ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst

UMass Architecture+Design provides an accessible, intellectually rigorous design education that firmly grounds students in the art and science of the built environment. The interdisciplinary, collaborative program embraces spirited, socially progressive, and environmentally responsive design. As New England’s first and only public architecture program, the faculty and students engages the region for integrated teaching, research, and outreach.

The Architecture+Design program is responsible for an undergraduate pre-professional degree (BFA-Architecture), a graduate professional degree (Master of Architecture), and graduate post-professional degrees (MS Design and MS Design in Historic Preservation).

The discipline of Art History examines visual culture and the built environment within their social and historical contexts. Degrees in Art History (B.A. and M.A.) at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst provide students with a solid foundation in the history of western art and architecture from the ancient world to the present, as well as a background in non-Western artistic traditions. Students learn not only how to analyze works of art as objects or monuments in their own right, but also to understand and interpret them in relation to the historical circumstances, endeavors, and conflicts of the culture and region in which they were made. With its broad emphasis on culture and history and its focus on writing, analysis, and research, Art History is an excellent liberal arts degree for students seeking flexible but rigorous training for a variety of careers. A degree in Art History not only prepares students to work in arts-related fields, but also fosters the kinds of skills necessary in any profession involving visual culture in its broadest sense, historical and cultural understanding, critical analysis, persuasive argumentation, thorough research, and effective writing.