M.A. in Art History

Please submit a personal statement detailing motivation for pursuing graduate research in art history (in general and at the University of Arkansas), personal and career goals, and relevant qualifications and experiences (three pages).

A writing sample demonstrating preparedness for advanced research in art history, 15-20 pages.

The writing sample should be a piece of scholarly writing that demonstrates the student's research and writing skills, analytical abilities, and capacity for original argumentation. The writing sample should read as a complete piece of work (not an incomplete section of a larger text).

Students may attach up to five additional pages of illustrations and/or bibliography. 

Please upload a copy of your CV or Resume in PDF format. 

Please provide three letters of recommendation addressing the applicant's prepardness for graduate education. 

Applications are not considered until all recommendation letters are received. 

PDF of unofficial transcripts from all previous colleges and/or universities attended. GPA of 3.0 minimum.

If English is not your native language, or your baccalaureate (or for applications with a graduate degree) was not completed at an institution where the language of instruction is English, please provide English proficiency test scores (TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE). For more information on requirements, please visit https://international-admissions.uark.edu/graduate-studies/english-proficiency.php

How might an emphasis on the Americas diversify the knowledge systems recognized and cultivated by art historical research? How can we foreground transnational and transcultural narratives over nationalist ones that risk reinscribing center and periphery hierarchies? What can we learn from contemporary artists who are interrogating art world structures that marginalize or repress difficult institutional histories? How can we use the university and the museum as a training ground for refocusing interpretive energy in ways that matter to the lived experiences of creators and other art workers?

These are some of the questions animating the thinking behind our partnership with the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in a graduate program that prepares students to grapple with what art history means and can do in the twenty-first century.

Direct study of museum collections is enhanced in our program by regular dialogue with the practicing artists, designers, and art educators across the School of Art. Students will learn to support their first-hand observations with thorough research drawing on archival, primary, secondary, and unconventional source materials. We seek to empower students to develop their own unique voices as they explain creative cultural production and analyze the contributions of artists to society. They will learn to present their ideas clearly to multiple audiences and in a variety of written and oral formats. The museum will provide an especially rich context for this work.

Students in the program will develop:

• The ability to analyze works of art, visual culture, and related material.
• The ability to conduct advanced research.
• The ability to situate works of art and related material in historical and cultural contexts.
• The ability to formulate original ideas and clearly articulate them in a variety of forms of writing and oral presentations for diverse publics.
• A thorough understanding of methodological approaches informing art historical scholarship, including historical and contemporary critiques of the discipline.
• A critical understanding of key diversity, equity, and inclusion theories and orientations in the field of art history.
• The capacity to approach art, visual culture, and related material from interdisciplinary perspectives that expand the canon and take a diverse and inclusive approach to the field.
• Practical experience in areas of art history related to student career objectives.

All incoming students will be matched with local arts organizations for a minimum 8-10 hour-per-week internship during their second semester in the program, which will fulfill core course ARHS 60403: Art History Practicum. Partner organizations include Crystal Bridges/The Momentary, Art Bridges, and CACHE, among others. 

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To fulfill the core course requirement of ARHS 60103: Immersive Travel, students will take a 10-day January intersession course focusing on sites and collections in the Southern U.S. They may fulfill the Immersive Travel requirement by instead taking international travel courses when they are offered. The first international travel course for M.A. program students was offered in 2024, with travel to Mexico.

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Students admitted to the M.A. degree program must complete a total of 36 credit hours to graduate.

This includes 5 required core courses (15 credit hours):

• ARHS 60003. Art History’s Histories: Critical Historiography and Methodology (3 hours)
• ARHS 60403. Art History Practicum (3 hours)
• ARHS 60103. Immersive Travel (3 hours)
• ARHS 60203. Graduate Art History Writing Workshop (3 hours)
• ARHS 60303. Art History Qualifying Paper (3 hours)

For the remaining 7 courses (21 credit hours):

15 credits (5 courses) must be at the 6000-level and informed by one or more of the following themes, which we consider fundamental to an understanding of arts of the Americas in a global context.

Themes:

• Environment
• Heritage
• Power
• Circulation
• Structures and Systems
• Identity and Community

Additional Requirements for the Degree:

Language Proficiency

Reading proficiency in a minimum of one world language (other than English) is required for successful progress through the program. Proficiency can be demonstrated through 1) a translation exam; 2) receiving a grade of B or higher in a language course; 3) by having an undergraduate major or minor in a world language.

Qualifying Paper and Public Presentation

The capstone project of the degree is a 25 page Qualifying Paper (QP) and a formal presentation of the paper at the graduate student symposium. Working with a primary advisor and an advisory committee, students will conduct in-depth research over the course of a year. Work on the QP will be highlighted and supported through two courses: ARHS 60203 Graduate Writing Workshop and ARHS 60303 Art History Qualifying Paper.

Comprehensive Oral Examination

The public presentation, adapted from the Qualifying Paper, in addition to a 1-hour oral defense of the project, will fulfill this requirement and demonstrate the student’s comprehensive knowledge of their research area explored in the Qualifying Paper.

See catalog for more information on the MA curriculum.

Course Catalog

John Blakinger, Endowed Associate Professor of Contemporary Art and Director of the Art History Program

Davida Fernandez-Barkan, Teaching Assistant Professor

Jennifer Greenhill, Endowed Professor of American Art; Graduate Director; Director of Museum + Strategic Partnerships for the School of Art

Lynn Jacobs, Distinguished Professor

Abra Levenson, Assistant Professor

Kelvin Parnell, Endowed Assistant Professor in Arts of the Americas

Ana Pulido Rull, Endowed Associate Professor

Alexis Salas, Endowed Assistant Professor of Arts of the Americas

Janine Sytsma, Assistant Professor of Art History

Kim Sexton, Associate Professor of Architectural History and Art History

Austen Barron Bailly, Chief Curator, Crystal Bridges

Alejo Benedetti, Associate Curator, Contemporary Art, Crystal Bridges

Mindy Besaw, Curator of American Art, Director of Fellowships, Research, and University Partnerships, Crystal Bridges

Ashley Holland, Curator and Director of Curatorial Initiatives, Art Bridges Foundation

Josie Johnson, Assistant Curator, Modern Art, Crystal Bridges

Jen Padgett, Windgate Curator of Craft, Crystal Bridges

Javier Rivero Ramos, Associate Curator, Art Bridges