• Art and Design History and Theory

    Art and Design History and Theory - Hero
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  • Contact Us

    thinkparsons@newschool.edu
    212.229.5150

    Program Contact
    Rory O'Dea, Assistant Professor of Contemporary Art and Design

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  • The School of Art and Design History and Theory offers a comprehensive array of courses in design studies; fashion studies; visual culture studies; spatial design studies; art and design history and criticism; writing, and research methods. Some of these courses form a core curriculum for all Parsons undergraduate students. The school also offers elective and University Lecture courses open to undergraduate students in all colleges of The New School. 

    These courses educate Parsons and New School students in visual literacy, research methods, writing skills, and critical analysis, and provide them with a systematic understanding of how art, design, and visual culture operate in various geographical and historical contexts. This helps students develop the intellectual rigor necessary to become the next generation of art and design leaders. Through the use of multidisciplinary approaches, students learn how to frame questions about the meaning, function, and new possibilities of art and design, and to consider problems from multiple perspectives.

  • Program Highlights

    New York City Connections

    Draw on the resources of The Metropolitan Museum of Art; The Museum of Modern Art; Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum, and other museums and galleries that make NYC an international art and design hub.

    Subject Areas

    Explore courses in a variety of areas such as art and design history, design studies, fashion studies, spatial design studies, and visual culture studies.

  • Curriculum

    The curriculum includes required core courses for all Parsons students, depending on their degree program, which Parsons students take from freshman to senior year. The curriculum also offers a broad range of electives which cover a variety of subject areas. Students can pursue subject area interests through their choice of elective courses.

    Required Courses

    Elective Courses

  • Art and Design History and Theory faculty offer a broad range of expertise and are leading practitioners and scholars in their fields, which include art and design history and theory, aesthetics, criticism, curatorial studies, and visual and material culture. 

  • Take The Next Step

Submit your application

Undergraduates

To apply to any of our undergraduate programs (except the Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students and Parsons Associate of Applied Science programs) complete and submit the Common App online.

Undergraduate Adult Learners

To apply to any of our Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students and Parsons Associate of Applied Science programs, complete and submit the New School Online Application.

Graduates

To apply to any of our Master's, Doctoral, Professional Studies Diploma, and Graduate Certificate programs, complete and submit the New School Online Application.

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