University Announces New Partnership with Art UK

The School of Art History at the University of St Andrews has announced a new partnership with Art UK, a leading education charity, to research and share the stories behind the nation’s publicly owned art. The partnership will enable academics from the School of Art History to publish content and develop learning resources accessible to Art UK’s extensive audience of 5.5 million annual users. Art UK currently showcases more than 400,000 works by over 55,000 artists. It continues to expand its digital platform, increasing public engagement with art collections across the United Kingdom.

The initiative aligns with the School of Art History’s broader commitment to advancing Digital Art History and exploring digital-born art. In addition to the partnership, the School has launched new online short courses and an MLitt program in Digital Art History. Furthermore, the partnership directly supports two strategic goals outlined in the School’s 2021-2026 plan: expanding the reach of its scholarship beyond academia and strengthening alliances with museums and research collaborators at local, national, and international levels.

Dr Emily Savage, co-ordinator of the School’s fully online postgraduate program in Digital Art History, played a key role in establishing this partnership and is spearheading efforts to develop publication opportunities through Art UK. She emphasised the importance of increasing access to lesser-known public art collections across the country.

“When people think of public art collections, they probably think of big-name institutions like the National Gallery. Less appreciated, but no less significant, are local authority collections or collections held by libraries, heritage bodies, or even hospitals. These institutions are often important pillars of their communities, but don’t have the digital infrastructure to make their collections more accessible or widely known,” Savage explained. “Digital tools, like those offered on Art UK’s platform, can foster creativity and support well-being, but they can also encourage in-person engagement too.”

The partnership has already begun to influence academic curricula at the University , particularly within the MLitt in Digital Art History program. Students utilise data from Art UK’s extensive database to explore various research topics. In one module, for instance, students explore data from Art UK’s database relating to the representation of women artists in public collections, visualise the data and analyse their findings, and situate their conclusions within wider scholarship on women’s artistic education, the histories of collecting by public institutions, and feminist interventions in the art historical canon.

“We anticipate there will be further opportunities for utilising the Art UK platform and database in the curriculum, including for our in-person students,” Savage noted.

Beyond curriculum development, the long-term vision for this collaboration extends to benefiting both institutions as well as the general public, researchers, and students. Savage highlighted the reciprocal nature of the partnership, calling it a “knowledge-sharing opportunity” that aligns with the University’s commitment to accessibility and inclusion. By leveraging Art UK’s resources, research publications from the University will reach a broader and more diverse global audience than traditional academic outputs typically do. Additionally, the partnership is designed with students’ professional development in mind.

“Writing for a nonspecialist audience requires a specific skill set, something that’s not usually taught at the undergraduate or even postgraduate level,” Savage stated. “This partnership will create opportunities both within and outside the curriculum that will arm students with critical skills sought by employers.”

As this partnership progresses, both the University of St Andrews and Art UK look forward to further expanding public access to art, fostering interdisciplinary research, and enhancing the ‘career readiness’ of students. The initiative marks a significant step toward making the nation’s art collections more accessible and strengthening the relationship between digital platforms and the arts sector.

Image by Wikimedia Commons