intro to the visual arts(1)

7/29/2019 Intro to the Visual Arts(1)

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Last updated 9/13/2013

College of Staten Island

Department of Performance and Creative Arts

Introduction to the Visual Arts

ART 100 3 hours, 3 Credits

Fall 2013

Tuesdays 4:40 6:30 pmThursdays 4:40 5:30 pm

Classroom 1P/228

Maria Laura Steverlynck

Email: [email protected]

Office: 1P/203

Advising hours: Tuesdays & Thursdays 3:30 4:30 pm

Course Description

A selective examination of the materials and forms of the visual arts from antiquity to the present --

including painting, sculpture, and architecture -- designed to provide students with a critical and

historical framework for evaluating visual experience. Students will become familiar with core

examples of Western material culture, art, design, and architecture emerging out of Europe and the

Americas. Through the combination of slide lectures, videos, short writing assignments and a museum

visit, students will explore themes such as the function of objects, their social and historical contexts,

materials and techniques of production, conventions of representations, and the artists role. The

course will pose the following questions: What is art? Is the appearance, or form of an art or design

object its most important element? Is iconography an essential component? What role does religion,biography, psychology, philosophy, society and politics play in the production of material culture, art-

making, design, and perception?

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this semester, students should be able to:

Exhibit familiarity with the major art and design works, makers, and movements in world artand design from Antiquity to our contemporary moment.

Become familiar with the core vocabulary, and themes expressed through the visual arts Exhibit familiarity with the social, cultural, political and religious contexts of art and design

making;

Students will be able to clearly describe and critically analyze works of art.


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Final Grade Calculation

Participation /Quizzes 20%

Museum Paper 30%

Midterm 25%

Final Exam 25%

TOTAL 100%

ASSIGNMENTS

1. Quizzes and ParticipationParticipation is a very important component of this course. Participation means to come to

class prepared and engage actively with the class material. I will be giving you quizzes

sporadically throughout the semester. In exception of the first quiz, which will be test you

knowledge and understanding of this syllabus, these quizzes are meant to serve as practice for

the midterm and final exams. Each quiz will be made up of 5 multiple-choice questions. They

will be graded in a check, check plus or check minus scale, the average of these quizzes willcount towards your participation grade.

2. Midterm and Final ExamsYour MIDTERM EXAM DATE is OCTOBER 17 and FINAL EXAM DATE is DECEMBER 19

Please keep in mind that NO MAKE-UP EXAMS will be given. If you are absent on the day of the

exams and have no documented excuse, you will automatically receive a zero grade for the

exam and that will be factored into the average of the course.

Both exams will consist of 25 multiple-choice questions and 2 long comparison essay questions.

The multiple choice questions are worth 2 points each (50 points in total) and the comparison

questions are worth 25 points each (50 points total).

The multiple-choice portion of the exam will test your understating of the general information

about the artworks seen in class. You will be asked to identify facts such as who the artist or

cultures that made the artwork and how its an example of a style and/or an era.

For each comparison I will show you two images and ask you to compare and contrast them in a

short essay format. These comparison questions will require you to analyze the artworks

comparatively and to connect them to general themes discussed in the course. We will make

comparison exercises together in every class meeting for practice.

Every week I will be posting a list of images covered in class. These are the images you will be

tested on and are responsible to study for these exams.

3. Museum Formal Analysis PaperOn September 28 we will meet at the Metropolitan Museum of Art at 10 am. During the visit I

want you to look around the galleries of the museum and select an artwork you really like, or

just intrigues you. The assignment for this visit is to write a formal analysis of the selected


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artwork. I will talk about this assignment in the next few classes and post specifics on this

assignment on Blackboard.

The paper will be due on October 8. I will not accept any emailed papers. All late papers will be

penalized with one letter grade for each day after the deadline. I will not accept papers after

October 22.

RECOMMENDED TEXTBOOK

Most readings for this class will be in:

Marylin Stokstad & Micheal W. Cothren,Art: A Brief History. 5th

Edition. Pearson, 2011.

