In the first year, Foundations in Art History consists of a series of half-semester courses taken in three categories: Non-Western, Ancient to Baroque and Modern/Contemporary. We believe that all courses at all levels of university education serve as points of access to motivated students. Foundation courses introduce students not only to the history of various periods and places but also to basic methods of doing research and writing about art.
At the sophomore level, students are required to take Issues and Debates in Contemporary Art, a course built around presentations of and discussions around issues relevant to the contemporary art world.
The minimum art history requirement for the BFA degree can be fulfilled with the successful completion of two additional courses at the junior and senior levels. Students in upper division classes study the history of art in a more focused manner by examining works organized according to a specific culture (African, Pre-Columbian), time period (Eighteenth-Century, Renaissance), movement (Modernism, Impressionism), topic (Women in Art) or medium (Ceramics, Photography).