Department of Art and Art History - University at Albany-SUNY

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# Department of Art and Art History

#### Faculty

Professors Emeriti
Roberta M. Bernstein, Ph.D. (Collins Fellow)
Columbia University
David Carbone, M.F.A.
Brooklyn College, CUNY
Robert Cartmell, M.F.A.
University of Iowa
Mark A. Greenwold, M.F.A.
Indiana University
Arthur G. Lennig, Ph.D.
University of Wisconsin
Thom O’Connor, M.F.A.
Cranbrook Academy
John C. Overbeck, Ph.D.
University of Cincinnati
Paul W. Wallace, Ph.D.
Indiana University

Professors
JoAnne Carson, M.F.A.
University of Chicago
Sarah R. Cohen, Ph.D.
Yale University
Phyllis J. Galembo, M.F.A.
University of Wisconsin
Edward A. Mayer, M.F.A.
University of Wisconsin

Associate Professors
Amy R. Bloch, Ph.D.
Rutgers University
Leona Christie, M.F.A.
University of Washington
Rachel Dressler, Ph.D. (Department Chair)
Columbia University
Adam Frelin, M.F.A.
University of California, San Diego
Daniel Goodwin, M.F.A.
Hunter College
Michael R. Werner, Ph.D.
Stanford University

Assistant Professors
Rakhee Balaram, Ph.D.
Courtauld Institute
Melissa Thorne, M.F.A.
California Institute of the Arts
Lecturer
Shira Segal, Ph.D.
Indiana University

Sculpture Technician
Roger Bisbing, M.F.A.
Syracuse University

Adjuncts (estimated): 18
Teaching Assistants (estimated): 13

The Department of Art and Art History offers a 36 credit major in art, a departmental art major of 60 credits, and a 36 credit major in art history. In addition students can minor in art or art history. The Department of Art and Art History also houses the Film Studies minor. The foundation of the studio art majors is a core curriculum in drawing, two- and three-dimensional design, and art history; areas of concentration are painting and drawing, sculpture, printmaking, and photography. The major in art history offers a range of courses drawn from offerings in art history within the department, and from other departments and programs in the College of Arts and Sciences, including anthropology and East Asian studies. The University Art Museum offers a wide variety of exhibitions that enhance and extend the offerings of the Department of Art and Art History.

Careers
In addition to the traditional careers in fine art, commercial art, art history and criticism, students who immerse themselves in our art and art history curricula emerge with an understanding of visual literacy at a time when our culture as a whole is becoming increasingly dependent upon visual communication. Career paths include various positions in art museums and galleries, art conservation, the teaching of art and art history, art therapy, furniture design, industrial design, interior design, stage and costume design, graphic design, film production, TV production, medical archaeology and anthropological illustration, and animation.

#### Degree Requirements for the Major in Art

General Program B.A.: 36 credits, including at least 12 credits at the 300 level or above, to be distributed as follows: 18 credits are core requirements: A ART 105, 110, 115, 144 and A ARH 170 and 171; 18 credits are from electives with an A ART prefix; 3 of these credits may be from any course that applies to the art history major (see below.)

#### Degree Requirements for the Departmental Major in Art

General Program B.A.: 60 credits including a 30-credit core requirement consisting of A ART 105, 110, 115, 144, 205, 220, 230, 240 or 242, 244, 305, and 491; 12 credits in art history consisting of A ARH 170 and 171 and 6 credits from courses that apply to the art history major (see below); 3 credits in studio art electives; and a 15-credit concentration in either painting and drawing, sculpture, printmaking, or photography.

Admission to Departmental Major in Art
The 60-credit art major is aimed at encouraging students who demonstrate both an unusual degree of accomplishment and potential. In the second semester of their sophomore year, or thereafter, students should submit from 12 to 20 works of art, in a portfolio or sheet of slides, to the Art and Art History Department for review. The portfolio should reflect a student’s intended area of focus: digital media, painting and drawing, photography, printmaking, or sculpture. The portfolio review is intended to give students an opportunity to demonstrate a maturing level of visual culture and the emergence of an artistic voice. Ultimately, an exemplary portfolio will display a high level of visual literacy and technical ability at the service of individual expression. This orientation will lead a student to further study at art school or at graduate school. Portfolios should be submitted to the art department secretary during the seventh week of the semester.

If a student is accepted as a 60-credit art major, the student should seek advisement from the undergraduate adviser and the faculty member they work with most to determine a set of personal goals within their remaining course of study.

#### Honors Program in the Departmental Major in Art

The Honors Program is designed for the exceptionally talented and committed student of art. Successful completion of the program is excellent preparation for graduate work in the Fine Arts. Studio space for Honors Students is limited. Successful completion of the program earns an Honors Certificate in Art and a nomination for graduating with “Honors in Art” from the University.

