UNIVERSITY OF CANTERBURY
Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha
Template 7: Graduating Year Review Template 2011
Details
Current Year
2011
Name of Programme
Art History and Theory
Original Programme Identifier
(16) UC/05 – BA, CertArts, GradDipArts/2
Name of Self-Review Coordinator
Alison Holcroft
Programme Statement
Description
The Art History and Theory programme was introduced in 2006. It was not, however, a new programme, but merely a
reunification of two “streams” which had been divided into separate programmes in the 1980s. A series of events, the relocation of one Art Theory staff member to the Philosophy Programme in 2002, the retirement of a second Art Theory
staff member in 2003 and university restructuring necessitated the re-amalgamation of the two programmes. (It should be
noted Art History and Art Theory are normally taught within a single programme both nationally and internationally.)
The Art History and Theory programme was designed to contribute to both the Bachelor of Arts degree and the Bachelor
of Fine Arts. In the BA it is available as a Major and a Minor; in the BFA students are required to do at least two Art
History and Theory courses at 100 level and one at 200 level. Art History and Theory is also available as a subject for the
Certificate of Arts and the Graduate Diploma in Arts.
The reconstituted ARTH programme maintained the existing 100 level offerings in Art History, and re-coded two courses
that had previously been part of the Art Theory programme: ARTH 211 Theory of Criticism and ARTH 325 Aesthetic
Theory. (Three other former Art Theory courses were re-coded as part of the Philosophy programme.) At the same time
two courses from the Theatre and Film Studies programme which had been double-coded into the Art Theory programme,
were double-coded as Art History and Theory courses. These courses were TAFS 216/ARTH 212 Early and Classical
Cinema and TAFS 217/ARTH 213 Popular and Art Film.
As a result of the amalgamation, the Art History and Theory Programme offered an ambitious range of courses covering
Western art, Asian and Pacific art, Maori art, contemporary film and art theory. These included: ARTH 103 Issues in
Twentieth Century Art, ARTH 104 Maori Art: Taonga Tuki Iho, ARTH 105 Worlds of Art, ARTH 106 Worlds of
Architecture, ARTH 107 Worlds of Western Art, ARTH 108 Nga Mahi-a-Ringa: Traditional Fibre Work, ARTH 109
Formations of Contemporary Art: Visual Culture Since 1945, ARTH 202 Art in the Age of Revolutions, ARTH 204 Te
Taura Whakairo: The Continuum of Maori Art, ARTH 205 Architecture in the Twentieth Century, ARTH 207 Aspects of
Art in Aotearoa New Zealand, ARTH 208 Arts of Pacific, ARTH 209 Medieval Art: Pilgrims, Crusaders and Monastics,
ARTH 210 Japanese Art, ARTH 211 Theory of Criticism, ARTH 212 Early and Classical Cinema, ARTH 213 Popular
and Art Film, ARTH 306 Art and Artists in Victorian Britain, ARTH 318 Issues in Maori and Pacific Art, ARTH
320 Architecture in New Zealand, ARTH 321 British Art in the Twentieth Century, ARTH 322 Art since 1940: TransTasman Perspectives, ARTH323 Painting in France 1830-1900 and ARTH 325 Aesthetic Theory. Not all courses were
offered in any particular year.
The original proposal to CUAP stated under the Graduate Profile for Art History and Theory- It gives students an
historical background on the subject, and treats the most recent developments in the field. It provides students with a
considerable body of knowledge. As an essentially theoretical discipline, it teaches critical, independent thinking.
Achievement
The Art History and Theory Programme has, despite problems with staffing, maintained a workable range of courses at
all levels. At 300 level it offered five courses in 2006, six courses in 2007, five courses in 2008, and four in 2009 and
2010. This reflects a commitment to offer a programme that allows advancing 200 and 300 level students to study art
theory courses (ARTH 211, ARTH 325) traditional and contemporary Western art and architecture with a special New
Zealand focus, Japanese art, French art and Maori art.
ARTH 103 “Picasso Who?” Introducing Modern Art, ARTH105 Art: the Asia Pacific Tour and ARTH 107 Worlds of
Western Art have been consistently the most popular Art History courses at 100 level. At 200 level ARTH 202 Art and
Revolution and ARTH 205 Architecture in the 20th Century, have proved popular, as has ARTH 211 Japanese Art. These
courses attract a traditional Art History clientele from both the BA and the Bachelor of Fine Arts. The 100 and 200 level
courses, ARTH 108 Mahi-a-ringa: Introducing Traditional Maori Culture and ARTH 204 Toi Maori: Maori Art, have
been less successful in terms of enrolments, but the Art History and Theory Programme considers these courses very
important - as a service to other programmes (e.g. Maori and Indigenous Studies, the Bachelor of Fine Art programme),
as an essential component of its New Zealand offerings and as a contribution to the University’s responsibilities under the
Treaty of Waitangi.
