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ARH 210. ART HISTORY I: GODS & EMPERORS (4 sh)
This course introduces you to the history of world art and architecture from the Neolithic Period through the Late Roman Period. This will include the study of materials and production, as well as an introduction to the often specialized vocabulary related to ancient art. In addition, we will address issues such as gender, identity, power and the reception of the art (both ancient and modern), provenance, conservation, and museum ethics, among other topics. You will learn to think and speak critically about visual and textual material from the Assyrian palace to the Roman temple. No prerequisite.
*Also counts towards the Classical Studies minor.
ARH 211. ART HISTORY II: CATHEDRALS TO CONQUEST (4 sh)
This course introduces you to the history of world art and architecture from the 4th century through the 16th century. As we move from the ancient world to the development of monotheistic empires, we investigate contacts and conflicts between the arts of Church and State, the cultures of the Mosque and the Temple, and the politics of mapping the "New World". We will consider the ideals of Renaissance within a global context, including a discussion of the arts of mission, acts of omission, and art as diplomacy. This course ends with a discussion of conquests and colonialism, including the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople and Columbus’ voyage to the Americas. You will learn to think and speak critically about visual and textual material from the Byzantine Church to the Ottoman mosque. No prerequisite.
*Also counts towards the Classical Studies minor.
ARH 212. ART HISTORY II: REVOLT, REFORM, CRITIQUE (4 sh)
This course introduces you to the history of world art and architecture from the 17th century to the present. We will explore the contexts in which these works were created, considering a variety of factors that influenced their production, style, meaning, authorship, patronage, and continued importance. We will pay particular attention to historical moments of revolution and reform as well as the increasing emphasis placed on art’s critical function in society both culturally and politically. You will learn to think and speak analytically about visual and textual material from Italian Baroque architecture to contemporary Japanese performance art. No prerequisite.
*Also counts towards the International Studies Major.
ARH 301. ART HISTORY METHODOLOGIES (4 sh)
This course introduces students to the various methodologies used to analyze a work of art as well as the role that the study of art has played in defining contemporary visual culture. The course material will be presented through assigned readings and class discussion, highlighting the work of contemporary and historically significant art historians, philosophers, art critics and artists. Prerequisite: A 200 level art history course.
ARH 320. ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY ART (4 sh)
This course considers the arts since 1945, covering the period both broadly and in selective detail. To better understand how and why art in our time takes the forms it does, we will consider new approaches to creating and exhibiting art, relevant social and political issues to which artists respond, and the impact of critical theory upon both the visual arts and art history and criticism. No prerequisite. Offered fall and spring.
*Also counts towards the Women's and Gender Studies minor.
ARH 321. ISSUES IN AMERICAN ART (4 sh)
Course content will vary depending on the expertise of the instructor, and might include any culture of the Americas, from the Inuit to the Maya, the Aztec to the Rapa Nui, or the Bay Area painters to the New York School. Faculty experts could focus on African American artists or on the African Diaspora, or both; they could also choose to have students address the artistic, patronage, and political relationships between Europe and the United States during the Colonial Era, Reconstruction, or during or after the World Wars. Considerations of peculiarly American modes of representation, display, or collection might also be the focus, as might critiques of the very notion of an American categorization of these activities. There are no prerequisites.
ARH 340. HISTORY OF PHOTOGRAPHY (2 or 4 sh)
This course surveys the history of the photographic arts from the development of the camera obscura to the present use of digital technologies. Issues discussed may include the role of technology in the arts; scopophilia and voyeurism; the uses of photography in science, government, propaganda, and advertising; perceptions of objective reality and manipulation in the photographic image; reproducibility, time, and movement; and personal/amateur photography. No prerequisite.
ARH 341. AFRICAN ART (4 sh)
This course introduces the artistic production of the arts of Africa. A variety of media - sculpture, painting, architecture, performance and personal decoration - will be examined and we will consider both traditional and contemporary definitions of African art and cultures. We will pay special attention to art as it exists within or defines social contexts, initiation, religious ceremony, political and royal institutions, domestic arenas, cross-cultural exchanges and colonialism. No prerequisite. *Also counts towards the African and African-American Studies minor.
ARH 342. ISSUES IN ISLAMIC ART (4sh)
This course examines the artistic traditions of Islam from the 7th to the 21st century. We will consider work that relates specifically to the practice of Islam, such as the mosque or the calligraphy of the Koran, as well as secular art produced under Islamic rule, such as the palace or imperial clothing. Visual material will be organized according to medium, such as architecture, and the arts of the book, as well as form; such as calligraphy, abstract design and when applicable, examples of figural imagery. No prerequisites.
ARH 491. INDEPENDENT STUDY IN ART HISTORY (1-4 sh)
Open to juniors and seniors with permission of instructor.
ARH 495. SENIOR SEMINAR IN ART HISTORY (4 sh)
A capstone experience for majors, this course offers students practical experience in researching, writing and presenting an independent senior thesis project. Prerequisite: ARH 301 Art History Methodologies.
ARH 499. INDEPENDENT RESEARCH IN ART HISTORY (1-8 sh)
Students engage in an undergraduate research project under the guidance of an Art Department mentor. A special research proposal form must be prepared and submitted in consultation with the mentor. Maximum of 8 semester hours of credit. SPECIAL TOPICS (varies by semester)
16th Century: The Golden Ages?
Patronage or Plunder: the Politics of Collecting
Issues in Greek Art
Memento Mori: the Art & Architecture of Death in America
Islamic Art: Ornament & Idolatry
Animated Spaces: Indian Temples
American Art
Realism
Installation Art
Film and Architecture
Gender and Art History
Japan and Impressionism
Cultures in Contact and Conflict: The Art and Architecture of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
