Course Description
An immersive, site-specific course designed to provide first- hand exposure to art historical resources outside the state of Georgia. Special attention will be paid to works held in special collections, galleries, and museums on location, as well as to the complex histories of these collections.
Additional Requirements for Graduate Students:
Graduate students will be expected to produce an extensive
research paper derived from first-hand experience of a work of
art, while making use of appropriately sophisticated
methodologies. This paper will be a detailed, in-depth
consideration of the student's chosen topic requiring advanced
research skills and the ability to think creatively about
complex works of art.
Athena Title
Art History Field Study
Prerequisite
Two 3000-level ARHI courses
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The specific content of this course will vary depending on the chosen location, but the overriding objective is constant: to provide students with first-hand exposure to works of art held in renown art collections and museums. Through lectures, in- class discussions, and numerous site visits, this class will exercise the art of careful observation, while also honing analytic and rhetorical skills through numerous papers that respond to these first-hand encounters.
Topical Outline
I. Introduction: History, Geography, Collections The course will begin with a brief overview of the field study’s chosen location, providing students with a history of the site that highlights its art historical and museological significance. II. Art The second part of the course focuses on specific works of art that are available for first-hand assessment. Works of art will be historicized and placed in dialogue with other objects, also on view within the chosen location. III. Architecture and Topography The third part of the course will consider the city as art work, attending to its architecture and topography. Special attention will be paid to architecturally significant buildings, parks, and urban planning.