Art History

The Art History Program offers a BA in Art History to majors and also serves as part of the foundation program for other Department of Art majors. It also provides a minor for students majoring in art or any other field. Art history is a scholarly, academic discipline, and its study sharpens critical thinking and strengthens both writing and analytical skills. The program offers a list of varied and exciting courses that include topics such as Non-Western Art, Women Artists in History, and various period studies. Students in majors from around the campus may also use selected art history courses to fulfill general education requirements. Students in the Honors Program further have the opportunity to mix the history of art with other disciplines such as history or literature in dynamic courses such as Paris Between the Wars, Cities and Sanctuaries of Greece and Rome, and the Holocaust in Art and Literature.

The major provides students with both broad introductory courses and specialized geographical and chronological studies emphasizing theory, methodology, and historiography of the discipline, creating a curriculum designed to provide both a well-rounded foundation and advanced study in the discipline. The program utilizes the varied resources of museums and collections in the area through field trips and specialized object research. In order to promote cross-cultural exchange and exposure to art outside the area, students enrolled in the Art History major are required to study abroad for at least a summer and preferably a semester. The curriculum culminates in a senior capstone experience that allows Art History majors to develop an original research project and to demonstrate their critical thinking skills.

Download a comprehensive undergraduate bulletin.

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Art History Recommended Program of Study