Art, Art History, and Visual Studies

This is an archived copy of the 2015-2016 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://e-catalog.sewanee.edu.

Students planning to major in art history are strongly encouraged to complete a range of courses in complementary disciplines, including studio art, literature, history, philosophy, and religion. Majors are also advised to study abroad.

Requirements for the Major in Art History

The major requires successful completion of the following:

Course Requirements 1
ARTH 103Survey of Western Art I 24
ARTH 104Survey of Western Art II 24
ARTH 317Approaches to Art History4
Select one of the following (Area I): 34
Greek and Roman Art and Architecture
Medieval Art and Architecture
Art and Devotion in Late Medieval and Early Modern Northern Europe
Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture
Northern Renaissance Art
Select one of the following (Area II): 34
History of Photography
Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century Art
French Art
Nineteenth-Century Art
British Art
American Art
Spanish Painting
Select one of the following (Area III): 34
American Animation, 1910-1960
Approaches to Art History
Modern Art
Contemporary Art
Conceptual Art
Pop Art
Art in Germany: 1919-1933
History of Film: Invention to Mid-Century
Select four additional courses in art history (ARTH) 416
Total Semester Hours40
Additional Requirements
A comprehensive examination
1

Students interested in advanced placement into upper-division art history courses should consult the department.

2

Majors should complete the two art history surveys by the conclusion of the first semester of the junior year.

3

Students will also choose one of the three chronological areas as their area of special interest and take at least one additional art-history course in that area. The three chronological-area courses must be completed at Sewanee.

4

Subject to approval by the art history faculty, the department may accept up to two courses (eight hours) in art history from other institutions. Exceptions to this limit are decided by the chair.

Honors

To receive departmental honors, a student must have a departmental GPA of 3.50 at the end of the final semester, pass the comprehensive examination with distinction, that is, with an overall score of 88, and earn a grade of B+ or higher on an honors research paper. Eligibility for departmental honors depends on completion of Approaches to Art History (ARTH 317) with a grade of B+ or higher and a departmental GPA of 3.50 at the end of the first semester of the senior year. Eligible majors may then, at the discretion of the chair, elect a course of independent study (ARTH 440) and write an honors research paper under the direction of a member of the art history faculty.