Master of Arts [M.A] Painting

at Royal College of Art

Term 1

In the Establishing a Painting Practice unit, you will gain an understanding of what informs the content, subject matter, form and execution of your work as well as establish the audio, visual and material research that feeds your work and practice. This unit will begin with a series of technical inductions, artist lectures and seminars presented by painting faculty to help you establish and orient your practice within the broader painting field. This unit supports you as you produce work, locate your work within a critical context while reflecting on historical and contemporary approaches to painting, ultimately leading to the development of an innovative individual practice. Additionally, students achieve this through curricular content in the form of seminars, workshops, individual tutorials, group critiques and off-site visits.
 

Across Terms 1 and 2, you will participate in the College-wide unit. This unit aims to support students to meet the challenges of a complex, uncertain and changing world by bringing them together to work collaboratively on a series of themed projects informed by expertise within and beyond the College. These projects will challenge you to use your intellect and imagination to address key cultural, social, environmental and economic challenges. In doing so, you will develop and reflect on the abilities required to translate knowledge into action, and help demonstrate the contribution that the creative arts can make to our understanding and experience of the world.
 

Term 2

In the Painting in the Expanded Field: Experimental Positions, you will further examine and challenge the conceptual, aesthetic and material approaches to making that they developed in the term 1 unit, Establishing a Painting Practice. The goal of this unit is to encourage you to deepen your understanding of the future direction of your practice with a focus on interdisciplinarity, experimentation and critical reflection. You will produce finished work at an advanced level and explore various modes of presenting. The end of this unit will culminate in a presentation and a written proposal for the Independent Research Project in preparation for an exhibition in term 3.
 

In term 2 all School of Arts & Humanities students will participate in the Urgency of the Arts, School-wide unit. Through this unit we ask: what does arts and humanities research and practice have to offer in our current socio-political climate? The unit introduces students to a diverse range of perspectives, approaches and practices relevant to contemporary practice and thought in the Arts & Humanities. The delivery is devised to help you identify and query your own practices and disciplinary assumptions through encounters with others and within the various practices undertaken by students in the School, and to raise awareness around contemporary concerns. You will be supported in understanding the ramifications of your own work and practice within a broad cultural context, and to recognise its many potentially unintended readings and consequences.
 

Term 3

The Independent Research Project (IRP), is self-directed study centred on an assessed presentation of a student’s work as an exhibition, a publication and a research essay. Students are supported in their learning and approaches to critical reflection across the stages. The IRP operates as a robust teaching object to develop independent research, critical thinking and reflection on the specific conceptual, material and presentational demands of a contemporary painting practice. It is an integral component in supporting painting students to develop a professional orientation and sustainable painting practice beyond an institutional frame.

Candidates are selected entirely on merit and applications are welcomed from all over the world. The selection process will consider creativity, imagination and innovation as demonstrated in your portfolio, as well as your potential to benefit from the programme and to achieve high MA standards overall.
 

The application procedure focuses on searching out those candidates that are highly motivated, independent and demonstrate they have the critical skills necessary to develop and further their existing ideas. In short, those artists that – given the opportunity to join the Painting programme – would utilise their time with us to the full, and have the generosity to support their fellow students.
 

We welcome candidates from all kinds of backgrounds, but generally having completed a BA degree. In recent years, people have come from fine art, printmaking, painting, sculpture, photo media, conservation, illustration, design, textiles, architecture, art history and interactive arts courses.
 

While many students enter the course after years of independent work, we also accept students directly from undergraduate courses.
 

Ultimately, we want to attract to the course those artists that want to work in a supportive environment and have the drive and ambition to realise the full potential of their studio practice, in turn energising their peer group.
 

English-language requirements

If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country you will need the equivalent of an IELTS Academic score of 6.5 with a 6.0 in the Test of Written English (TWE) and at least 5.5 in other skills. Students achieving a grade of at least 6.0, with a grade of 5.5 in the Test of Written English, may be eligible to take the College’s English for Academic Purposes course to enable them to reach the required standard.

Overseas and EU - £35,000*