History of Visual Arts Minor

Requirements of the Minor

The History of Visual Arts minor is comprised of 15 credits or five courses in visual Art History taken within the Liberal Arts Division beyond the required two-semester Survey of Western Art. These five courses do not include the Discipline History courses required by the departments in which a student is doing a studio major. Students in the minor will select five courses from the following time periods or subject matters:

1. Ancient or Medieval Art;
2. Renaissance or Baroque Art;
3. 19th Century, 20th Century or Contemporary Art;
4. Non-Western Art;
5. A second course in one of the above areas that has captured the student’s interest. In this final course a written and oral presentation, resulting from research and serious consideration of a topic approved by his or her minor advisor, is required.

A grade of B or higher is required in each course to remain in the minor.

Following consultation, the student’s advisor can arrange for this final course to be a guided independent study in a gallery or museum setting.  In such a case, the written and oral presentations will take the form of documentation and evaluation of the student’s experience as well as the regularly scheduled work assigned by the advisor.

Before entry into the History of Visual Arts minor, students will be asked to present a statement of intent, which will define their areas of interest in the field and a projected focus of their final paper/project.  In order to complete the work for the minor, students may use any combination of liberal arts elective credits and free elective credits. Students who declare the minor have no obligation to complete it; and credits earned in the minor will count as liberal arts elective credits or as free elective credits.