Decorative Arts, Industrial Design and the Domestic Interior

Specialisation of: Art History
Degree: Master of Arts in Art History
Mode of Study: Full-time, part-time
Duration: 1 year
Start date: September, February
Language of instruction: English
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History and Theory of Decorative Arts, Industrial Design and the Domestic Interior is a specialisation of the Master’s in Art History. The specialisation —which is unique in the Netherlands—is composed of a series of seminars and courses, as well as optional workshops and apprenticeships which cover issues of:

  • Design histories and theories
  • Crafts and techniques of production
  • Artefacts and objects
  • Aesthetics, function and cultural meaning

The information about this programme is available in the following languages:

You will pay attention to the designer/producer relationship, production processes and market mechanisms, as well as the transition from sophisticated craftwork to (semi)industrialised mass production to modern technologies which challenge the notions of craft and design in various ways. You will learn to analyse written sources on decorative arts, material culture and design, use them with regard to relevant theoretical viewpoints and concepts, as well as frame them in different contexts.

Prof. Kitty Zijlmans

“For us, the close relationship between art, science and material culture is key to the study of art history.”

“We teach students to take a fresh approach to art and to ask themselves: What is our own concept of art? We can’t just apply our Western concept of art to works from other parts of the world, which is what we have been doing for centuries. International art history doesn’t just consist of European and American art.

The basic principle of World Art Studies is that art history is an approach to art from across the world. We, therefore, take a global and comparative perspective.

For example, we compare Western art with that of Asia. This ‘global’ aspect is a must in the world of today with its enormous wealth of art production. Moreover, students also want to know how Western art relates to other art traditions. Also, science plays an important role in our master’s programme.

In the present-day, very changeable world of art, there is room for many new forms and concepts. Artists, for example, raise such issues as the extent to which man can be moulded, and they make us look differently at political and ethical questions. What does art say about the times we live in?

We also incorporate into the master’s unique museum collections in Leiden, from Naturalis and Stedelijk Museum de Lakenhal, to the University Library with its special collections. For us, the close relationship between art, science and material culture is key to the study of art history. We are constantly making cross-overs.”