Stained Glass Conservation and Heritage Management (MA)

Course content

This is a two-year course, including taught modules, a twelve-week studio placement in a leading conservation workshop, museum or heritage institution, and a five-month dissertation. You'll be able to choose an art-historical or archaeological module in Year 2.

You'll be taught basic and advanced techniques of stained glass conservation, grounded in an understanding of the historical development of stained glass craft and its care. You'll study other topics including art and architectural history, the history, ethics and philosophy of conservation, and international issues in conservation including the impact of climate change.

You'll also attend masterclasses presented by visiting experts which address current issues and new research, events that will provide invaluable opportunities for networking with your peers and practitioners in the field from both home and abroad.

The experience of working within a business or conservation institution, in a team with colleagues, with clients, custodians and heritage bodies, will be an invaluable aspect of your training. In addition to improving your practical skills, you'll have a chance to develop skills of advocacy, presentation and project management. The placement will also introduce you to a range of projects of greater scale and complexity. All of this training will benefit you in your future career.

Modules Dissertation Placements Modules Year 1 In your first year you will study modules that cover work in the conservation studio, stained-glass conservation and its history, and the wider cultural context of conservation. You'll also look at issues and the role of policy in cultural heritage at an international level. In your work in the conservation studio you'll gain knowledge of glass technology, production techniques of stained-glass, conservation technology and you'll reproduce historical techniques in practice. You'll study the relationship of stained-glass to architectural settings and explore the issues raised by the medium of stained-glass. Core modules History and Theory of Stained Glass Conservation Histories of Conservation Basic Glass Handling and Glass Craft Skills Painting on Light Sustainable Conservation Challenges Introduction to Stained Glass Conservation: Techniques and Treatments Year 2 In your second year you'll study the principles, concepts and philosophy of cultural heritage management and conservation and you'll explore the importance of studying stained-glass in the context of a major monument. You'll manage and implement a stained glass conservation project and address the latest developments in the field of glass painting conservation as part of a seminar module. You'll prepare for your dissertation with a practical workshop-based module which will enable you to design your own research project. Core modules Art and Imagery in York Minster Heritage Principles and Concepts Advanced Techniques of Stained Glass Conservation Option modules You will also study two option modules: Between Art and Mind: Diagrams in Medieval Europe The Varied Practices of Art History Today Art, Magic and the Miraculous in Renaissance Italy Fashion, Theories, Materials and Images (1540 to 1940) Thinking through Material Culture Presenting Historic Houses Art and the Political Psyche in Britain 1979-1997 Ceramic Arts of the Islamic World: A Framework for Study Peter Paul Rubens: Painting for Peace in an Age of War Scrolls and Serpents Sir Christopher Wren The Afterlives of Medieval Art Art, Mass Media and Communication 1945-1991 Medieval Islamic Architecture on the Frontiers: Synthesis, Innovation & Change Monument, Object, Fetish, Artefact: Contesting 'Modern' Sculpture Seeing Sculpture Who Owns Antiquities? The Politics of Museology and Archaeology Our modules may change to reflect the latest academic thinking and expertise of our staff, and in line with Department/School academic planning. Dissertation Dissertation in Stained Glass & Heritage Management You'll prepare and write your dissertation in Year 2. This will give you time to undertake primary research, design experiments and test treatments, read widely and develop your thoughts on specialised topics. Recent topics have included: A 'Veritable Tour de Force of Mechanical and Artistic Dexterity’: An Investigation into the Medieval Techniques of Inserting ‘Jewels’ in Stained Glass In, but not of the City: Agents of Deterioration, Risk Management and the Future of Stained Glass Preservation in Mumbai, India The 'Cameo Process': The Twentieth-century Acid-etching Technique by William Meikle and Sons of Glasgow A Restoration History of the Rose Window of York Minster Appliqué Windows in Britain: Their History, Significance and Conservation Challenges Low Lime Glass Degradation: The Case of Windows in the Church of St John the Evangelist, Howsham: Further Research into the Phenomenon Formerly Known as ‘Crizzling' Placements Your studio placement will enable you to consolidate and expand your practical skills in a professional setting, which will involve working on site in an architectural environment, often at height and alongside masons and other construction crafts. You'll take on projects that test your abilities to translate theory into practice in an environment in which targets, timescales and budgets can impose challenges, and you are urged to think carefully about the implications of this aspect of the course. Before starting a placement that forms part of your course, you are likely to be asked by the placement provider to sign a confidentiality agreement. This is to ensure that you do not disclose any information that is confidential to the placement provider.