Department of Literature & Art

Our staff at the Department of Literature & Art are specialises in:

• literature history and theory
• art history and theory
• film and media history
• theory, music and theatre studies
• sociolinguistics

They share an interest in core problems of modern culture and society and study this through:

• the analysis and interpretation of texts, images, media, and language,
• the philosophical reflection on their aesthetics and meaning
• the investigation of their various uses by readers, spectators, visitors, players, fans, enthusiasts and speakers

The impact of the arts as socially shaping forces has our particular attention, just like the various ways in which the arts themselves are shaped as social and cultural practices.

Teaching

The department plays an important role in the bachelor's programme Arts & Culture, the master's programmes Arts & Culture and Media Culture and the Research Master Cultures of Arts, Science and Technology. Several of our members teach at University College Maastricht and some at the European Studies BA programme and at Maastricht Science College.

Research

Most of our staff members participate in the Faculty’s research programme Arts, Media and Culture. They are associated to the following research schools:

• The Netherlands Graduate Research School of Science
• Technology and Modern Culture (WTMC)
• the Research School for Media Studies (RMeS)
• the Netherlands Research School of Gender studies (NOG)
• the Netherlands Institute for Cultural Analysis (NICA)
• the Netherlands Research School for Literary Studies (OSL)
• the National Linguistics Research School (Landelijke Onderzoeksschool Taalwetenschap, LOT)

Our PhD candidates also participate in the Graduate School of the Faculty. For details of staff members' research projects, please see their individual websites.