Study programmes

The programme offers study in the history of Czech and European art from the early Middle Ages until the present day in its historical and cultural contexts, with a focus on exploring the individual topics in the complex art-history contexts and through systematic theoretical-methodological reflection. The study programme closely follows the academic discipline of art history. For centuries, art history has been one of the core humanities. The independent and modern field of study was established in the mid-19th century, with departments and institutes dedicated to art history being set up at universities. In Prague, the first course in Art History was launched in 1850 (initially in a joint programme with archaeology). A factor conducive to the growth of the discipline locally were the good contacts maintained with leading centres of the day, especially that in Vienna, which was home to excellent personalities, some of whom were of Czech origin: Moritz Taussing, Rudolf Eitelberger von Edelberg and, first and foremost, Max Dvořák, one of the titans of the discipline. Study of art history in Prague has until now been oriented in two complementary directions: first, research in cultural history (studying contemporary literature, science, theology, iconography and iconology, emblematics and other symbolic structures in art) and, secondly, a more formal orientation (exploring the autonomous visual qualities of art – including their principles, the way they are communicated, their dynamic changes – as well as artists’ individual styles, local styles, relations among arts centres etc.).
The actual disciplines covered by the study programme include architecture, urbanism, sculpture, painting, drawing, graphic arts, handicraft, decorative arts and other related areas. Methodologically, the programme trains students for work with sources, period literature on art, modern scientific literature on art, the theory of the individual arts and its history, the general theory of art and its history, the aesthetic and philosophical aspects of art and of its history. The applied component of the programme includes the methodology, legislation and practice of heritage conservation, galleries, museums and exhibitions. Study in the follow-up Master’s programme in Art History equips students with a more profound knowledge in the history of European art, with a specialization to which the diploma thesis is devoted. However, the complex nature of the discipline calls for a solid grounding in the remaining areas of art history and their methodologies and theories. Individual courses in the programme provide students with the discipline’s theoretical background, encouraging them to consider the different methods and their adequacy to the material under consideration. Successful completion of the programme is conditional on foreign language skills, which enable students to work with foreign-language literature and prepare them for study and scholarship opportunities abroad.