Contemporary Art Practice

The Contemporary Art Practice MA is designed to prepare you for continuous artistic, professional and academic development. We will support you to develop research methods and personal goals tailored to your creative practice and professional ambitions. You’ll be introduced to emerging trends in contemporary practice including presentation, installation, curatorial and representational issues, and learn how to develop research methods to inform your creative decisions.

You will be encouraged to ask questions and take a personal and critical position in the globalised creative world, equipped with the skills to produce and exhibit your work, to embrace change in the fast-evolving creative industries and challenge artistic conventions.

Teaching takes place in our creative studio environment with support from a highly skilled team of technicians, and you will have access to a range of workshops to experiment and innovate with materials and processes. Our exhibiting artists and research-active academics have interdisciplinary expertise in drawing, painting, sculpture, analogue and digital photography, digital media, printmaking, public art, installation and relational practice. You will build important professional practice skills throughout the course with opportunities to curate and exhibit your work. Develop a dialogue around your work by participating in discussion groups and seminars and be part of a dynamic cohort of visual arts students, from BA to PhD.

Key features

You can exit the course with a Postgraduate Diploma or Postgraduate Certificate award depending on the credits you have successfully achieved.

Through bold experimentation we will encourage you to forge your own path in the globalised creative world.

Benefit from collaborative learning in studio groups alongside personalised teaching experiences.

Our team of exhibiting artists and research-active academics will ensure that your teaching is informed by current research and the latest technologies.

Our partnerships with the city’s creative and cultural centres, including Phoenix Cinema and Art Centre, Curve, Embrace Arts and Leicester Print Workshop offer opportunities to promote your work and provide access to professionals in the creative industries.

Our award-winning  Vijay Patel building has been designed to provide the space and facilities where all of  our art and design students can develop their ideas and flourish.

You will be supported by a highly skilled team of technicians with access to a range of workshops including metal, wood, plaster, resin and other processes, as well as CAD facilities, photographic darkrooms, studios and editing suites.