Students may present a portfolio for admission to the Honors Program to the Undergraduate Director in the second semester of their junior year or the first semester of their senior year. In order to be eligible for admission to the Honors Program, a student must be accepted as a 60-credit major and have completed at least 12 credits of studio course work. An applicant should have an overall grade point average of 3.25 or higher and a 3.5 or higher in all courses applicable toward the major. Applicants must submit a portfolio of 10 works in their area of concentration. The portfolio must demonstrate visual literacy, technical mastery, creative potential, and the drive and maturity to work independently in order to cultivate a distinctive personal direction. The Honors Committee may waive the entry requirements where appropriate. Decisions of the Honors Committee are final and are not subject to review or appeal.

Students in the Honors Program are required to complete a minimum of 60 credits, meeting all the requirements of the major. In addition, students must complete an Honors Project for 6-12 credits of studio course work and complete A ART 496, the Mentor Tutorial. The Honors Project mentor will be a member of the faculty who regularly works with the student in the student’s area of concentration. Critiques will be conducted during regular course offerings. An overall grade point average of 3.25 or higher and an average of 3.5 or higher in all courses applicable toward the major must be maintained in each semester of the program. Students dismissed from the program cannot be readmitted unless the grades on which dismissal is based were in error and are officially changed.

#### Degree Requirements for the Major in Art History

The purpose of the major in Art History is to introduce students to the principles and methods of art history and visual literacy, and to encourage their intellectual exploration of art and architecture in historical culture. Advisement, internship supervision and career counseling are conducted by the Art History faculty.

General Program B.A.: A minimum of 36 credits.

Required Core Courses (12 credits): 9 credits from A ARH 170, 171, 230, 241, 250, 260, 270, 285; 3 credits from A ARH 450 or 499.
Lower Division Electives (6 credits): A ARH 205-298; A ANT 233/A LCS 233; A CLA 207, 208, 209; A EAC 280.
Upper Division Electives (18 credits): all 300 and 400 level A ARH courses; A ANT 334, 433; A CLA 490; A HIS 303Z.

#### Honors Program in Art History

The Honors program in Art History allows declared Art History majors who have excelled in at least their first 12 credits of Art History coursework to pursue an advanced program of study and independent research. At the time of entry into the Honors program students must have at least a 3.50 GPA in the Art History major and a 3.25 GPA overall, and they must maintain these levels of achievement throughout the rest of their coursework. Students may request entry into the Honors program from their faculty academic advisor. They will be admitted provided they have the necessary GPA requirements and that they will have enough time left in their academic years to fulfill the Honors requirements.

#### Degree Requirements for Honors in Art History

Required Core Courses (12 credits): 9 credits from A ARH 170, 171, 230, 241, 250, 260, 270, 285; 3 credits from A ARH 450 or 499.
Lower Division Electives (6 credits): A ARH 205-298; A ANT 233/A LCS 233; A CLA 207, 208, 209; A EAC 280.
Upper Division Electives (18 credits): all 300 and 400 level A ARH courses; A ANT 334, 433; A CLA 490; A HIS 303Z.
Within their elective coursework, Honors students must take at least one course from each of the following areas:

- Ancient Art (A ARH 205-209; A ARH 270; A ARH 301-302; A ARH 401-406; A CLA 490)
- Medieval Art (A ARH 230; A ARH 303; A ARH 331-332; A ARH 432; A ARH 442)
- Early Modern Art (A ARH 341-352; A ARH 450)
- Modern and Contemporary Art (A ARH 365-366; A ARH 466-468)
- Film and Photography (A ARH 260-269; A ARH 361-363; A ARH 367-369; A ARH 460-462)
- Non-Western Art (A ARH 280; A ANT 233; A ANT 344; A ANT 433)

Within their upper-level elective coursework, Honors students must also take:
A. An additional research seminar (A ARH 499, which can be repeated for credit, or A ARH 450): In this additional research seminar, Honors students must fulfill two out of the following three special research tasks:

- Examination of an original work of art, or a building or archaeological site
- Research in a foreign language
- Incorporation of three or more primary sources into his or her research

B. Two consecutive Independent Study courses (A ARH 497) in their last two semesters, in which they pursue an Honors thesis under the supervision of a faculty member in Art History

- The thesis may consist of two separate but thematically interlinked research papers, completed in each of the two semesters; or it may consist of four interlinked papers, two per semester; or it may be a single paper whose research and preparation extends over both semesters. In all cases the student must produce 60 pages of writing, including endnotes and bibliography. The research the Honors students perform on their thesis must incorporate two out of the three special “Honors” tasks identified above.

Evaluation of Honors students

Halfway through their last semester, Honors students must give an oral presentation on their Honors thesis to the Honors committee, which will be composed of three members of the Art History faculty, as well as the Honors supervisor if he or she is not on the committee. The committee will use an agreed-upon standard of assessment to evaluate the student’s performance, including the following:

- The thesis must be clearly developed and the findings near or at completion.
- The presentation must thoroughly present both thesis and findings, using Power Point slides (or an equivalent presentation tool) with images.
- The presentation should take approximately 30 minutes, followed by a 30-minute period of questions by the faculty committee.

The faculty committee’s assessment of the presentation will be factored into the final grade awarded by the faculty member of record who is supervising the Honors thesis. At the presentation the committee will also offer constructive feedback for the student to use in completing his or her thesis.

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