As a city of the arts, Basel is an excellent place for academic engagement with the visual arts – from painting, sculpture and the plastic arts to design, photography, video, installation, performance and media art – and with the architecture of European cultures. Basel’s Master’s Degree Program in Art History specifically aims to identify, investigate and convey the historical, social, political and aesthetic dimensions of artistic and cultural heritage. The program focuses on linking contemporary questions with historical research by promoting analytical engagement with visual and artistic media combined with historical reflection. Basel’s abundance of museums and the opportunity to work with original artworks play an active role in this approach. Students on the master’s program develop strong visual skills, which are in higher demand than ever in our image-suffused society.

The Department of Art History focuses on the art of the Middle Ages, Byzantine art, the reception of the Middle Ages, the art and architecture of the Renaissance, nineteenth- and twentieth-century art in Europe and areas influenced by Europe, contemporary art, and art and image theory. The department is divided into the following fields, each represented by one professor:

• Medieval Art History (late antiquity, the early to late Middle Ages including Byzantine art until around 1500, reception of the Middle Ages)
• Early Modern Art History (Renaissance and baroque, fifteenth to nineteenth centuries)
• Modern Art History (modern and contemporary art, late eighteenth century to present day)
• Theory of Art (Schaulager Professor)
• Contemporary Art (Laurenz Assistant Professor)

These comprehensive thematic areas are complemented by teaching by research associates (for example on historical preservation, film and museum work), interdisciplinary lecture series, block courses. Teaching combines practical skills with comprehensive knowledge of historical works of art and discipline-specific theoretical skills. The master’s program also includes theoretical components in which students reflect on methods and art history as a discipline. In addition to historical skills, the program develops students’ visual and argumentative skills in particular, as well as their understanding of hermeneutics in critical interpretation. 

The master’s program is organized into three modules. «Art Theory and Methodology» is devoted to art theory and the history of the discipline, while «Work and Context» focuses on the work itself, both visually and analytically. The «Practice and Research» project module combines textual and practical approaches with the art history knowledge students have acquired. Students deepen their communication skills and their specialist knowledge through colloquiums and excursions as well as active involvement in teaching (tutorials) and current research projects.