ISBN:0205017029. The textbook will be on reserve at the library, or you can find it at the CSIbookstore. It is also available to purchase online on amazon for $106.89, you can also rent it for

$29.49, and if you have a digital device that supports kindle you can get it for $74.90. Copies of earlier

editions cost less. All of the images we will be discussing in class appear in this textbook.

Other readings outside of this text will be made available on Blackboard under Reading Assignments.

RECOMMENDED WEBS SOURCES

Smarthistory.org is a site that acts as an interactive textbook with videos of the major artworks

explained by experts in the field. These videos are short and can be helpful for preparing before class,

or for reviewing before quizzes, and your midterm/final exams. The site also has a great glossary of art

historical terms which can be helpful when you are unsure of the use and/or meaning of these terms.

Another helpful source is the Metropolitan Museum of Arts website (www.metmuseum.org) and its

Timeline of Art History (www.metmuseum.org/toah/) are both highly recommended. The timeline is a

great tool for understating better the museums collection in a broader historical context.

SCHOOL RESROUCES

Library

The campus has a great library. I am currently in the process of scheduling a guest speaker to come

into the classroom and talk to you about the use of the library. In the meantime, I encourage you to

visit it and become familiar with its website. After the class visit we will be having several in-class

workshops on how to use the library and its resources appropriately.

Blackboard

Email & Blackboard: It is CRUCIAL that you check your email and blackboard site regularly since I willbe communicating important announcements and handouts for the class through them. All the course

documents (updated syllabus, Image lists and study guides for the midterm and final exams) will be

posted under Course Documents. Supplementary readings will be posted under Reading

Assignments.
http://www.metmuseum.org/http://www.metmuseum.org/http://www.metmuseum.org/http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/http://www.metmuseum.org/


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CLASS POLICIES

Attendance

I will take attendance at the beginning of each class. Attendance is mandatory and students are

expected to attend all class meetings except in case of serious illness or emergency. Everyone gets 2absence with no questions asked. Additional absences will reduce your final grade by one point.

Students must not arrive late to class you should not leave the classroom during the class session

except in cases of emergency. Lateness will negatively affect your final grade. Please, make every effort

to come to class on time.

Responsibility

Students are responsible for all assignments, even if they are absent. Late papers, failure to complete

the readings assigned for class discussion, and lack of preparedness for in-class discussions and

presentations will jeopardize your successful completion of this course.

Email Correspondence

Students are expected to compose their emails with the proper writing etiquette. Such as: Writing in

full sentences and using proper grammar. Remember you are not text messaging your instructor!

All correspondence should be done with the students College of Staten Island email address.

Laptop use in the classroom

Given their persistent abuse, laptop usage during the allotted class time is not allowed.

Cell phone use in the classroom

Given the persistent abuse of cell phones, their use (including text messaging ) during the allotted class

time is not allowed.

Participation

Class participation is an essential part of class and includes: keeping up with reading, contributing

meaningfully to class discussions, active participation in group work, and coming to class regularly and

on time.

Plagiarism & Cheating

Plagiarism is the use of another person's words or ideas in any academic work using books,

journals, Internet postings, or other student papers without proper acknowledgment. Examples

of this include using an author's words in your own essay and not citing them; paraphrasing an

author's wordsthat is changing the exact wording but lifting the exact meaningand notciting them. If a student is caught cheating on an exam or having plagiarized an assignment, he/she will

receive an F for the exam/ assignment and will be reported to the Dean of Students.

Delays

In rare instances, I may be delayed arriving to class. If I have not arrived by the time class is scheduled

to start, you must wait a minimum of fifteen minutes for my arrival. In the event that I will miss class

entirely, a sign will be posted at the classroom indicating your assignment for the next class meeting.


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Course Outline

Weekly Topic Date Class Topic Assignments

WEEK 1 August 29 Introduction Stokstad.Introduction,

Pg. 1-17

WEEK 2

Prehistory

September 3 Prehistoric Art

- Syllabus Quiz

Stokstad. Ch.1

Prehistoric Art in

Europe, Pg. 18-31.

September 5 No Classes at CSI

WEEK 3

Art of Ancient Egypt

September 10 Ancient Egypt Stokstad. Ch. 3 Art ofAncient Egypt, pg. 48-59.

