During their first two years, Art History students are encouraged to take two required studio art courses as well as two of the 100-level art history surveys. These include a two-part survey of Western art, a survey of Latin American art, and a survey of Architecture. In addition to its regular courses, the department frequently offers a varied range of courses on topics of special interest (ARTH 283). Recent special-topic courses have included: “Race and Representation in the Visual Arts and Literature,” “Body Art,” “Performance Art,” “Museums as Interpreters of Culture,” “Film as Visual Art,” “Early Books and Visual Communication,” and “Latin American Culture and Postmodernism.”

Twenty four upper-level credits in Art History also are required for the major, and they must include at least one course from each of five chronological and geographical groupings: Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance/Baroque, Modern/Contemporary, and Non-Western art. The department is in the process of adding a sixth area--Art History Theory and Methodology—and in future, majors will be required to sample at least five of these six areas. Majors also are required to complete twelve upper-level credits in fields related to art history such as history, anthropology, literature, or foreign language study. The major requires 30 credits (25%) in Art History out of the total of 120 credits necessary for graduation with the B.A.; the major as a whole—including “related” courses and art studios—requires 48 credits.

Majors intending to go to graduate school are strongly urged to acquire a reading knowledge of foreign languages useful for research in the field of Art History, particularly French and German. Art History majors also are encouraged to consider University-sponsored study abroad programs, usually in their junior year. Students interested in museum work often take advantage of internship opportunities in area museums such as the Wadsworth Atheneum and the Benton Museum of Art after they have completed the required prerequisites.

The course offerings in Art History have been expanded in recent years by two joint hires with Women’s Studies and Asian-American Studies. Each jointly hired faculty member teaches half-time in the Department of Art and Art History.