AH3904 From Hogarth to Sickert: British Painting and the Theatre (1740 - 1930)

Academic year

2025 to 2026 Semester 2

Further information on which modules are specific to your programme.

Key module information

SCOTCAT credits

30

The Scottish Credit Accumulation and Transfer (SCOTCAT) system allows credits gained in Scotland to be transferred between institutions. The number of credits associated with a module gives an indication of the amount of learning effort required by the learner. European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits are half the value of SCOTCAT credits.

SCQF level

SCQF level 9

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) provides an indication of the complexity of award qualifications and associated learning and operates on an ascending numeric scale from Levels 1-12 with SCQF Level 10 equating to a Scottish undergraduate Honours degree.

Availability restrictions

Only available to those enrolling on the MA Combined Studies or already enrolled on the MA/BSc General degree taken in the evening.

Planned timetable

Mon, 6.30 - 9.00 pm (potentially online only)

This information is given as indicative. Timetable may change at short notice depending on room availability.

Module coordinator

Dr W W Rough

Dr W W Rough
This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module Staff

Dr W Rough

This information is given as indicative. Staff involved in a module may change at short notice depending on availability and circumstances.

Module description

As Walter Sickert famously stated in 1934: The influence between brush and mask has at the best periods been reciprocal. This relationship, between painting and the theatre, has a long and productive history in British Art and Theatre History. From Hogarth's David Garrick as Richard III (1745) to Sickert's merging of tradition and the modern in his Shakespearean portraits of the 1930s, we will explore this interrelationship through a series of works by artists such as Joshua Reynolds, Henry Fuseli, John Everett Millais and Lawrence Alma-Tadema, amongst others. In addition, through inspiration from theatre productions and artist's set designs for the theatre we will explore how the theatre used artists and their works as inspiration and guidance in their productions. Simultaneously, through an analysis of theatre productions and artworks, we will investigate and discuss just how these artists reveal the changing social, cultural and artistic concerns of their day.

Relationship to other modules

Pre-requisites

BEFORE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST PASS AH2901 AND PASS AH1901

Assessment pattern

100% Coursework (10%: Tutorial Participation; 30%: 1,500-word VAT; 60%: 3,500 Research Essay)

Re-assessment

Coursework = 100%

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact

1 x 2.5-hour session: 1-hour lecture and 1-hour tutorial (x 11 weeks + 1 Revision Week)

Scheduled learning hours

48

The number of compulsory student:staff contact hours over the period of the module.

Guided independent study hours

252

The number of hours that students are expected to invest in independent study over the period of the module.

Intended learning outcomes

  • discuss the development of British Painting and the Theatre during the period 1740-1930
  • utilise a repertoire of images which serve as a vocabulary for the understanding and discussion of this period in the history of European art
  • identify critical, theoretical and historical issues relating to British Art and the Theatre 1740-1930
  • present information and ideas in written and group discussions
  • research a topic making intelligent use of library and IT resources
  • evaluate and research contemporaneous visual and written sources