers.

Discover our courses

Find scholarships and funding

Research

Two students looking at some plates together, with art in the background.

We provide theoretically-informed object analysis across a distinctive range of periods and places, from Mesopotamian to modern.

As one of the largest art history departments in the UK, our vibrant community of postgraduate research students energises our research environment.

Explore our research

At York, you’ll be welcomed by our large and dynamic community of art historians and curators. Teaching in History of Art is supported by world-class research, small group teaching, regular study trips, and spectacular historic locations.

Professor Michael White, Head of Department

for impact and environment in history of art - the support we give to researchers (Times Higher Education’s ranking of the latest REF results, 2021).
has allowed us to develop a range of important partnerships with regional, national and international organisations in order to produce high-quality research and reach a variety of audiences.
for history of art, architecture and design (Complete University Guide 2026).

News

News

11 June 2025

York is ranked 7th in the UK for history of art, architecture and design in the latest release of the Complete University Guide league tables (2026).

News

29 April 2025

New display of JMW Turner's watercolours and drawings, now open to visitors at Tate Britain

News

9 April 2025

A wide-ranging, illustrated exploration of the uses of stucco in Islamic architecture in the pre-modern period

News

28 March 2025

Researchers at the University of York are working with Harewood House to shed new light on the social and cultural life of the country house in celebration of 250 years of novelist, Jane Austen, and painter, JMW Turner.

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