The position of the art theory courses was also somewhat problematic in the period under review. The popular 100 level,
whole year course, ARTT 101 Arts and Ideas, was transferred to the Philosophy programme and split into two, single
semester courses, PHIL 140 Arts and Ideas and PHIL 141 Classical Concepts of Beauty. These continued to be taught by
Dr Dutton. The Philosophy Programme also continued to offer a long-standing course, PHIL 227 Philosophy of Art
(which had previously been double-coded into the Art Theory programme as ARTT 203.). Nevertheless ARTH 211,
Theory of Criticism (the course which replaced ARTT 202 Theory of Criticism) attracted good enrolments from both BA
and Bachelor of Fine Arts students. ARTH 325 Aesthetic Theory (the course which replaced ARTT 302 Aesthetic
Theory) proved less popular when it was introduced in 2006, but doubled its enrolments when it was offered a second
time in 2009.
Art History and Theory has proved a popular subject, particularly for high-achieving students. As a general rule BA
students make up about 50-60% of enrolments with the remaining 40-50% coming from the Bachelor of Fine Arts. Many
BFA students, who are only required to do three Art History and Theory courses, choose all their electives from this
programme. It is also a particularly popular subject for the Graduate Diploma in Arts, where it proves attractive both to
older students returning to study and to teachers (often with a Fine Arts qualification) who wish to extend their knowledge
of Art History. Statistics compiled by the Programme, show that in 2009 40% of students came directly from school,
41% had had a gap period of 1-5 years after leaving school or had studied for other qualifications in the meantime, and
19% were older students who had been out of school for more than five years.
There have been no enrolments in the Certificate in Arts.
Courses offered by the Art History and Theory programme have also attracted a good proportion of international students.
Records kept by the Art History and Theory programme show that, in 2008, 14% of students in their course were
international students.
Changes
There have been some changes in the Art History and Theory programme since its establishment in 2006. Some courses
have been renamed to signal their content more clearly. Thus ARTH 103 Issues in Twentieth Century Art, has been
renamed “Picasso who?” Introducing Modern Art” and ARTH 105 Worlds of Art has become “Art: the Asia Pacific
Tour”. Likewise the title of ARTH 204 has been shortened to “Toi Maori: Maori Art”, that of ARTH 202 changed to Art
and Revolution, and that of ARTH 323 extended to “Challenging Traditions: Painting in France 1830-1900”.
A number of courses have been discontinued. The double-coding for two film history courses, TAFS 216/ARTH 212
Early and Classical Cinema and TAFS 217/ARTH 213 Popular and Art Film was discontinued by the Art History and
Theory Programme in 2009. Five other courses have been discontinued due to staff retirements: ARTH 209 Medieval Art:
Pilgrims, Crusaders and Monastics , ARTH 306 Art and Artists in Victorian Britain, ARTH 318 Issues in Pacific Art,
ARTH 321 British Art of the Twentieth Century, and ARTH 322 Art Since 1940: New Zealand Perspectives
In their place there are a number of new courses reflecting both the interests of new staff and the Programme’s desire to
maintain a focus on the art of Aotearoa New Zealand: ARTH 110 Kiwi Icons: Introduction to Art in Aotearoa New
Zealand, ARTH 215 International Contemporary Art, ARTH 304 He Korero Toi Whiriwhiria: Indigenous Art, ARTH 311
Frank Lloyd Wright and the Modern Movement, ARTH 324 Topics in American Art, ARTH 327 Abstract Art, and a
course in Japanese art from the 16th to the 19th century, ARTH 328 Art of the Floating World.
Most of these changes in course offerings reflect changes in staffing. Three staff members left or retired during the period
under review and a further staff member left at the end of 2010. There are currently four full-time continuing members of
staff.
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Review Processes
E
Account of Review Processes
The Review Panel was chaired by Alison Holcroft (Associate Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences). Panel members
were Dr Richard Bullen (Undergraduate Co-ordinator for the Art History and Theory Programme), Dr Kate van Heugten
(Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences) and Liz Bond (Academic Manager of the College of Arts). Information on
enrolment patterns, course offerings, and assessment was supplied by the Art History Programme and enrolment patterns
were analysed by the College of Arts.
