History of Art and Africa and Black Diaspora

History of art and Africa and Black Diaspora studies is an unusually powerful combination, bringing together two disciplines that together challenge and expand the conventional boundaries of visual culture and historical inquiry. History of art has historically been dominated by a European canon, and increasingly the discipline is reckoning with that limitation, asking whose art counts, whose histories have been centred, and what is lost when the visual cultures of Africa and the Black diaspora are marginalised or excluded. This combination places that reckoning at the centre of the degree, developing a genuinely global and critical approach to the study of art and visual culture.

At the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, this three-year full-time degree brings together the analytical methods of art history with an engagement with African and Black diasporic histories, cultures, and politics that is grounded in SOAS's distinctive scholarly traditions. You will develop skills in the close analysis of visual objects and the broader cultural and historical contexts in which they were made and circulated, alongside a deep engagement with African and diasporic history, literature, and thought. The programme includes a foundation year option for students who need additional preparation before entering the main degree.

Graduates from this combination are well positioned for careers in museums, galleries, arts organisations, cultural policy, and the heritage sector, where the ability to think critically about representation, collection practices, and the politics of cultural institutions is increasingly valued. Journalism, publishing, academic research, and roles in international organisations and development agencies are further common destinations. The skills developed through this degree, close reading, historical analysis, critical thinking, and a broad cultural knowledge base, are applicable across many professional contexts.

Postgraduate study in art history, African studies, museum studies, or cultural heritage is a natural next step for those who wish to develop specialist expertise.