Courses

Courses

Fall 2008

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015. Art Works, Artists, and Audiences
Stephen Perkinson T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25
Explores key issues in the interpretation of artworks from a variety of cultures and time periods. Begins with mastery of a descriptive vocabulary for analysis of paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, sculpture, and architecture. Investigates ways that artists are responsible for determining the “meaning” of the works they create, as they represent the visible world, abstract ideas, thoughts, or emotions. Explores ways that art acquires meaning, following artworks as they are received, interpreted, used, and even abused by various audiences (e.g., critics, curators, collectors, the public at large). Examines ways that artists have sought to influence public opinion by creating works that address the most pressing social and political issues of their times. Includes hands-on experience with artworks from the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.

101. Introduction to the History of Western Art
Susan Wegner M 8:30 - 9:25, W 8:30 - 9:25, F 8:30 - 9:25
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.

210. Introduction to Roman Archaeology
Ryan Ricciardi M 11:30 - 12:25, W 11:30 - 12:25, F 11:30 - 12:25
Surveys the material culture of Roman society, from Italy's prehistory and the origins of the Roman state through its development into a cosmopolitan empire, and concludes with the fundamental reorganization during the late third and early fourth centuries of our era. Lectures explore ancient sites such as Rome, Pompeii, Athens, Ephesus, and others around the Mediterranean. Emphasis upon the major monuments and artifacts of the Roman era: architecture, sculpture, fresco painting, and other "minor arts." 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 Roman world.

219. The Arts of Japan
De-nin Lee M 2:30 - 3:55, W 2:30 - 3:55
This course surveys ritual objects, sculpture, architecture, painting, and decorative arts in Japan from the Neolithic to the modern period. Topics include ceramic forms and grave goods, the adaptation of Chinese models, arts associated with Shinto and Buddhist religions, narrative painting, warrior culture, the tea ceremony, woodblock prints and popular arts, modernization and the avant-garde.

220. Modern and Contemporary Art in China
De-nin Lee M 11:30 - 12:55, W 11:30 - 12:55
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.

226. Northern European Art of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries
Stephen Perkinson T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25
Surveys the painting of the Netherlands, Germany, and France. Topics include the spread of the influential naturalistic style of Campin, van Eyck, and van der Weyden; the confrontation with the classical art of Italy in the work of Dürer and other; the continuance of a native tradition in the work of Bosch and Bruegel the Elder; the changing role of patronage; and the rise of specialties such as landscape and portrait painting.

232. Art in the Age of Velázquez, Rembrandt, and Caravaggio
Susan Wegner M 10:30 - 11:25, W 10:30 - 11:25, F 10:30 - 11:25
The art of seventeenth-century Europe. Topics include the revolution in painting carried out by Caravaggio, Annibale Carracci, and their followers in Rome; the development of these trends in the works of Rubens, Bernini, Georges de la Tour, Poussin, and others; and the rise of an independent school of painting in Holland. Connections between art, religious ideas, and political conditions are stressed.

243. Modern Architecture: 1750 to 2000
Jill Pearlman M 1:00 - 2:25, W 1:00 - 2:25
Examines major buildings, architects, architectural theories, and debates during the modern period, with a strong emphasis on Europe through 1900, and both the United States and Europe in the twentieth century. Central issues of concern include architecture as an important carrier of historical, social, and political meaning; changing ideas of history and progress in built form; and the varied architectural responses to industrialization. Attempts to develop students’ visual acuity and ability to interpret architectural form while exploring these and other issues. Not open to students who have credit for Environmental Studies 245.

251. Victorian Art
Pamela Fletcher T 10:00 - 11:25, TH 10:00 - 11:25
The art of Victorian Britain. Topics include the relationship of art and literature in the work of the Pre-Raphaelites, the moralizing function of Victorian narrative painting, classicism in the work of Leighton and Alma-Tadema, and Aestheticism. Special attention is paid to the exhibition of culture and art criticism of the period.

264. American Art from the Civil War to 1945
Lauren Kroiz T 2:30 - 3:55, TH 2:30 - 3:55
American architecture, sculpture, and painting between the Civil War and World War II. Issues considered include the expatriation of American painters after the Civil War, the introduction of European modernism to the United States, the pioneering achievements of American architects and photographers, and the continuing tension between native and cosmopolitan forms of cultural expression. Field trips to the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.

355. Modernism and the Nude
Pamela Fletcher T 1:00 - 2:25, TH 1:00 - 2:25
An examination of the central role that images of the female nude played in the development of modernist art between 1860 and the 1920s. Topics include the tradition of the female nude in art; the gendered dynamics of modernism; and the social, cultural, and artistic meaning of nudity. Artists considered include Manet, Degas, Cézanne, Picasso, and Valadon.

369. Race and Representation in American Art
Lauren Kroiz M 1:00 - 2:25, W 1:00 - 2:25
Examines the visualization of race in America from the eighteenth century to the present day, with an emphasis on the period from the end of Reconstruction to the Civil Rights Era. Looks closely at artworks of diverse subjects in diverse media, including Frederick Remington’s illustrations of cowboys and Native Americans, the art of the Harlem Renaissance, photographs of WWII Japanese American Internment, and postwar abstraction. Interrogates complex and sometimes vexing notions of race, ethnicity, visuality, visibility, and identity in historical context.