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Survey of Art II

A survey of the historical development of art forms from the Renaissance to the present. Emphasis is placed upon the relationship between the formal aspects of art and the political and social history of a culture. Also offered through European Studies.

Survey of Art I

A survey of the historical development of art forms from Paleolithic times to the late Middle Ages. Emphasis is placed upon the relationship between the formal aspects of art and the political and social history of a culture.

Architecture: Symbol and Ideology

A socio-historical and symbolic exploration of architecture, gardens, and other aspects of built environments in Europe and the United States. Themes include architecture and mysticism; buildings and gardens as metaphors of power, and as microcosms and sacred realms; the technological revolution; utopian worlds in modern architecture; and topics in current architectural theory.

Art and Nature

An overview of nature as a subject of artistic representation, in ancient Mediterranean and Mesopotamian cultures, and in the West from the Renaissance to the present. This course explores the ways in which depictions of nature have both reflected and shaped constructs of the natural world, by reference to religions, philosophies and moral values. Works of art to be examined include obvious examples of nature in art, such as landscape painting, and less obvious ones, such as villas and portraits, as well as earthworks and other  environmental art created by contemporary artists.

Art of the Middle Ages

A study of European art history from the collapse of the Roman Empire to the 14th century. Individual sessions explore the history of symbols, saints' cults, pilgrimages and popular piety, monasticism, medieval music, and the work of medieval stone masons, manuscript
illuminators, metalworkers and sculptors. Prerequisite: AAH 116 or 117 or permission of the instructor. Offered on rotation. Also offered through European Studies.

Arts of South Asia

By examining sculpture, architecture, painting and film from South Asia, this course introduces students to the multiple cultural strands that contribute to the histories of countries such as Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan. We also study art made by and for communities of South Asian origin in North America today. Issues of cross-cultural contacts, ethnicity and gender are emphasized and we look critically at current debates surrounding methods of studying, collecting and displaying South Asian art. Diversity (DIV 13). No Prerequisite. Offered every Fall.

Art of the Northern Renaissance

A study of painting and sculpture in northern and central Europe from the late 13th to the late 16th centuries. This course focuses on such artists as Jan van Eyck and Albrecht Dürer, as well as such themes as the evolving representation of nature, witchcraft and other gendered imagery in art, and the early history of printmaking. Prerequisite: AAH 116 or 117 or permission of the instructor. Offered on rotation. Also offered through European Studies.