Courses - Spring 2025
ARTH200
Art and Society in Ancient and Medieval Europe and the Mediterranean
Examines the material culture and visual expressions of Mediterranean and European societies from early times until ca. 1300 CE, emphasizing the political, social, and religious context of the works studied, the relationships of the works to the societies that created them, and the interrelationship of these societies.
ARTH201
Art and Society in the West from the Renaissance to the Present
Examines representative European and American works of art from the later Middle Ages to the present, highlighting the dynamic exchange between artistic and cultural traditions both within periods and across time.
ARTH255
Explores the origins and evolution of art in the modern American world, from the late colonial era to the present, comparing major artistic movements and their historical contexts. Considers the diversity of art across Latin America and the United States, and the ways in which artworks mediate social, ethnic, political, and national identities.
ARTH263
A comparative and thematic approach to studying the representation of otherness in art and visual culture from the eighteenth century to the present. Students will work to expand the definition of otherness, and consider the roles that ethnicity, nationality, and politics play in representations of otherness across various continents and chronologies.
ARTH292
Discovering Japan: How the Arts Shaped a Nation
Explores the origins and creation of Japan from ancient to contemporary times through East Asian and European exchange. Acquaints students with painting, sculpture, architecture, ceramics, gardens, and other art forms in relation to the various cultural contexts within which they were produced and used.
ARTH300
Egyptian Art and Archaeology
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Sites and monuments of painting, sculpture, architecture, and the minor arts of ancient Egypt from earliest times through the Roman conquest. Emphasis on the pharaonic period.
ARTH324
Leonardo's World: Art and Experience in Renaissance Italy
Painting, sculpture, architecture, and the decorative arts of the sixteenth century in Italy.
ARTH357
History of Photography
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Credit only granted for: ARTH357 or ARTH457.
An exploration of the historical, social, aesthetic, and technological developments of the photographic medium and its relationship to other modes of visual representation in the creation of the modern world.
ARTH359O
Film as Art; Film Gazes and Points of View
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Films have a "Point of View" that is constructed through different elements of form and narrative, from where the camera is placed to who is writing the script. This POV -- or "the gaze" -- tells us "who we are" when watching a film (or look at a painting). We will explore Laura Mulvey's original theory of the gaze from the 1970s and then consider how -- or if -- it changes in films up to the present day, exploring literal points of view, subjective and unreliable narrative, the way films make us identify with the "wrong" characters, define normality, the way changing a POV changes meaning, and the how the same story changes over time, across cultures or between directors.
ARTH361
Explores diverse artistic movements and makers in the United States, beginning at the end of the Civil War in 1865 and concluding with the art of Civil Rights era in the 20th century. We will ask how the visual arts construct and challenge formations of race, class, gender, and citizenship in the context of political transformations and social movements over a century of US history. This course emphasizes the practice of close looking as we encounter works art across a range of media--photography, painting, sculpture, film, material culture, performance art and public art.
ARTH386
Experiential Learning
Prerequisite: Permission of ARHU-Art History & Archaeology department.
Restriction: Junior standing or higher.
Supervised internship experience in diverse areas of art historical, archaeological, and museological work.
ARTH389W
Special Topics in Art History and Archaeology; Museum and Gallery Communications
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Questions about care (care for others, self-care, care for tradition, and so forth) have become particularly ubiquitous in recent years. Informed by this renewed urgency to the topic of care, this course returns to the question of curation as a matter-fundamentally-of care. What are the social implications of art, and the presentation and interpretation of art, construed primarily as 'taking care'? What structures and protocols help facilitate care, and how can we ensure that care does not preclude social critique and criticism? How do issues of wellbeing and sickness inform interpretations and framings of (contemporary) art? What modes of curating can best 'take care' of artists and communities, and their artistic creations?
ARTH391
Transnational Chinese Cinema
Cross-listed with: CINE335.
Credit only granted for: ARTH391 or CINE335.
Chinese cinema has made a big impact on contemporary world film culture. This course will introduce students to the films directed by some of the most representative filmmakers working in different geopolitical locations (mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong) and the Chinese diaspora. The films of these directors, in a spectrum of genres, themes, and styles, have inspired global scholarship, not only in visual culture and cinema, but also in the study of women's issues, gender and ethnic studies, as well as the fields of adaptation and intermedia studies. Students will explore these films in their socio-historical and artistic contexts, considering the influences and innovations that have shaped them and analyzing their reception by audiences and critics. After reading about the films they view, and participating in class discussions, students will be ready to complete their analytical written assignments, for which they will critically examine the films by applying key concepts such as gender, sexuality, race, gaze, style, representation, power, diaspora, etc.
