Art History, Bachelor of Arts
Department Chairs: Richard Barlow (co-chair) and Joseph Von Stengel (co-chair)
Faculty: Richard Barlow; Joseph Von Stengel; Leah Frankel; Katharine Kreisher; Stephanie Rozene; Douglas Zullo. Adjunct instructors: Erik Halvorson; Kevin Gray; Jonathan Pincus; Sydney Sheehan, Brendan Gaffney, Jeffrey Youn, Normandy Alden
Majors
Art
Minors
Art
About
At Hartwick, Art and Art History students dig deeper. They learn to think critically and creatively about visual culture by studying art history in-depth and in-person. They learn to create art by making art, using both traditional studio methods and new emerging technologies. Hartwick art and art history students master theory and practice through hands-on learning and personal relationships with expert faculty.
Students may choose from two majors in Art or in Art History. Both of these programs culminate in a Bachelor of Arts degree. The department also offers minors in Art, Art History, Documentary Photography, and Graphic Communications.
The Major in Art History. Art History is both the study of more than 40,000 years of the history of human beings using images to communicate and the critical analysis of the current pervasive use of images in cultures around the planet. This program includes three introductory-level Global Art courses, normally taken in the first three terms. They serve as the foundation for six additional Art History courses required for the major, which introduce the student to the discipline of Art History through an investigation of a variety of cultures, subjects, functions, techniques, and ideas. Art History majors also take eight credits of studio-based Art courses. This experiential learning enables the student to directly engage skills and concepts used by artists, and to understand how different materials, techniques, and technologies affect visual communication. Art History majors will also achieve reading competency in a foreign language. This is generally achieved through a two-course beginning language sequence. The required art history capstone comprises a Research and Methods course (taken in the Spring of the junior year) and the Senior Thesis (completed in the Fall of the senior year), and culminates in a symposium at which seniors present their research to the Art and Art History faculty and other members of the community.
The department also offers a varied schedule of art events, including visiting artist and art historian lectures, art films and art exhibitions, which are designed as part of the student’s education. Studio and Art History majors are required by department policy to attend out-of-class events sponsored by the department.
A number of special study opportunities offered by the department further enrich the art program at Hartwick. Individualized instruction in studio classes gives students the opportunity to work closely with professional artists. The full- time faculty is joined each semester by resident artists-specialists who teach courses in such areas as Glass, Drawing and Photography— and by prestigious visiting artists who conduct occasional workshops or lectures. Past visiting artists have included Andy Warhol, Richard Artschwager, Nanette Carter, Steve Currie, Fred Escher, Robert Fichter, Denise Green, Maren Hassinger, Nancy Holt, Roxanne Jackson, Steve Linn, Josh Macphee, Martha Madigan, Duane Michals, Anne Elizabeth Moore, Olivia Parker, Sal Romano, Juan Sanchez, Paul Soldner, Kay Walking Stick, John Wood, Donna Dennis, Susan Unterberg, Michael Bramwell, Alvaro Garcia, Suzanne Bocanegra, Niki Berg, John Moore, Yong Soon Min, James Luna, Ik Jung Kang, Tom Nussbaum, J. Morgan Puett and Sandy Skoglund.
Other special opportunities include department-sponsored study programs in Europe. In addition, students may do advanced work or independent study with a professional in a medium or area of special interest. They also may intern with professional artists or art historians in a variety of fields including book illustration, advertising, photojournalism, gallery and museum management, and art history research. Students interested in curating exhibitions for museums or galleries are encouraged to gain experience through internships supervised by appropriate department faculty, or by taking museum studies courses offered through The Yager Museum of Art & Culture.