History of Art modules - First year

Compulsory modules

Historical Concepts in the History of Art

This module provides a thorough foundation in the historical concepts and categories employed in the analysis of works of art. Examples include: the meaning of style; artistic ‘schools’; iconography and symbolism; the meaning of ‘genre’ and different artistic genres; the distinction between ‘fine’ and ‘applied’ art; the figure of the artist.

These themes are explored in relation to individual artworks that are studied both in reproduction and also in situ, in the Barber or other museums and galleries in Birmingham. The module also includes study skills sessions that introduce students to conventions of academic research, reading and writing.

Debates and Methods in the History of Art

This module gives a thorough introduction to the various contemporary approaches and methods used in the interpretation of works of art, with a particular focus on the questions and debates that are prompted by their use in art history.

Examples include: formal analysis; semiology; the social history of art; gender studies; studies of patronage and the art market; biography; theories of visual culture. These themes are explored in relation to individual artworks that are studied both in reproduction and also in situ, in the Barber or in other museums and galleries in Birmingham. The module also includes further study skills sessions, including the opportunity to reflect on work submitted and assessed in the first semester.

Writing Art’s Histories I

This module is an introduction to the ways in which art history has been written and constructed as a discipline. It discusses and deconstructs key historic period concepts, artistic styles, and ‘movements’ in the history of art from classical antiquity to the early modern period. The module will not, however, merely offer a survey of ‘periods;’ its aim is to encourage critical reflection on the origins of terms such as ‘Renaissance’ or ‘Baroque’, and to consider their place and meaning in art historical writing.

Writing Art’s Histories II

This module is an introduction to the ways in which art history has been written and constructed as a discipline. It discusses and deconstructs key historic period concepts, artistic styles, and ‘movements’ in the history of art from the early modern period to the present day. The module will not, however, merely offer a survey of ‘periods;’ its aim is to encourage critical reflection on the origins of terms such as ‘modernism’ or ‘neoclassicism’, and to consider their place and meaning in art historical writing.