Courses

Courses

Fall 2007 Courses

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101. Introduction to Western Art
Stephen Perkinson T 11:30 - 12:55, TH 11:30 - 12:55 VAC-Beam Classroom
A chronological survey of the art of the Western world (Egypt, the Near East, Europe, and the European-based culture of North America), from the Paleolithic period of prehistoric Europe to the present. Considers the historical context of art and its production, the role of the artist in society, style and the problems of stylistic tradition and innovation, and the major themes and symbols of Western art. Required of majors and minors in art history. This course is a prerequisite for most upper-level courses in the history of art.

209. Introduction to Greek Archaeology
James Higginbotham M 10:30 - 11:25, W 10:30 - 11:25, F 10:30 - 11:25 VAC-Beam Classroom
Introduces the techniques and methods of classical archaeology as revealed through an examination of Greek material culture. Emphasis upon the major monuments and artifacts of the Greek world from prehistory to the Hellenistic age. Architecture, sculpture, fresco painting, and other “minor arts” are examined at such sites as Knossos, Mycenae, Athens, Delphi, and Olympia. Considers the nature of this archaeological evidence and the relationship of classical archaeology to other disciplines such as art history, history, and classics. Assigned reading supplements illustrated presentations of the major archaeological finds of the Greek world.

211. Arts of China
De-nin Lee T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25 VAC-Beam Classroom
A chronological survey of ritual objects, sculpture, architecture, painting, and decorative arts in China from the Neolithic to the modern period. Topics include ritual practices and mortuary art, technologies of art and the role of trade, the impact of Buddhism, courtly and scholarly modes of painting, and popular and avant-garde art.

214. The Gothic World
Stephen Perkinson T 2:30 - 3:55, TH 2:30 - 3:55 VAC-Beam Classroom
Introduces students to art produced in Europe and the Mediterranean from the twelfth though the early fifteenth centuries. Following a general chronological sequence, investigates the key artistic monuments of this period in a variety of media, including architecture, painting, manuscript illumination, stained glass, sculpture, and the decorative arts. Explores a particular theme in each class meeting through the close analysis of a single monument or closely related set of monuments. Provides students with a conceptual framework that allows them to interpret both the monuments addressed in class, as well as those that they may encounter in their future studies.

220. Modern and Contemporary Art in China
De-nin Lee T 2:30 - 3:55, TH 2:30 - 3:55 VAC-Picture Study
Examines the multitude of visual expressions Chinese artists adopted, re-fashioned, and rejected during the political struggles of the twentieth century, from the May Fourth Movement of 1919 through the Cultural Revolution (1966–76) and (almost) to the present day. Major themes include the tension between identity and modernity, the relationship between art and politics, and the impact of globalization and an international art market. Part of the Other Modernities course cluster in the Asian Studies Program.

256. Women and Art
Pamela Fletcher M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55 VAC-Beam Classroom
Considers the role of women as producers, viewers, and subjects of art from the Renaissance to the present. Topics include the tradition of the female nude, the rise of the Academies and their impact on women artists, the role of women as patrons of the arts, the gendered language of art criticism, the emergence of significant numbers of women artists in the twentieth century, and the impact of the women’s liberation movement of the 1970s on the art world.

260. Art and Life
Linda Docherty T 11:30 - 12:55, TH 11:30 - 12:55 Walker Art Mus-Seminar Rm
A study of how visual images reflect, critique, and influence the world they represent. Students learn about different reproductive media, issues in museum studies, and theories of visual culture. Paper assignments focus on the Museum of Art’s American collection of works on paper, particularly Winslow Homer wood engravings, John Sloan etchings, and documentary photographs. In conjunction with their research, students curate a small exhibition, gaining hands-on experience in museum work, and are responsible for selection, layout, interpretation, and publicity of the show, which will open at the end of the semester.

262. American Art from the Colonial Period to the Civil War
Linda Docherty T 8:30 - 9:55, TH 8:30 - 9:55 VAC-Beam Classroom
A survey of American architecture, sculpture, painting, and decorative arts from their colonial origins through their development into a distinctive national tradition. Emphasis is placed on understanding American art in its historical context. Field trips to the Bowdoin College Museum of Art and environs of architectural interest.

324. Leonardo and Michelangelo
Clifton Olds T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25 VAC-Picture Study
The art and thought of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, studied in the context of Renaissance philosophy, literature, and scientific theory.

359. Manet's Modernism
Pamela Fletcher T 6:30 - 9:25 VAC-Picture Study
Examines the work of Manet and its critical reception from the nineteenth century to the present. Manet has been considered the paradigmatic modern artist, and the reception and interpretation of his work elucidates both a contested history of modernism’s meaning, and the critical historiography of the discipline of art history itself. Authors may include Baudelaire, Zola, T. J. Clark, Michael Fried, Pierre Bourdieu, and Griselda Pollock.

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