Course Title: ART 405 Art and Critical Theory
Term: Fall
Course Description
Major, minor. Elective credit. “We do not explain pictures: we explain remarks about pictures.” In the first line to his 1985 book Patterns of Intention, Michael Baxandall succinctly summed up the promise—and the problems—of art history. What underlies every art historical enterprise are the ideas unconsciously carried around by the historian. This course is about those ideas: the theories that have come to shape the way in which we interpret works of art. We will be asking big questions--How do we determine the meaning of an artwork? Why do styles of art change over time? How does art relate to culture or to politics? Although writing about art has existed for centuries, the discipline of art history is very new, less than two hundred years old. And yet, already, there are those who claim that art history is “dead.” The norms of our field are being constantly challenged, and, this semester, you will enter this ongoing and lively debate. We will begin by exploring the foundational methodologies of art history; then, we will turn attention to newer theories that look to unsettle—and even deconstruct—those inherited frameworks. Finally, we will contemplate art history’s current and future directions. This is a challenging course designed for upper-level art history majors--or anyone interested in probing philosophical questions about the nature of art—and students should expect to devote substantial time to reading and grappling with the ideas presented on a weekly basis.
Course Objectives
-
Become familiar with the major theories and methodologies for interpreting works of art
-
Compare and evaluate theoretical approaches to art’s history
-
Cultivate analytic and synthetic skills in oral presentations
-
Acquire skills in writing critically about works of art
Course Outcomes
-
Students will become familiar with the major theories and methodologies for interpreting works of art
-
Students will compare and evaluate theoretical approaches to art’s history
-
Students will cultivate analytic and synthetic skills in oral presentations
-
Students will acquire skills in writing critically about works of art
Project 1: Essay
In the first assignment, you will return to an art history paper that you have written for a previous class at Converse. You will provide a brief meta-analysis of the paper, assessing the methodologies employed by the author, and you will re-write the paper using a new methodological lens. In the second assignment, you will select a new object and interpret that object from three different analytical points of view.
Project 2: Final Project
The final project will consist of either a book review or a thesis proposal.
Book Review:
5-6 page review of a recent publication in art history. This essay is modeled on the book review format for the College Art Association: http://www.caareviews.org/ You will be required to read the selected book and provide a critical appraisal of the author’s argument, in its entirety, and within the state of the field of the given topic. Citation of at least 2 other essays or books will be required.
​
I suggest reading a few book reviews before setting down to write. You may choose to organize the book review in whatever manner you’d like, but these scholarly reviews often follow a predictable pattern. They are designed for an audience of fellow scholars (not for the lay reader), so the job is to provide a thorough, comprehensive, but also evaluative analysis of the book. Typically, the reviewer will begin with a “hook” or an overview of how the book sits within the scholarly terrain. Next, the reviewer will follow the author’s argument as it unfolds sequentially. Finally, the reviewer will end by pointing out flaws or omissions within the book’s arc. Such comments are usually supported by bringing in the work of other scholars or offering other methodological strategies.
FinalProject01.pdf
Thesis Proposal:
Annotated Bibliography & Thesis Proposal: a 5-6 page thesis proposal with a bibliography of at least 20 titles. For senior art history majors who will be entering into ART 460 in the spring, the final project will consist of a thesis proposal and extensive bibliography. The thesis proposal will articulate a detailed plan for action for the execution of an extensive research paper; the proposal should evidence an initial phase of research and an overview of the scholarly literature on the intended topic.
​
Annotated Bibliography:
You will compile an annotated bibliography of ~20 sources (a rule of thumb is that you should plan for about 2 sources per page of your research paper; that figure depends wildly on your topic, of course; but it gives you a sense of the depth of research and the processes of distillation you will go through in sorting your evidence). Your bibliography must be properly formatted according to Chicago Manual of Style guidelines: www.chicagomanualofstyle.org Annotations should be concise (~300 words), and should offer an overview of the main argument of the book chapter and/or scholarly article. You may also comment on the strength and weakness of the author’s argument and its potential usefulness for your own thesis.
​
Proposal:
The proposal should lay out the tentative aims of your final paper. First, it should provide a synthetic overview and critical appraisal of the “state of the field” of your topic. This overview will derive from your assessment of the sources included in your annotated bibliography, mapping out the consensus and divisions among scholars writing on this artist and/or movement. Second, it should include a clear and well-articulated thesis or theses (based on an initial survey of the literature AND your gut instincts). This thesis can—and should—change during the process of further research and writing, but it is important to demonstrate the issues and questions that will guide your process. The proposal should give some sense of how you intend to organize the arguments and evidence of your final paper. Finally, you may indicate future directions for your research process, including the kinds of new sources you will need to consult to answer the questions raised in your paper.
​