September 12 Ancient Egypt Review Stokstad. Ch. 3 Art ofAncient Egypt, pg. 59-67.

WEEK 4

Ancient Greek Art

September 17 Aegean and Early Greek

Art

- Quiz

Stokstad.Ch. 5 Art of

Ancient Greece and the

Aegean World. Pg. 92-

118.

September 19 Late Classical and

Hellenstic Greek Art


Ancient Greece and the

Aegean World. Pg. 118-

128.

WEEK 5

Roman Art

September 24 Etruscan and Early

Roman Art

Stokstad.Ch. 6 Etruscan

and Roman Art. Pg. 128-143.

September 26 Imperial Roman Art Stokstad.Ch. 6 Etruscanand Roman Art. Pg. 148-

157.

WEEK 6

Early Christian/Jewish &

Byzantine Art

October 1 Early Christian/Jewish &

Byzantine Art

Stokstad. Ch. 7. Jewish,

Early Christian and

Byzantine Art. Pg. 158-

183.

October 3 Class Cancelled Due to

Museum Visit 9/28

WEEK 7

Romanesque Art

October 8 Early Medieval Art- Museum Paper Due

Stokstad.Ch10 Early

Medieval and

Romanesque Art. Pg.

232-247.

October 10 Romanesque Art and

Architecture

Stokstad.Ch10 Early

Medieval and


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Romanesque Art. Pg.

247-259.

WEEK 8

Midterm Exam

October 15 NO CLASS - CSI Follows

a Wednesday Schedule

October 17 Midterm Exam

WEEK 9

Gothic Art

October 22 Gothic Art in France

- Quiz

Stokstad. Ch. 11 Gothic

Art, pg. 260-277.

October 24 Gothic Art in England

and Italy

Stokstad. Ch. 11 Gothic

Art, pg. 277-291.

WEEK 9

Renaissance Art

October 29 Early Renaissance Art Stokstad. Ch. 12 EarlyRenaissance Art. Pg. 292-

323.

October 31 Art of the High

Renaissance and the

Reformation


the High Renaissance and

Reformation Pg. 324-

365.

WEEK 10

Baroque Art

November 5 Baroque Rome & Spain Stokstad. Ch. 14Seventeenth Century Art

in Europe pg. 366-383.

November 7 Baroque Flanders &

Dutch Republic

Stokstad. Ch. 14

Seventeenth Century Art

in Europe pg. 383-401.

WEEK 11

European and American

Art, 1715-1840

November 12 Neo-Classicism in

France and England

- Quiz

Stokstad. Ch. 17

European & American

Art, 1715-1840 pg. 446-

464.

November 14 Romanticism Stokstad. Ch. 17European & American

Art, 1715-1840 pg. 464-

473.

WEEK 12

European and AmericanArt, 1840-1910

November 19 Architecture, the

Academy & ArtNouveau

Stokstad. Ch. 18

European & AmericanArt, 1840-1910. Pg. 474-

485.

November 21 Thanksgiving CSI

Closed

WEEK 13

European and American

November 26 Early Photography/

Realism

Stokstad. Ch. 18

European & American


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Art, 1840-1910

(cont.)

Art, 1840-1910. Pg. 485-

495.

November 28 Impressionism & Post-

Impressionism

Stokstad. Ch. 18

European & American

Art, 1840-1910. Pg. 495-

509.

WEEK 14

Modern Art 1900-1945

December 3 Early Modernism in

Europe and the United

States

- Quiz

Stokstad.Ch. 19 Modern

Art in Europes and the

Americas, 1900-1945.

Pg. 510-539.

December 5 North American Art

Between the Wars

Stokstad.Ch. 19 Modern

Art in Europes and the

Americas, 1900-1945.

Pg. 539-549.

WEEK 15Art Since 1945

December 10 Abstract Expressionism/Pop Art & Conceptual

Art

Stokstad.Ch. 20 ArtSince 1945. Pg. 550-575.

December 12 Postmodernism Stokstad.Ch. 20 ArtSince 1945. Pg. 575-591.

WEEK 16 December 17 Review Day

December 19 Final Exam