Arts

Why Arts at AUB

Arts University Bournemouth’s narrow focus on art and design allows it to concentrate resources where creative disciplines truly benefit. This approach yields professional-grade facilities and world-renowned graduates like Wolfgang Tillmans, Giles Duley, and Nick Knight, whose work defines contemporary visual culture. The institution maintains seven photo studios with Profoto and Broncolor lighting, medium-format Hasselblad and Phase One cameras, and a Chromira printing system identical to those in leading London labs. Beyond digital technology, it preserves complete analog workshops alongside North Light studios and the legendary drawing studio designed by Sir Peter Cook.

Commercial Photography

BA (Hons) Commercial Photography prepares students to work where creativity meets commerce, solving client briefs while developing a distinctive voice. The course centers on three specializations—advertising, fashion, or documentary-editorial—allowing focused career development. Graduates work with Louis Vuitton, Stella McCartney, and Chanel, while their images appear in British and Italian Vogue, The Guardian, and Wall Street Journal. Notably, publications and commissioned shoots often begin before graduation, as prestigious competitions regularly connect them with professional assignments.

Fine Art

BA (Hons) Fine Art at Bournemouth takes an expansive view of artistic practice, embracing painting, printmaking, sculpture, video, digital media, and sound. During the first year, students share open studios while exploring various approaches, then build individual trajectories with personal workspaces and access to laser cutters, CNC machines, and 3D printers. Arts University Bournemouth maintains partnerships with museums, municipalities, and research centers that enable exhibition opportunities across Britain and internationally during coursework, while residencies and exchanges with partner institutions provide practical experience across diverse artistic contexts.

Photography at Arts University Bournemouth

BA (Hons) Photography balances technical mastery with conceptual thinking, guiding students through photographic processes from nineteenth-century alternative techniques in traditional darkrooms to digital imaging in contemporary studios equipped with professional lighting. Its technical resources encompass both analog and digital equipment, letting students choose tools that serve their ideas rather than constraining vision to available gear. Professional practice modules and access to the alumni network help graduates plan careers or prepare for postgraduate study by drawing on insights from working photographers.

MA Fine Art

MA Fine Art welcomes applicants from any background, offering full-time study starting in September or January, as well as part-time options. The curriculum centers on play as a tool for self-discovery and cultural transformation, supporting multidisciplinary practices alongside traditional approaches like painting or sculpture. Graduates emerge as autonomous creatives capable of exhibiting in galleries, creating public art, developing social art projects, or pursuing academic careers. Beyond making work, the course illuminates how the art system operates, enabling graduates to engage strategically or deliberately challenge its conventions.

MA Photography

MA Photography offers five named specializations: fine art, commercial and advertising, fashion, landscape and environment, or social documentary. Since the choice happens during coursework rather than at entry, students can explore different approaches before committing to a focus. They regularly win AOP Student Awards, BIPP Student Awards, and BJP Portrait of Britain, while faculty help build connections with leading photographers, agents, and curators. The program combines practice with theory and professional development—from managing client expectations to creating saleable work—while maintaining academic depth.