Overview
https://www.design.iastate.edu/academics/departments/art-visual-culture/
The Department of Art and Visual Culture offers degree programs focused on fine arts and art history, including the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Art, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Art History, Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) in Art, and the Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) in Integrated Visual Arts. Course offerings include studio arts, art history, art education, and scientific illustration and visualization.
B.A. in Art History
The Bachelor of Arts in Art History is a four-year program for students seeking a concentrated course of study in art history and visual culture, including theory, criticism, and museum studies. Students in the program gain a broad understanding of histories of art and visual culture, ranging from the prehistoric period to the present and including both western and non-western cultures. They then choose one or more areas—such as history of photography, 19th century, modern or contemporary art—for deeper study in advanced-level courses and seminars that encourage critical thinking and the development of research, writing, and presentation skills.
Flexibility is a key feature of the B.A. in Art History. Working with an advisor, students design their own program of study, one that targets their personal interests and career goals. In addition to art history and visual culture courses taught by faculty within the program, students can take courses in the histories of architecture, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, and landscape architecture. For students interested in museum studies, courses may include up to nine (9) credits of museum or gallery internship. Many students also choose to add a second major or minor to complement their Art History degree, such as advertising, business, entrepreneurship, history, journalism, psychology, or a myriad of other possibilities.
Students in the program can gain real-world experience through one or more internships in a museum or gallery prior to graduation. Local possibilities include the Brunnier Art Museum and Christian Petersen Art Museum on campus, the Octagon Center for the Arts downtown, and the Des Moines Art Center. Summers are a great time for internships in more distant locales.
Students are also encouraged (but not required) to study abroad to gain first-hand knowledge of another culture. The College’s Rome Program is a frequent choice for those wanting to spend a semester in Europe. Summer excursions are also available, with ISU faculty regularly leading multi-week trips to Europe, Asia, and Central America.
The B.A. in Art History offers students the opportunity to learn more about the world and themselves, and can serve as a springboard to a wide array of graduate school and career opportunities, including art criticism, art sales, conservation, and working with corporate art collections, galleries and museums, and art therapy. Further career possibilities include teaching at the college level and curating in major museum collections.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students will learn how to:
- Look at and think critically about art and visual culture, including both historical works and the images that surround them in daily life;
- Conduct research using digital and analog methods;
- Write and speak analytically and critically about art and visual culture;
- Express and defend positions on art and visual culture through written and verbal means.
Students will also learn to:
- Understand the relationship between art objects and the political, historical, and cultural contexts in which they were created;
- Respect and appreciate other cultures and perspectives, both historical and contemporary, through a study of their artistic production;
- Consider how art addresses the ethical, cultural, and ecological challenges we face today in a globalized world.
B.A. in Art History Degree Requirements
TOTAL DEGREE REQUIREMENTS: 121 credits
Only 65 credits from a two-year institution can apply and may include up to 16 technical credits; 9 P-NP credits of free electives; 2.00 minimum GPA.
INTERNational perspectives: 3 credits
u.s. cultures and communities: 3 credits
communication: 10 credits
(C or better grade)
| ENGL 1500 | Critical Thinking and Communication | 3 |
| ENGL 2500 | Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition | 3 |
| LIB 1600 | Introduction to College Level Research | 1 |
| One course from the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Communication Studies | ||
| Interpersonal Communication | ||
| Listening | ||
| Fundamentals of Public Speaking | ||
| Total Credits | 10 | |
HUMANITIES: 6 CREDITS
6 credits from College of Design General Education Approved Course List
SOCIAL SCIENCES: 6 Credits
6 credits from College of Design General Education Approved Course List
Math/physics/ biol. sciences: 6 credits
6 credits from College of Design General Education Approved Course List
general education courses: 9 credits
| 6 credits at level 3000-4000 from College of Design General Education Approved Course List | 6 | |
| 3 credits from College of Design General Education Approved Course List | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 9 | |
Art history Core: 12 credits
| ARTH 2800 | History of Art I | 3 |
| ARTH 2810 | History of Art II | 3 |
| ARTH 4990 | Visual Culture Studies Writing and Methods Seminar | 3 |
| Choose ONE from the following: | 3 | |
| Design in Context | ||
| Introduction to Visual Culture Studies | ||
| Total Credits | 12 | |
Art history program: 24 credits
24 credits from approved list of History/Theory/Criticism courses in the College of Design (this list includes ARTH courses and other history courses). May include up to 9 credits of Museum/Gallery Internship.
| Art History/HTC credits | 12 | |
| Art History/HTC credits at 3000-level or above | 12 | |
| Total Credits | 24 | |
Foreign languagE
At least 6 credits total in a single language. Two semesters in ONE of the following languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Latin, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish.
Area of concentration: 24 credits
24 credits from an approved area of concentration, including 6 credits at the 3000-level or above.
electives: 18 credits
DSNS 1310 Rome Predeparture (Rome option only)
Four Year Plan
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| ARTH 2800 | 3 | ARTH 2810 | 3 |
| DSNS 1830 or ARTH 2920 (or General Education) | 3 | DSNS 1830 or ARTH 2920 (or General Education) | 3 |
| ENGL 1500 (or General Education) | 3 | ENGL 1500 (or General Education) | 3 |
| LIB 1600 | 1 | General Education | 3 |
| General Education | 3 | General Education | 3 |
| General Education | 3 | ||
| 16 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Art History/HTC Course | 3 | Communications Option | 3 |
| Foreign Language or Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 | Foreign Language or Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| General Education | 3 | Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| General Education | 3 | Art History/HTC Course | 3 |
| ENGL 2500 (or General Education) | 3 | ENGL 2500 (or General Education) | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| Art History/HTC Course | 3 | Art History/HTC Course | 3 |
| Art History/HTC Course | 3 | Art History/HTC Course | 3 |
| Foreign Language or Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 | Foreign Language or Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 | Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits |
| ARTH 4990 | 3 | Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| Art History/HTC Course | 3 | Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 |
| Approved Course in Area of Concentration | 3 | Art History/HTC Course | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
More information can be found at the College of Design website.
Art History Minor
The undergraduate minor in Art History offers students a broad understanding of art created by cultures from ancient to contemporary times around the world. Through a range of ArtH courses, students strengthen skills in visual literacy, reading, writing, and critical thinking, all of which are valuable and marketable. Students complete 15 credits within their Program of Study. The minor provides flexibility for students across campus to tailor their academic experience to individual interests and offers students in design-related majors such as industrial design and architecture opportunities to expand the scope of their studies. Open to undergraduates in all university majors.
The Art History minor requires a total of 15 credits.
| Choose one or two of the following: | 3-6 | |
| History of Art I | ||
| History of Art II | ||
| Choose one or two of the following: | 3-6 | |
| Art and Architecture of Asia | ||
| Greek and Roman Art | ||
| Art of Islam | ||
| Renaissance Art | ||
| American Art to 1945 | ||
| Modern Art and Theory | ||
| Art and Theory Since 1945 | ||
| History of Photography | ||
| Choose one or two of the following: | 3-6 | |
| The World on Display | ||
| Nineteenth-Century Art | ||
| History of Comics | ||
| Art History In Europe | ||
| Women/Gender in Art | ||
| Selected Topics in Art History | ||
| Visual Culture Studies Writing and Methods Seminar | ||