History of Art
Overview
Typical offer: A*AA (or equivalent)
Required subjects: None
Useful subjects: History and Art
Number of students per year: At least 1
The BA in History of Art covers a wide spectrum of art and architecture, from the medieval to the modern period, placing special emphasis on the first-hand study of works of art. It offers a springboard into careers in museums and galleries, heritage management, fine art dealing, publishing, advertising and the visual media. Lucy Cavendish has a small but supportive community of Art Historians, comprising around five Bachelors, Masters, and PhD students.
In Part I students will gain an overview of over 2000 years of art and architectural history, exploring the means of art and architecture with a focus on collections and buildings within Cambridge.
In Part II students have the opportunity to specialise in areas that interest them. Students take two ‘special subjects’ each year, and a compulsory course each year.
In third year, students also study the History of the ‘Display’ of art; how museums and collections develop, and how the physical context of an object in an exhibition can affect the impression it makes to the viewer.
There are also opportunities for students to pursue an independent research on a topic of their choice in first and final year.
Further information can be found on the Faculty and University websites.
Typical offers require
- A Level: A*AA
- IB: 42 points, with 776 at Higher Level
- Advanced Highers: A1, A2, A2
For other qualifications see the main entrance requirements pages on the University website.
Subject Requirements
A-level
Required: None
Highly recommended: History and Art
IB
Required: None
Highly recommended: Higher Level History and Visual Arts
Mature students and those taking other qualifications are encouraged to contact our Admissions Office (at admissions@lucy.cam.ac.uk) to discuss the entry requirements for their qualifications.
Written work
Candidates are not required to submit written work.
Assessments
Applicants are not required to sit an assessment in this subject.
Interviews
Interviews allow us to distinguish amongst excellent applicants by assessing the skills and aptitudes essential for successful study in higher education, and your academic qualities – essentially, how do you think?
Interviews for all applicants to Lucy Cavendish will take place virtually. The aims and content will still be the same as in-person interviews. You can read more about Lucy Cavendish's online interviews here and you can read the University's information on interviews here.
Each candidate typically has two interviews, lasting between twenty and thirty minutes. In some cases, you will be given preparatory material beforehand.
In a few subjects, you will be interviewed by more than one College or in the Faculty. You will be notified of this in your interview invitation.
Supracurricular exploration is an important way to expand your knowledge of your subject, explore your interests and develop your skills. Our new webpage contains guidance on supracurricular exploration and a comprehensive source of resources, grouped according to undergraduate degrees at Cambridge.
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Attend an open day or event
Our Events and Open Days page advertises regular events held by Lucy Cavendish College. If you can, join us for a College Open Day to discuss your application with a member of our admissions team.
Bye-Fellows, Director of Studies
Dr Christina Faraday
Bye Fellow, DoS in History of ArtChristina Faraday specialises in Tudor and Stuart visual and material culture, with wider interests in the art of Northern Europe in the medieval and early modern periods. She is also an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker (2019), a programme which gives Early Career Researchers the chance to communicate their research to wider audiences on BBC Radio 3 and other platforms.
Her book, Tudor Liveliness: Vivid Art in Post-Reformation England, was published by the Paul Mellon Centre/Yale University Press in 2023. This is based on her AHRC-funded PhD at the University of Cambridge, and uses the period’s concept of vividness in rhetorical theory to explore Elizabethan and Jacobean attitudes towards the value of images. It shows that Tudor and Jacobean images and objects were often seen as vivid and ‘realistic’, even if they don’t appear to conform to modern expectations of realistic images. She is currently working on a new book on Tudor art for a general audience, with further projects in progress on music, art and literature in Elizabethan England, and temporality in Tudor portraits.
She teaches for the History of Art Department and the History Faculty, having given lectures for papers on Tudor Visual Culture; Part IIA Approaches to the History of Art; Part I Objects, Meaning of Art and Part I Meaning of Architecture. She is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) and in 2018-2019 took part in the Cambridge Teaching Associates’ Programme (TAP). She also contributes to the Department’s access and outreach programmes, including the annual Sutton Trust Summer School, and is a Tutor for the Institute for Continuing Education at Madingley Hall, where she is Co-Director of the MSt in History of Art and Visual Culture.
Dr Christina Faraday
Bye Fellow, DoS in History of ArtChristina Faraday specialises in Tudor and Stuart visual and material culture, with wider interests in the art of Northern Europe in the medieval and early modern periods. She is also an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker (2019), a programme which gives Early Career Researchers the chance to communicate their research to wider audiences on BBC Radio 3 and other platforms.
Her book, Tudor Liveliness: Vivid Art in Post-Reformation England, was published by the Paul Mellon Centre/Yale University Press in 2023. This is based on her AHRC-funded PhD at the University of Cambridge, and uses the period’s concept of vividness in rhetorical theory to explore Elizabethan and Jacobean attitudes towards the value of images. It shows that Tudor and Jacobean images and objects were often seen as vivid and ‘realistic’, even if they don’t appear to conform to modern expectations of realistic images. She is currently working on a new book on Tudor art for a general audience, with further projects in progress on music, art and literature in Elizabethan England, and temporality in Tudor portraits.
She teaches for the History of Art Department and the History Faculty, having given lectures for papers on Tudor Visual Culture; Part IIA Approaches to the History of Art; Part I Objects, Meaning of Art and Part I Meaning of Architecture. She is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) and in 2018-2019 took part in the Cambridge Teaching Associates’ Programme (TAP). She also contributes to the Department’s access and outreach programmes, including the annual Sutton Trust Summer School, and is a Tutor for the Institute for Continuing Education at Madingley Hall, where she is Co-Director of the MSt in History of Art and Visual Culture.
Director of Studies
Dr Sophie Pickford
History of ArtDr. Sophie Pickford is an Art Historian working on Bloomsbury Art and the Ballet. She graduated with Starred First Class Honours in History of Art from King’s College, Cambridge, where she was a Scholar and recipient of the Rylands Prize. Dr. Pickford was awarded both AHRC funding and a St. John’s College Benefactors’ Scholarship for her PhD research into Renaissance French Château Interiors, supervised by Professor Jean Michel Massing. Following this, Dr. Pickford became a Junior Research Fellow at St. Edmund’s College, Cambridge, and was a Research Associate for an AHRC-funded project led by Professor Deborah Howard. She then moved into law, working as a lawyer for several years before returning to Academia. Dr. Pickford now lives and works in Cambridge, teaching and lecturing in the History of Art Department at the University of Cambridge.
She is a Bye-Fellow here at Lucy.