NL
Fine ArtThe study

Fine Art

About the study

Study
Bachelor of Fine Art
Mode of study
Full-time
School
Fine Art
Grade
Bachelor of Arts
Duration
4 years
ECTS
240
Type
Bachelor
Language
English|Dutch
CROHO-code
39110
Location(s)
Pastoe Fabriek
Email
sz@hku.nl
Phone
+31 (0)30-2091540

Fine Art in brief

  • Trains you to become a visual artist
  • Unique studios to develop your talent
  • Your own studio space from year 2
  • A stimulating learning community

How do you know Fine Art is right for you?

The Bachelor of Fine Art is right for you if you are visually minded, curious and driven. If the following profile describes you, we'd like to get to know you.

  • You are bursting with creative ideas
  • You are able to translate those ideas into images
  • You dare to experiment with media and material
  • You are culturally and socially curious and engaged
  • You have lots of perseverance and a critical attitude
  • You can work independently and you are self-disciplined

Why choose Fine Art at HKU?

This Bachelor’s programme gives you plenty of opportunities and freedom. After a general first year, you will learn to forge your own study path. You’ll do lots of individual study, as well as cooperating with fellow students, supervised by professionals in the fields of creation and theory. This ideal combination gives you a clear picture of the visual art field. You’ll work in your own studio or in the special workshops for print, plaster/ceramics, wood, metal, and digital and performative media.

Excited? Apply now!

The course in figures

Curious how the Bachelor of Fine Art scores compared to other courses?
Go to the course in figures (in Dutch)

Fine ArtWhat will you learn?
Fine Art

What will you learn in this course?

In four years time, you learn to give shape to your ideas and to what fascinates you. You learn to experiment and to create. Personal autonomy and an understanding of your own potential are key. And so are a thorough knowledge of art history and the contemporary context of your chosen field. Together with fellow students and supervisors, you determine your individual path.

In the first year, you take general fine art courses such as Painting, Drawing/Print, Sculpture and Digital Media. This is supplemented by theoretical courses and courses relating to professional practice, such as Art History, Cultural History and Professional Orientation. The focus is on experimentation.

If you’d like to find out more, visit the Open Day, contact Student Affairs or call 30 209 1540.

Going into more depth

In the second year, you get your own workplace and put together your own practical programme of study. You select from the following disciplines: Sculpture, Painting, Intermedia/Installation, Intermedia/Performance, Digital Media/Video and Digital Media/Photo-graphy. The Drawing/Print course is compulsory. So too are the theoretical courses and courses relating to professional practice.

Positioneren

In the third year, you move to a larger studio and choose your own lecturers. You and you fellow students put together an exhibition in the city. There are visits from many guest lecturers and you do several short internships. You can also go abroad on an exchange at one of our partner institutions – from Melbourne to New York.

Professional orientation

In the fourth year, you fully immerse yourself in your own artistic work process, supervised by a group of lecturers. The emphasis is both theoretical and practical.

Research report

You also write a research report, supervised by theory and practice lecturers. The year ends with a major celebratory exhibition that you co-organise with your fellow students

Lecturers

  • Maartje Folkeringa - Sculpture
    Nathalie van den Bovenkamp - Art History
  • Lieven Hendriks - Painting
    Milo van der Maaden - Digital Media/Video
  • Willum Geerts - Worktrade and Intermedia
Fine ArtWhat will you make?
Fine Art

What will you make on the course?

In this programme you work with all kinds of media and materials. By experimenting, you get a clearer idea of what you want to make and say – from drawings to paintings, from sculptures to installations, from videos to performances, and from text to spoken word.

Off to work!

The creative industries are always evolving, so your work never gets boring. You can work alone or in collaboration with others in a studio or on location. You develop your own visual work and continually explore new possibilities for showing or using your work. This can be done through open registrations for exhibitions, competitions and residencies or through follow-up courses and interviews with professionals from the field.
You can also work on a commission basis or collaborate with other artists to organise exhibitions. After earning your degree, you can work in many different fields – as a visual artist and independent entrepreneur, or as an exhibition designer, writer, teacher, curator, organiser or coach. The choice is yours.
Fine ArtAgenda
Fine Art

What's on

Fine ArtApplication and admission
Fine Art

Application and admission

Right for you?

This course is right for you if you have sufficient artistic ability.
During the selection procedure, we decide whether the course suits you.

Admission dates

The Bachelor Fine Art has several admission rounds. You will be assigned to the next available round. We will inform you about the date after receiving your application.

Can you still apply?

You can no longer apply for the Bachelor Fine Art course for the academic year 2025-2026. You can apply for the year 2026-2027 as of 1 October.

Prior education

You can take the Fine Art course if you have one of the following diplomas: pre-university education (vwo), Higher General Secondary Education (havo), Secondary Vocational Education (mbo) level 4 or equivalent.

If you do not meet the prior education requirement, you may be able to take an 18+/21+ test. Read more about the 18+/21+ test here.

Assessment criteria

  • An interest in culture and society
  • Creative and visual talent
  • Perseverance
  • Critical attitude
  • High degree of autonomy
  • Self-discipline

Studielink

Apply for the Bachelor Fine Art course through Studielink.

Portfolio and questionnaire

You upload your portfolio and the questionnaire that you will receive by email after your application. The admissions committee assesses whether you are eligible for an (online) interview.

Admission interview

If you pass the first selection round, you will be invited for an (online) admission interview to talk about your work, your motivation for taking the course, your background, sources of inspiration and expectations

Results

You will be notified by email within three weeks of the admission day/interview as to whether you are accepted.

Study Costs 7

HKU has different rates for tuition fees. Depending on your situation, you pay either statutory or institutional tuition fees.

Calculate your tuition fee

  • The Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science anually sets the statutory tuition fees. The statutory rate applies only to students from the Netherlands, another country in the European Economic Area (EEA*), Switzerland or Suriname, and students who meet the nationality criteria of the Dutch Student Finance Act (WSF 2000).

    (* EEA countries comprise the European Union, Iceland, Norway and Lichtenstein).

  • HKU sets the institutional tuition fees on the basis of the statutory rate. Students who have already completed a course in higher education and students from outside the EEA usually pay a higher rate.

    Partly as a result of legal changes, the rate for institutional tuition fees for non-EEA students may rise considerably in the coming years.

Find out more?

First, read the frequently asked questions. Haven't found your answer yet? Get in contact with the Student Affairs Service Desk. They will help you with questions about (almost) everything that has to do with studying at HKU.

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