BA(Hons) in Fine Art

Study in a renowned contemporary arts venue and take one of two available pathways - Fine Art or Art and Writing - to choose your creative direction.

Why study fine art?

Fine Art sits at the centre of the UK's dynamic art scene. Showcased through collectives, galleries and public spaces, contemporary art generates powerful new ideas and platforms for debate.

Artists develop ideas by making them visible, playing active roles in society as cultural commentators, teachers and activists. In addition to established artists' networks, contemporary art is circulated by curators, commissioners, and the private sector.

Working as an artist is social, practical, and theoretical, and can involve you in an exciting range of cultural and educational activities in the UK and abroad.

Why UWE Bristol?

BA(Hons) Fine Art is a studio-centred course based at Spike Island, an internationally renowned contemporary art venue in the heart of Bristol. It's a vibrant creative environment where you'll get to connect with professional artists.

Benefit from free studio space and a range of work and volunteering opportunities, as well as excellent facilities at Bower Ashton Studios.

Choose from two pathways - Fine Art or Art and Writing.

• Fine Art develops your practice in areas such as painting, sculpture, installation, performance, video and digital media.
• Art and Writing critically engage you with your practice as you produce artworks and written text, underpinned by theoretical perspectives. If chosen you will graduate with BA(Hons) in Art and Writing.

All our staff are active practitioners, with the conceptual, technical and professional skills to support a wide variety of approaches.

Our City Campus is a creative powerhouse. It spans across Bristol and is made up of Bower Ashton plus renowned contemporary art centres Spike Island, Arnolfini and Watershed.

We have strong links with many of the city's arts organisations, providing opportunities to exhibit, network, take part in projects and build your profile.

Tailoring the course towards your particular interests, you'll have the chance to work in any medium at any point in your studies, explore different avenues and shape your own professional journey.

Showcase your work to talent scouts and potential employers at our popular Creative Industries Degree Show and graduate with an impressive portfolio of work.

Where can it take me?

Our students are regularly selected for fellowships and national competitions, including New Contemporaries, a platform for emerging artists.

Benefit from opportunities to apply for British Council Venice Fellowships, Spike Island Graduate Fellowships, and Spike Associates Bursaries.

Students recently took part in Tate Exchange, a public-facing performance event at Tate Modern, and staged events at Arnolfini and Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.

UWE Bristol's fine art graduates possess skills and strengths that are important to a wide range of employers. Many are naturally entrepreneurial.

Many go on to careers as artists, designers, curators, arts administrators and educators, or to postgraduate studies such as master's degrees or teacher training.

At UWE Bristol we empower you to make a choice. To choose a university that challenges itself as much as you. To choose a passion that gives you purpose. To choose a community that leads the way, encouraging you to question everything, and to become the best you can be.

Change the world

At UWE Bristol, we’re focused on solving future global challenges through outstanding learning, world-leading research and a culture of enterprise.

Here, we empower our students to make a choice. To choose a university that pushes itself as much as it pushes them. To choose a community of original thinkers - breaking new boundaries and leading the way.

From our enterprise support programmes to industry masterclasses. Professional mentoring to business incubators. World-leading research facilities to work experience opportunities across the globe. We give our students the tools they need to act on their ideas and make them happen.

Each of our pioneering courses has been created in partnership with industry professionals. And over 150 come with professional accreditation from industry bodies. Coupled with world-class teaching, they’re designed to equip students with the most in-demand skills, and the kind of mindset that employers want and need. So that when you graduate from UWE Bristol, you’re ready to take on the world.

Our mindset

We believe that it’s only when you ask 'what if?' that you discover 'why not?'. That’s why we’re not afraid to ask difficult questions – and tackle the big issues head-on. It’s our way of continuing to make a real difference in the way we learn, analyse and contribute to the world we live in.

Our values

Ambitious

We’re not afraid to shape, challenge and tackle the big issues, to take the initiative and pave the way.

Inclusive

We make UWE Bristol a supportive and inspiring place to learn and work – somewhere where diversity of experience and perspective is encouraged, and learning and research are shared and accessible.

Innovative

We create new opportunities for the people who work and study with us. We embrace different ideas and pioneer new and sustainable ways of doing things.

Collaborative

We have strong connections locally and globally. We help people and organisations be the best they can, building trust throughout our university community and beyond.

Enterprising

We instil a thirst for new knowledge, its creation and application, empowering our students and staff to demonstrate a creative questioning approach, a 'can-do' confidence, and the ability to navigate uncertainty.