Art History
Chair: Joy Kenseth
Professors J. M. Jordan, J. Kenseth, A. W. B. Randolph; Associate Professors A. Cohen, K. A. Corrigan, A. F. Hockley, A. Rosenthal; Assistant Professor M. K. Coffey; Senior Lecturers J. L. Carroll, M. E. Heck, S. E. Kangas; Adjunct Assistant Professors K. O’Rourke; Mellon Fellow J. Hong.
Consult the Department Administrator, Betsy Alexander, for further information.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MAJOR
Twelve courses as follows:
Prerequisite: Two courses from Art History 1, 2, or 4.
Requirements: Ten courses consisting of the following: one Studio Art course; six Art History courses, each from a different area (Ancient; Medieval; Renaissance; Baroque, Rococo and Neoclassical; Modern; Asian); two seminars in Art History (one numbered 80 through 84, and either Art History 85 or 86, which will serve as the Major Culminating Experience); and one other Art History course numbered 10 or higher. (Classical Studies 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26 may be substituted for this other course.) N.B.: Art History 1, 2, and 4 may serve only as major prerequisite courses.
Students planning an Art History major must first consult with one of the Department’s designated faculty advisors, complete a Major Worksheet (available outside the Department office), and meet with the Department Administrator before cards are signed by the advisor. A copy of the signed major card and the Major Worksheet must be filed with the Art History Department.
MODIFIED MAJOR
The courses making up a modified major should constitute an intellectually coherent whole. The Registrar’s Office requires a written statement explaining the rationale for the courses selected for the modified major.
Students wishing to declare a modified major must consult with one of the Department’s designated faculty advisors, meet with the Department Administrator, then submit their rationale statement and a completed Modified Major Worksheet (available outside the Department office) for consideration by the whole Art History faculty. After approval, a copy of the signed major card, worksheet, and rationale statement must be filed with the Art History Department.
Art History Modified
Prerequisite: Two courses from Art History 1, 2, or 4.
Requirements: Seven Art History courses: four that meet the departmental distribution requirement described under “Requirements for the Major” (i.e., four out of six categories); one of either Art History 85 or 86 (constituting the Major Culminating Experience); and two other Art History courses numbered 10 or higher. A Studio Art course may be substituted for one of these other courses. An Art History seminar (Art History 80-84) is not required, but is strongly encouraged. N.B.: Art History 1, 2, and 4 may serve only as major prerequisite courses. Four courses, selected in consultation with the Art History adviser, will be taken in the secondary (modifying) department(s), with whatever prerequisites they require.
Another Major Modified with Art History
Prerequisite: One course: Art History 1, 2, or 4.
Requirements: Four Art History courses selected in consultation with the adviser in the primary department.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MINOR
Six courses as follows:
Prerequisite: One or two of Art History 1, 2, or 4.
Requirements: Four Art History courses, which must meet the departmental distribution requirement described under “Requirements for the Major” (i.e., four out of six categories). If only one prerequisite is taken, any additional Art History course may be taken as the sixth course. An Art History seminar (Art History 80-84) is not required, but is strongly encouraged. N.B.: Art History 1, 2, and 4 may serve only as prerequisite courses.
Students planning an Art History minor must first consult with one of the Department’s designated faculty advisors, complete a Minor Worksheet (available outside the Department office), and meet with the Department Administrator before cards are signed by the advisor. A copy of the signed minor card and the Minor Worksheet must be filed with the Art History Department.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT
The Department does not award course credit to students who have taken the high school Advanced Placement course in Art History. However, an Art History major or minor who has achieved a grade of 5 in this course may substitute appropriate mid-level Art History courses for the introductory survey courses (Art History 1, 2, or 4) required by the major or minor. These courses must be chosen in consultation with a faculty advisor.
TRANSFER CREDIT
Transfer credits will be granted only to majors, modified majors, and minors in the Art History Department. Majors are limited to two transfer credits, only one of which can fulfill a departmental distributive requirement. Modified majors and minors are limited to one transfer credit, which cannot fulfill a departmental distributive requirement. A student requesting transfer credit must first consult with the Registrar’s office, then apply to the Chair of the Department before undertaking the proposed course of study. Only applications filed in advance will be accepted. Applications should include information about the course to be taken (including, when possible, a syllabus). Only courses offered at four-year degree-granting institutions (or their equivalents) will be considered for transfer credit. Prior approval is provisional, with final authorization contingent upon review of the syllabus and the work produced by the applicant.
HONORS PROGRAM
To be eligible for the Honors Program, a student must have achieved by the end of the junior year a 3.2 general College average and a 3.4 average in all Art History courses. A candidate for admission to the Honors Program must, in either the spring preceding or in the fall of the senior year, consult with a potential faculty adviser and submit a written and in-person presentation to the whole Art History faculty of the proposed Honors project. Admission or non-admission to the Honors Program will subsequently be determined by a vote of the faculty. The Program will consist of an advanced project of study under Art History 90-91 (only one of which may be counted as part of the major, under “other”), taken during two consecutive terms in the senior year.
Students are strongly encouraged to initiate discussion with an appropriate faculty adviser as early as possible in the junior year.
The Art History Department oversees funds intended to underwrite research for honors projects in the Department. For information see the Department Administrator.
FOREIGN STUDY PROGRAM
In order that students may have an opportunity to study art history in direct contact with original works of art, the Department conducts a Foreign Study Program during the spring term. Based in Rome, one of Europe’s richest artistic centers, with a continuous evolution from antiquity to the present, the program examines the monuments of the city, their creators, their patrons, and their various audiences.
This program is open to all students, the prerequisites being Italian 1 (or its equivalent) and Art History 1, plus one of Art History 2, 21, 22, 25, 30, 31, 36, 40, 41, 42, or 45. The program consists of two Art History courses (Art History 10 and 11), which may be counted toward the major, and a course in The Language and Culture of Rome (Art History 12). Interested students should contact Professors Cohen, Corrigan, Kenseth, Randolph or Rosenthal as early as possible in their academic careers.