Faculty: Arts. Degree Programme: Art History. Course: Art and visuality history 2. Study level: Bachelor, 2nd semester. Class size: 25-30.
The purpose of the course is to enable students to analyze and interpret pre-modern art and visual culture in the period from antiquity until the emergence of the modern concept of aesthetics, i.e. before approx. 1750. Students acquire insights into art and visual culture and the historical, cultural, religious and social factors that make up the complex conditions of visual phenomena. The course also enables students to define and answer their own thesis statements in writing based on a set of general question.
The students gain insight into the diverse historical forms of the image within a range of different media formats. The course enables students to work with early forms of images and cultures displaying other concepts of and ideas about art. The course also forms the basis for the third semester in which analytical skills and historical understanding are linked to a theoretical dimension in the course Philosophy of Science of Art History.
I want the students to get an idea about pre-modern art concepts. This involves understanding the modern art concept and the changes brought about by the institutionalization of the art world in 18th century Europe. The concepts set different standards regarding high/low, good/bad, beautiful/ugly art and entail economic, societal, religious and technical developments. It is thus a highly complex field and one which students (and teachers, researchers, laymen etc.) have discussed at great length.
The students should be able to go beyond their own (‘modern’) conception of art, understand other ideas of for example beautiful/ugly and argue why they might change over time. It is a difficult task, and this activity gives the students some tools and strategies to help them along. The students learn to use writing as a tool for thinking, and their notes and ideas will help them prepare for writing their exam paper and thus hopefully reduce anxiety.
The activity consists of two parts. In the first part, the students write their own basic understanding of the modern/pre-modern art concept. This understanding is then gradually developed and re-assessed through different activities in both the first and second part of the activity.
(Break)
Picking up on what was said in the group activity, the teacher gives feedback and exemplifies concepts. This hopefully develops or feeds into a discussion with the participation of the students.
Somewhere approaching the end, when the subject has been more developed, the students are given 5-10 minutes to revise their work-paper, changing and updating their understanding of the concept. The students should then have had input from the text, lecture, each other and the teacher.
