Course Title: ART 305: 19th Century Art
Term: Spring
Course Description
Major, minor. Elective credit. Writing Intensive. Covering a period of immense political, social, and technological transformation, this course surveys major art movements in Europe and the United States from the late-18th to the beginning of the 20th century. Topics include the French Revolution, the international Romantic movement, the rise of landscape painting, the advent and impact of early photography, and the intellectual underpinnings of modernism. The focus of the course will alternate between broad artistic developments and case studies of individual artists/artwork, introducing students to a range of art-historical methodologies from social art history to feminist theory and postcolonial studies.
Course Objectives
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To expand student’s familiarity with of major artists and artworks of the long 19th century
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To situate artistic production within broader political, cultural, and intellectual histories of the period
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To develop skills in visual analysis, historical interpretation, and scholarly research
Course Outcomes
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Students will become familiar with the major artists and artworks of the long 19th century
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Students will learn how to situate artistic production within broader political, cultural, and intellectual histories of the period
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Students will develop skills in visual analysis, historical interpretation, and research-based writing
Project 1: Group Presentations
Though this is a survey course, students should anticipate frequent discussions based on the daily readings and artworks introduced in lecture. In addition, student-led presentation will take place on a weekly basis.
On each of the designated days, a pair of students will be responsible for leading a 30 to 40-minute conversation based on the assigned scholarly article. Beginning with a brief presentation, the members of the group should be ready to explain the context of the reading and its author, summarize the essay’s major arguments, and, most importantly, prepare questions for their classmates. While there is no set format, the presenters are encouraged to create a PowerPoint, distribute handouts, introduce additional images, or organize group activities. The aim is to move beyond an elemental grasp of the text and use the reading to stimulate a lively and generative discussion related to the larger themes of the course.
Project 2: Visual Analysis
In this first paper, no research is required! You will choose one artwork to focus on: an artwork of any media, created between c.1780 and 1910. To find a work that interests you, I suggest perusing the textbook and the collections at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Philadelphia Art Museum; locally, check out the Johnson Collection, the Mint (in Charlotte), and the High Museum in Atlanta.
A visual analysis (sometimes called a formal analysis) describes and evaluates the forms appearing in the work you have chosen. These forms give the work its expression, message, or meaning. This type of analysis assumes a work of art is a constructed object that has been created with meaning and that this meaning can be understood by studying the elements of the work and their relationships. Yet the analysis is not a random flow of ideas about the work (i.e. stream of consciousness writing). Rather, it should have a sense of order, moving purposefully through your description with regard to specific elements (such as composition, color, subject matter) that build towards some argument you want to make about the artwork: your thesis.
Project 3: Final Research Paper
Your final project will be a research paper, of 8-10 double-spaced pages, based on the work that you have chosen for your visual analysis. The aim is to interpret the artwork in the historical context of its production or its reception, considering its relation to specific social, cultural, economic, or political phenomena. Your paper should be driven by a clearly-stated, provable thesis and supported by evidence gathered through primary- and secondary-source materials.
We will discuss the expectations and procedures of scholarly research over the course of the semester, but if at any point you have any questions about finding sources, do not hesitate to contact me or visit my office hours.
The aim is to weave together visual evidence with the historical context of the work’s production or its reception, considering its relation to specific social, cultural, economic, or political phenomena. To that end, you will also be submitting a bibliography that must include at least 8 scholarly sources related to your artwork or artist. Examples of scholarly sources include peer-review academic journals (such as the Art Bulletin), chapters of an academic book, and articles in exhibition catalogues. For citations, include consecutive numbers that refer to footnotes (at the foot of each page) or endnotes (at the end of the entire document). Your notes must be consistently formatted according to Chicago Manual of Style handbook: www.chicagomanualofstyle.org
Student Samples
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