Fine Art Painting

Fine art painting is a degree that develops your practice as a painter within a broader understanding of fine art and contemporary artistic discourse. Painting is one of the oldest forms of human expression, but it remains a vital and contested medium, challenged and renewed by the full range of approaches and materials that contemporary artists bring to it. Studying fine art painting at degree level means developing your personal creative vision and technical abilities alongside a critical understanding of painting's history, its relationship to other media, and the contexts in which contemporary art is made and received.

The studio practice is central, but it is always in dialogue with critical and historical inquiry.

At the University of Brighton, this three-year, full-time degree prepares you for a variety of rewarding creative career paths, with studio practice at the heart of the programme alongside critical studies, theory, and professional development. The degree includes a sandwich placement year and work placement opportunities, giving you experience of the professional art world and its adjacent industries before you graduate. Brighton's vibrant arts scene and the school's strong connections to the creative sector mean that you are studying in a context that is genuinely engaged with contemporary practice.

Graduates from fine art painting degrees pursue careers as professional artists, working independently and exhibiting their practice, as well as in roles as curators, gallery managers, art consultants, arts educators, and creative practitioners across the cultural sector. The critical and visual thinking skills developed through a fine art education are also valued in design, advertising, publishing, and arts administration. Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in fine art, curating, or arts education, while others develop their practice independently through residencies, exhibitions, and teaching.