ARTH488F
Colloquium in Art History; Japanese Art after 1945
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Japanese artists have provided trenchant and moving commentaries on all aspects of life since the end of World War II and the beginning of the Cold War. Learn how their art-paintings, sculpture, photography and more-engaged in creative ways with some of the most urgent issues of the day: nuclear warfare, ongoing US occupation, environmental disaster, and historical memory.
ARTH488G
Colloquium in Art History; The Shape of Power: Stories of Race and American Sculpture
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
This seminar, organized in conjunction with an exhibition of the same name at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM), will examine the history of sculpture in the United States from the 19th century to the present and explore how this medium has shaped, challenged, and reimagined concepts of race and identity. Most class meetings will take place at SAAM, and students must be able to travel to the museum in downtown D.C. for class.
ARTH488N
Colloquium in Art History; Painting in the Age of Heroes: Mural Art in Bronze Age Greece
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Explores the earliest traditions of wall painting in ancient Greece, focusing on the period of the Late Bronze Age, from ca. 1600 to 1100 BCE. Productions from Crete, the Cyclades, and the Greek mainland will be examined in detail and situated in their original archaeological contexts. Discussions will focus on the iconography of humans, plants and animals, architecture, and abstract patterns, and will address how such depictions can inform us about the diverse social, political, and religious characteristics of Aegean societies in the absence of explanatory ancient texts.
ARTH488V
Colloquium in Art History; The Art and Culture of the Guitar in Early Modern Europe
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
Explores the image of the guitar and the guitarist in early modern European art and culture. Also included will be extensive discussion of related instruments such as the vihuela, hurdy-gurdy, cittern, lute and the orbo, which similarly figure in the pictorial thematics of the period.
ARTH498
Directed Studies in Art History I
Credits:
2 - 3
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
ARTH499
Honors Thesis
Credits:
3 - 6
Grad Meth:
Reg, P-F, Aud
ARTH698
Teaching Art History
Credits:
1 - 3
Grad Meth:
S-F
ARTH708F
Seminar in Ancient Art and Archaeology; Monuments and Topography of the City of Rome
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
At its height, the Roman Empire stretched from modern-day Britain to Morocco, and from Spain to Syria. This course examines the capital city of this hegemonic power, analyzing the monuments and topography embellishing the so-called caput mundi from its founding in the eighth century BCE onward. Emphasis is given to the late Republican and early Imperial periods (the 2nd c. BCE 3rd c. CE) and to contextualizing the monuments and dynastic building programs of Rome within their urban context. The various archaeological and art historical approaches taken to topics such as the creation of monumentality; Roman identity; and the impact of cultural exchanges between the Romans and their conquered nations will also be examined as a means of understanding and interpreting the Roman cityscape.
ARTH759C
Seminar in Twentieth-Century Art; Contemporary Art in Local Collections
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Enrolled students must have time before and after class to commute to our meetings.
Considers art since 1960 by focusing on works we can study in person in College Park, Washington, Baltimore, and other locations nearby. Readings will address relevant art movements of the last sixty years; class time will be devoted largely to discussion in the presence of key works of art. Students will present works of art to the seminar in situ and will focus their research essays on one or more works they can study at length in person. The semester is organized under several themes pertaining to art we can see this semester.
Considers art since 1960 by focusing on works we can study in person in College Park, Washington, Baltimore, and other locations nearby. Readings will address relevant art movements of the last sixty years; class time will be devoted largely to discussion in the presence of key works of art. Students will present works of art to the seminar in situ and will focus their research essays on one or more works they can study at length in person. The semester is organized under several themes pertaining to art we can see this semester.
ARTH789A
Selected Topics in Art History; The Uses of the Past in China and Beyond, 1600-2000
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud, S-F
Chinese art from 1600 to 2000 embodies the heroic story of constant renewal and reinvigoration of Chinese civilization amidst rebellions, reforms, and revolutions, even if the process may appear confusing and bewildering. We will explore that story in its social and cultural contexts and in comparison with developments in other metropolitan centers outside China. We will also havethe opportunity to engage with the exhibition "The Way of Nature: Art from Japan, China, and Korea" scheduled to be on view at the Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) from September 21,2025 through March 8, 2026; inspired by Rachel Carson's writings, this exhibition is part of Turn Again to the Earth, a full year of BMA exhibitions and programs devoted to the environment.
ARTH798
Directed Graduate Studies in Art History
Credits:
3
Grad Meth:
Reg, Aud
ARTH799
Master's Thesis Research
Credits:
1 - 6
Grad Meth:
S-F
ARTH898
Pre-Candidacy Research
Credits:
1 - 8
Grad Meth:
Reg
ARTH899
Doctoral Dissertation Research
Credits:
6
Grad Meth:
S-F
Flagship Institution of the University System of Maryland
University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
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