A survey of the history of western art and architecture from ancient times to the medieval age.
Quarters Offered
Spring
Course Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to demonstrate the following knowledge or skills:
- Recognize famous works of art and architecture from the western tradition, such as Stonehenge or the Parthenon put in context of history, culture, and style;
- Connect artistic traditions and expression to the fields of history, literature, religion, and science;
- Apply skills of visual literacy to the world, becoming an informed and aware viewer.
Course Content Outline
- Introduction: key art terms, various art history approaches, roles of artists, and basic styles of representation (realism, abstract, non-representational).
- Prehistoric: art made before the written word through sculpture, paintings and dwellings.
- Ancient: the beginnings of major civilizations in the Middle East through the study of their artifacts.
- Egypt: artworks from Egypt that are now icons in western memory; e.g. pyramids, mummies, Egyptian sculpture.
- Greece and the Aegean: the influence of ancient Greece on modern American society by examining sculpture and architecture with the ideas that generated them.
- Roman: the far reaching effects of the Roman Empire through its architecture, sculpture, and mosaics.
- Early Medieval: the effects of early Christianity on architecture and the lack of realistic painting.
- Romanesque: the merging effects of Roman style with early Medieval to create a hybrid of Romanesque style in architecture and artwork such as manuscript illumination.
Department Guidelines
- Weekly assignments that will range from quizzes, written reviews of journal and magazine articles, studio projects, or work sheets
- Research presented through written or oral presentations
- Outings to museums and galleries as available
PO4 should be assessed: Students will be able to recognize or articulate personal/interpersonal aspects of, or connections between, diverse cultural, social, or political contexts.
PO5 should be assessed: Students will be able to solve problems by gathering, interpreting, combining and/or applying information from multiple sources.