ARTH 102 – 001 CRN # 31926 Fall 2023 TR 11:00-12:20 Nesbitt Hall #125 Dr. Gregory Office: Acad. 109b Office Hours: TR 10-11 Online Office Hours by request Mailbox: Art & Art History office, 109 Academic Bldg. *Please use your Drexel email when emailing the professor. All text documents should be submitted in Word. jfg22@drexel.edu History of Art II Course Description This course will explore developments within the visual culture of the early modern period, ca. 1400-1850. Images will be analyzed as expressions of the profound cultural transformations that have given rise to the modern world as we know ita world of global capitalism, industrialization, hyperbolic urbanization, socio-economic disparities, ideological conflicts, modern science and technology, climate crisis, and international art markets. Individual images will be analyzed in terms of style and iconography as well as their relations to contemporary social, political, economic, scientific, religious, and philosophical factors. Interdisciplinary and cross-cultural perspectives will be employed to better understand the distinctive characteristics of the early modern period. Course Purpose To develop critical thinking skills and habits of mind while examining some of the essential ways in which the cultural developments of the early modern period in European history have shaped the world in which we live. Learning Objectives The primary goals of this course are: 1) To develop superior critical thinking skills. 2) To reveal art as a form of sign-making activity that always operates within a specific cultural framework of ideas, assumptions, concerns, practices, and values. 3) To make students aware of some of the ways in which the distinctive characteristics of the early modern period have profoundly shaped the world in which they live. 4) To become aware of art historical methods and concerns. 5) To develop a greater sensitivity to the expressive, formal aspect of images. Note: Lectures will be delivered face-to-face but will be recorded by means of Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, a tool available through BB Learn. Please familiarize yourself with this tool prior to Tuesday, September 26th, the date of our first class. Please check both your Drexel email and BB Learn daily for notifications and materials concerning the course. Course Requirements Reading and Viewing Assignments No textbook is required for this course. Various readings, videos, and recordings will be used to replace the role of a textbook. Required material is specified in the Weekly Schedule below. Weekly Schedule of Topics, Assignments, and Exams 1)Tuesday, 9/26 Syllabus review (please read carefully prior to class). PPT: What is critical thinking?? What is “culture” and how does it shape the world of our experience? What is the principle of the “social construction of consciousness, a concept fundamental to all cultural studies? What is “art” and in what way is it “historical?” Why should we study historical cultures? What are some of the distinctive features of Western consciousness (contrast with Eastern perspectives)? Assignment for Thursday 9/28: please look at the following videos: https://youtu.be/mabjJJDqjFM?feature=shared https://youtu.be/jLh4QZDyNUA?feature=shared 2)Thursday, 9/28 Discussion of Renaissance and Medieval worldviews; the critical importance of Christianity; the hierarchical order of the cosmos and society; man as microcosm; the characteristics and consequences of Renaissance humanism; the fundamental importance of individualism in the unique development of European culture. Assignment for Tuesday 10/03: Please look at the following videos: https://youtu.be/GOAVRcI6mFU (part 1 of the 4 part series on the Medici) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUBnNDloGHg&t=718s (Brunelleschi) 3)Tuesday, 10/03 the Medici, Donatello, Brunelleschi Assignment for Thursday 10/05: Please look at the following video: https://youtu.be/ZoDtoB9Abck?feature=shared 4)Thursday, 10/05 Linear perspective and the mathematical world view of modern science; comparison to the nature of spatial relations in Chinese painting; the “science” of painting as a “liberal” pursuit (the quadrivium); the social elevation of the artist as “creative”; Masaccio 5)Tuesday, 10/10 Botticelli, Piero della Francesca, Mantegna Thursday, 10/12 Leonardo da Vinci Assignment for Tuesday 10/17: study for exam 6)Tuesday 10/17 Exam #1: 15th century Italian Renaissance. Assignment for Thursday 10/19, read the essay by Pico della Mirandola, “On the Dignity of Man” (posted on BB Learn) Thursday 10/19 Christian Humanism; Michelangelo 7)Tuesday, 10/24 Michelangelo (cont.) Raphael, Giorgione Thursday, 10/26 Titian, Mannerism, participation of women in Renaissance art world Assignment for Tuesday 10/31, study for exam #2 8)Tuesday, 10/31 Exam #2: 16th c. Italian Renaissance Assignment for Thursday 11/02: Please watch the following video: https://youtu.be/lob0zb28_wM Thursday, 11/02 Northern Renaissance; causes and principles of Protestantism; individualism, printing 9)Tuesday, 11/07 Northern Renaissance Thursday, 11/09 Northern Renaissance Assignment for Tuesday 11/14: Please watch videos on Caravaggio and Bernini https://youtu.be/CX_KWIvIVM8 https://youtu.be/Wet-VF2bDCA 10)Tuesday, 11/14 Caravaggio, Gentileschi Thursday, 11/16 Bernini , Gaulli, Pozzo 11)Tuesday, 11/21 Exam #3: Northern Renaissance and Italian Baroque. Thursday, 11/23: Thanksgiving 12)Tuesday, 11/28 Northern Baroque and Rococo Assignment for Tuesday 11/30: please watch: https://youtu.be/l5U87bSHUxI Thursday, 11/30 European Enlightenment; scientific revolution; French Revolution; industrial revolution; urbanization; modern science and technology; Neoclassicism 13)Tuesday, 12/05 Neoclassicism Thursday, 12/07 Romanticism Exam #4: Northern Baroque, Rococo, Neoclassicism, Romanticism (this will be given during the time period scheduled by the University for your final exam). Attendance Learning requires your attentive intellectual participation, and so attendance and punctuality are mandatory (please arrive before class begins, and do not leave before it ends). Speaking up in class is encouraged and appreciated. The contribution of your