Review Outcomes
E
Acceptability
Enrolments in Art History and Theory in the BA have remained consistent over the period reviewed. Students appear to
select Art History and Theory as their major when they enrol at the beginning of their degree but do not necessarily
complete the degree with this major in the minimum time as can be seen from the completion rates during the review
period. The programme continues to attract a good proportion of part time students.
The panel was told that students undertaking a Bachelor of Fine Arts often enrol in a BA double degree programme. They
tend to select Art History and Theory as their major as they have been exposed to the subject during their Intermediate
year. These candidates take longer to complete their degrees hence the lower completion rates in the period under review.
Assessment procedures and student performance
The patterns of assessment for courses in the Art History and Theory programme are typical of those used in other Arts
programmes and in Art History and Theory courses at other universities worldwide. An end-of-year examination typically
constitutes 40-50% of the assessment with the remaining marks coming from two other items of assessment. These interm forms of assessment include essays, tutorial presentations, seminars, slide tests, and a “building report” (for ARTH
106 Worlds of Architecture). The Art History and Theory programme attracts relatively high-achieving students who
perform well in their assessment. In final courses in particular, there are few withdrawals and a high level of
achievement.
Data
Table 1: Numbers enrolling and completing (Data Supplied by Enterprise Reporting Team.)
Projected
Year
No.
Actual No. Enrolled
Full-time
Enrolling
Parttime
EFTS
No.
Completed
Withdrawals
1
2008
-
59
34
25
48.4
12
2009
-
52
32
20
43.5
11
2010
-
68
39
29
56.9
5
1
Notes Table 1.
1. 'Actual No. Enrolled' is the number of approved enrolments in the programme and includes withdrawals after the cut-off period
for fees.
2. Full-time is 0.8 EFTS or greater in a calendar year. Part-time is less than 0.8 EFTS in a calendar year.
Where courses are split over two years EFTS are divided by the number of months based on start and end dates
3. The number of EFTS is the total for all enrolments in the specified programme.
4. Completions are all those who have completed the academic requirements for the programme in the given year.
5. Withdrawals are students who have withdrawn from all courses in a programme. These students may or may not have returned
in a subsequent year.
Table 2: Distribution of grades (for final year courses) (Data compiled by the College of Arts from class lists.)
Year
Course Code
No. Enrolled
No. Completed
A+
A
A-
B+
2008
ARTH304
5
5
1
1
2
1
ARTH306
19
19
3
1
4
1
ARTH318
12
12
1
2
4
5
3
B
B-
C+
C
5
3
1
1
C-
Fail
OTHER
2009
2010
ARTH320
6
6
ARTH323
29
29
11
ARTH304
6
6
1
ARTH320
12
12
ARTH324
40
40
ARTH325
21
21
3
ARTH304
5
5
1
ARTH311
9
9
ARTH323
18
18
ARTH327
23
23
12
1
1
6
6
1
1
2
3
1
2
1
3
1
3
3
3
3
7
13
13
5
2
5
3
4
4
1
2
1
1
4
1
2
1
1
1
1
5
5
4
6
1
1
1
1
1
1xS
1
NOTES:



Cultural enrolments are not included.
“P Aeg” passes are classed as “C” passes.
“S” denotes a result that is sanctioned and therefore unavailable.
Course titles.
ARTH 304 He Korero Toi Whiriwhiria: Indigenous Art; ARTH 306 Art and Artists in Victorian Britain; ARTH 311
Issues in Pacific Art ; ARTH 318 Frank Lloyd Wright and the Modern Movement; ARTH 320 Architecture in New
Zealand; ARTH 323 Painting in France 1830-1900; ARTH324 Topics in American Art; ARTH 325 Aesthetic Theory;
ARTH 327 Abstract Art.
Programme Evaluation
The re-amalgamated Art History and Theory programme has achieved its aims of offering a broad range of art history
courses, many with a special focus on New Zealand and Maori Art and architecture, plus the essential courses on the
theory of criticism and aesthetic theory, required for both the BA and the Bachelor of Fine Arts. The Programme deserves
special commendation for two aspects in particular, firstly its commitment to offering courses at all levels on Maori and
Indigenous art and secondly the dedication of its staff in continuing to offer a wide range of options to students.
The Panel noted the lack of enrolments in the Certificate in Arts. They were told that the certificate had been introduced
for students who might want an introductory qualification or as an exit qualification but that there had been limited
enrolments across the faculty in it. The Certificate will be reviewed in 2012 to ascertain whether it is still required given
that students are enrolling in and completing degrees.
Continuation or Discontinuation
The Panel recommends that the College of Arts continue to offer the Art History and Theory programme noting the
review of the Certificate in Arts in 2012.
4