The Russian Academy of Art’s Faculty of Art Theory and  History was founded in 1937.  It was the first art  history faculty in an institution of higher  education  and was created to prepare qualified art critics and  theorists.  A course in the History of Fine Arts was offered at the Academy in the eighteenth century,  from the first years of the Academy’s inception.  In 1794 the first textbook was released “to benefit the pupils.”  At this time, the first theoretical essays were published, written by graduates of the Academy and the essays became the foundation of a theory of the unity of art theory and practice.  Masters of painting, sculpture and architecture of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries brought significant contributions to the field of art history.  One of the Academy’s students, I.E. Grabar, compiled the most comprehensive volume on Russian Art History.  The practice of combining instruction in studio art and art history even to this day distinguishes the Academy from other institutions in the country.

In its art history research center the department possesses a unique methodological foundation. The students have access to the research library of the Academy of Art whose collection includes rare books and engravings and prints of the 17th and 18th centuries and is constantly being augmented with the latest publications.  Materials in the science-research museum, research archives, and photography archives of the Academy are always open to students.  Acceptance to the full-time study is determined by results on entrance examinations in general subjects and Art History (written and oral).  The program is designed to take five years during which students take courses in the history of Russian and world art from ancient times to contemporary and a series of special-study courses, participate in seminars, and complete a practicum in archives, publishing or museums.

The art history students acquire skills under the supervision of instructors of the Departments of Russian Fine Arts and International Fine Arts.  They complete daily course assignments including analyses of various works of art, studies of specific artists, or important events in the history of world or Russian art.  The student’s last year at the Academy is dedicated to work on their thesis, an independent, research project.

The Department also offers a 6-year correspondence program.  This program, supervised by Academy instructors, requires the students to do a large amount of independent work systematically throughout the entire six years. 

The Academy hosts annual academic conferences where students and graduate students, along with instructors, can participate in critiques of their research.  The results are published as theses or in a collection of articles showcasing Academy research.  Among the faculty instructors are professors, doctors of science, academicians and correspondent members of the Russian Academy of Art, and distinguished members of the art community.  Faculty members participate in numerous conferences on art theory and history in our country as well as abroad.  They are members of international organizations that focus on specific periods in art history and they act as guest lecturers in institutions throughout the world.  The faculty members have published many books analyzing the works, style, and genre of specific artists. 

Students completing the full-time and correspondence programs are conferred a diploma and the title of Art Historian.  Graduates of our department work in museums, galleries, creative organizations, theatres, and in the fields of restoration, publishing, radio and television. 
 

This page was prepared by Olga Mozgovaya. 

Translated by L. Seran and E. Sherstnev.