observations, ideas, and questions benefits everyone, especially you, and provides me with valuable feedback. If you have more than 2 unexcused absences, your final grade will suffer (1/2 letter grade reduction for every 2 missed classes beyond the permitted two unexcused absences). If any absence is necessitated by important and unavoidable events such as religious holidays or medical or family emergencies it will be excused, provided you communicate these reasons directly to me by means of an email and provide documentation such as a doctor’s note in order for the absence to be excused). An attendance sheet will be handed out at the beginning of each class; it is your responsibility to be certain you sign the sheet before you leave class that day. Laptops/Technology The use of phones, laptops, or any other electronic devices during class is not permitted unless you have an accommodation. Please come prepared to take notes by hand. There is compelling evidence that taking notes by hand has cognitive advantages (http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-learning-secret-don-t-take-notes-with-a-laptop/). Grading Your grades will be determined by a series of 4 exams and one 5-page research paper due at the end of the term. Each of the 4 exams will count for 20% of your grade (80% total); your research paper will count for 20%. Exams will test your understanding of the most important points developed in class presentations as well as assigned texts and videos. Exams will be given during our regularly scheduled class meetings. All exams are scheduled in advance; there will be no surprise quizzes. Research Paper The research paper will require you to analyze an artwork from the European tradition which was created during the period under study (1400-1850). The length of the paper must be at least 1250 words (five pages). It will be due by midnight on the day of the final exam. Detailed directions (prompt) for writing your paper will be posted on BB Learn. You must consult scholarly sources. JSTOR is an excellent online database useful for finding appropriate scholarly articles; it is available through Hagerty Library’s website. Additional online library resources linked to Drexel’s Library that might help you execute your research are: Art & Architecture ePortal Art History Online Art History + Visual Studies research guide You must include a bibliography and use a system of citation such as endnotes or footnotes (I do not care what style or system you use). Note: A grade of INC (incomplete) will only be awarded under very rare and unavoidable circumstances that prevent a student from completing the assigned coursework on time. If granted, a formal INC contract must be signed by both the student and professor and submitted to the Provost’s Office. Evaluation Criteria for the Research Paper A = an exceptional paper that is thoughtful and ambitious. Ideas are clearly and strongly expressed using clear and concise language. Visual analysis is detailed and insightful. Scholarly sources are well chosen, put to good use, and properly cited. The paper is clearly and coherently structured. The paper is carefully proofread and edited. B = a good paper. The analysis is generally good but includes some meandering ideas, repetitions, and stops short in some places where elaboration is necessary. Visual analysis is not as precise and sensitive as it might be. The language is generally good but includes some poor word choices, typos, and grammatical errors. Scholarly sources are OK, but not as appropriate as they might be, and are not integrated properly into the text. Citations are not always presented properly. C = an adequate paper but in need of substantial improvement. The analysis needs greater coherence and clarity. Visual analysis is largely borrowed from sources and lacks subtlety and personal insight. Language choices are marginally clear and appropriate at best and include many poor word choices, typos, and grammatical errors. Scholarly sources are largely insufficient and where relevant are not integrated properly into the text. Citations are presented poorly or are missing. D = a paper that reveals a minimum of effort and has failed to address the assignment’s basic challenge. F = a paper consisting of largely incomprehensible or plagiarized verbiage and inadequate scope of research. Grade Point Scale for the Course: A+ = 97-100 A = 93-96 A- = 90-92 B+ = 87-89 B = 83-86 B- = 80-82 C+ = 77-79 C = 73-76 C- = 70-72 D+ = 67-69 D = 63-66 F = Below 63 University Policies https://drexel.edu/provost/policies-calendars/policies/academicintegrity/ Student with Disability Statement https://drexel.edu/disability-resources/supportaccommodations/student-family-resources/ Course Add/Drop Policy https://drexel.edu/provost/policies-calendars/policies/course-adddrop/ https://drexel.edu/provost/policies-calendars/policies/coursewithdrawal/ Academic Integrity, Plagiarism, Dishonesty and Cheating Policy Course Withdrawal Policy Course Change Policy The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the course, schedule, and policies at his discretion. Changes will be communicated by means of email and during class meetings. A revised course schedule will be distributed by email and posted on BBLearn if warranted by the character of such changes. Notice: Appropriate Use of Course Materials It is important to recognize that some or all of the course materials provided to you may be the intellectual property of Drexel University, the course instructor, or others. Use of this intellectual property is governed by Drexel University policies, including the policy found here: https://drexel.edu/it/about/policies/policies/01-Acceptable-Use/ Briefly, this policy states that course materials, including recordings, provided by the course instructor may not be copied, reproduced, distributed or re-posted. Doing so may be considered a breach of this policy and will be investigated and addressed as possible academic dishonesty, among other potential violations. Improper use of such materials may also constitute a violation of the University's Code of Conduct found here: https://drexel.edu/cpo/policies/cpo-1/ and will be investigated as such.
