ART HISTORY

AH 101:
History of Western Art to 1550 3 credits

Prerequisites: none

Transferability: UBC, SFU, UVic, OU, TWU, UNBC, ECIAD, MALA, OUC, UCC

Art is an integral part of the society that produces it. This introduction to art history is designed to foster knowledge, understanding and an appreciation of art and architecture from prehistoric cave painting to the Italian renaissance. Gallery visits supplement classroom experience.

AH 102:
History of Western Art, 1550 to the Present 3 credits

Prerequisites: none

Transferability: UBC, SFU, UVic, OU, TWU, UNBC, ECIAD, MALA, OUC, UCC

This course, which may best be taken as a sequel to AH 101, continues to explore art and architecture in a social context from the renaissance to the contemporary era. The course focuses on understanding modern art and its relation to the work of earlier artists and the social circumstances in which it was made. Gallery visits supplement classroom experience.

AH 205:
Art Practices and Popular Culture I 3 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 and one FA course

Transferability: SFU, UCC, UVic

An examination of popular culture in relation to contemporary art-making practices, emphasizing the cross-fertilization of “fine” and “popular” art in recent decades. Students will be required to complete both studio and written projects for this course.
Note: Credit cannot be obtained for both AH 205 and FA 205.

AH 210:
Art Practices and Popular Culture II 3 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 and one FA course

Transferability: SFU, UCC, UVic

This course, which may best be taken as a sequel to AH 205, continues to examine popular culture in relation to contemporary art-making practices, emphasizing the social and political role of the artist. Students will be required to complete both studio and written projects for this course.

Note: Credit cannot be obtained for both AH 210 and FA 210

AH 211 (formerly AH 111):
Issues in Exhibition 1.5 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 or instructor’s permission

Which art is exhibited, where it is seen, and how it is displayed are all elements of its meaning for viewers. This is a “hands-on” introduction to how institutions, physical and ideological, express and determine public taste. Students will learn about the construction of taste by organizing an exhibition and/or writing a gallery review. (AH 211 is usually offered in conjunction with gallery tours.)

AH 311:
Arts in Context: The Italian Renaissance 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 101, or instructor’s permission

This course focuses on the art and architecture of Renaissance Italy. Works of art will be examined according to their historical context, taking into consideration the dominant political, religious, and social concerns of the period. The relationship of the visual arts to literature and music will also be explored.

AH 313:
Arts in Context: Romanticism 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 or instructor’s permission

A study of the visual, literary, and musical arts of the early 19th century Romantic movement. Emphasis will be placed on how these arts relate to the contemporary social and political context. Gallery visits supplement classroom experience.

AH 314:
Arts in Context: Modernism 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 or instructor’s permission

A study of the visual, literary, and musical arts of the later 19th century to the second world war as the arts participated in the redefinition of the past and present in a time of social and political upheaval. Gallery visits supplement classroom experience.

AH 315:
Arts in Context: Contemporary 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102 or instructor’s permission

A study of the visual, literary, and musical arts in the second half of the 20th century when post-war and post-colonial western culture experienced the strain of diversification as never before, which the concerns of movements like feminism and post-modernism attest. Gallery visits supplement classroom experience.

AH 316:
Arts in Context: Gender, Art and Society 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 102, or instructor’s permission

An examination of gender and the visual arts in Western culture. The focus of the course will be on the work of women artists, but the role of women as the patrons and subjects of art will also be considered. Works of art will be examined according to their historical contexts, taking into consideration the social, political, religious, and economic factors which influenced the production and reception of women’s art.

AH 320:
Art & Culture: Special Topics 4 credits

Prerequisites: AH 101 or AH 102, or instructor’s permission

The specific topic of this course will vary as opportunity permits (consult timetable), but students will encounter the artistic and cultural production of a non-western society (e.g., Haida, Japanese), or related group of societies (e.g., Oceanic) from an interdisciplinary perspective.

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