Art History

This course surveys the art of “Non-Western” societies from prehistory to the present. Cultures discussed include South and Southeast Asia, China and Japan, Africa, and cultures of the Americas (Pre-Conquest and Native American). The term “Non-Western” traditionally refers to cultures that initially developed outside the realm of Western culture and at some distance from the European artistic tradition. The term is not only excessively broad but also problematic, because it implies an opposition to western art. We will explore these issues. The main objective of the course is to provide students with a global perspective on the richness and diversity of art produced by the cultures studied. It also considers the impact of colonization and globalization on the treatment of artworks from non-western cultures and the development of new art forms.

This course is a general survey of artworks of “western” cultures from prehistory to the present. “Western” typically designates art produced in Europe or the Americas in the European tradition, but the term can be imprecise and problematic at times. We will explore why. This course provides an overview of both typical and exceptional artworks from the western tradition; artworks range from tiny to colossal, relatively ephemeral to permanent, crude-looking to meticulously crafted, and banal to sacred. We will typically discuss artworks in roughly chronological order. Ultimately students will learn the range of artworks produced by each culture, how those artworks were made, why they looked the way they did, and what functions they served. They will also develop the skills to analyze, discuss, and write about the visual arts.