USC
University of Southern California
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Undergraduate Degree

Bachelor of Arts in Art History

In art history, undergraduates are provided with a sound, broad foundation in art from a variety of offerings. On this basis, exploration of the art of many eras and cultures proceeds in a program designed to develop an awareness of the integral role played by art as an expression of man and society throughout history. A grade of C or higher is required in departmental courses for all undergraduate majors.

Curriculum Requirements
The Bachelor of Arts in Art History requires 128 units, distributed as follows.

General Education and Diversity Requirements
Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts in Art History must complete the general education and diversity requirements of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

Major Requirements
The major requires 48 units as follows.

Required courses, lower divisionUnits
AHIS 120Foundations of Western Art, or
AHIS 121Art and Society: Renaissance to Modern4

Choose two courses from:
AHIS 120Foundations of Western Art4
AHIS 121Art and Society: Renaissance to Modern4
AHIS 125Arts of Asia: Antiquity to 13004
AHIS 126Introduction to Asian Art: 1300 to the Present4
AHIS 127Arts and Civilizations of Ancient Middle and South America4
AHIS 128Arts of Latin America4
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Distribution Requirements (16 units)
Four courses to include one in each of four out of the following five areas of study, only one of which may be at the 200‑level (400‑level courses do not satisfy the distribution requirement): Greek and Roman art and archaeology – AHIS 201, AHIS 321, AHIS 322; Medieval art – AHIS 220, AHIS 330; Renaissance and Baroque art – AHIS 230, AHIS 304, AHIS 343, AHIS 344; modern and contemporary art – AHIS 250, AHIS 255, AHIS 270, AHIS 361, AHIS 363, AHIS 364, AHIS 365, AHIS 368, AHIS 369, AHIS 370, AHIS 373; non-European traditions – AHIS 282, AHIS 319, AHIS 376, AHIS 377, AHIS 384, AHIS 385, AHIS 386, AHIS 387.

Upper Division Requirements (20 units)
Five courses, three of which must be at the 400‑level, including AHIS 494.

The following courses may be enrolled in with written permission of the chair of art history: AHIS 495ab Undergraduate Honors Thesis (2-2) and AHIS 499 Special Topics (2‑4, max 8).

Electives
The remaining 32 units of the required 128 unit total may be taken as electives.

Art History Honors Program

Candidates for the B.A. in the Department of Art History may receive a designation on their transcripts of departmental honors. Admission to the Honors Program is required.

Prerequisites: 3.5 overall GPA, 3.5 major GPA or better, completion of at least three upper-division art history courses at the time of admission, submission of an application form to the undergraduate faculty advisor.

Required for departmental honors: maintain GPA requirements stated above and complete AHIS 495ab Undergraduate Honors Thesis.

Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Archaeology

See Anthropology for a complete listing.

Minor in Art History

Art history combines the study of art with the study of culture broadly conceived. The art history minor offers a concentrated course of study that includes a variety of objects from different historical periods and cultures in relation to their makers, patrons, viewers and critics. Students in the minor are trained to analyze visual images and information through a process of intensive looking, reading, research and writing.

Lower Division Curriculum (8 units)
choose two lower division courses; only one may be at the 200 levelUnits
AHIS 120Foundations of Western Art4
AHIS 121Art and Society: Renaissance to Modern4
AHIS 125Arts of Asia: Antiquity to 13004
AHIS 126Introduction to Asian Art: 1300 to the Present4
AHIS 127Arts and Civilizations of Ancient Middle and South America4
AHIS 128Arts of Latin America4
AHIS 201Digging into the Past: Material Culture and the Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean4
AHIS 220Medieval Visual Culture4
AHIS 230Art and Culture in Early Modern Europe4
AHIS 250Modernity and Difference: Critical Approaches to Modern Art4
AHIS 255Cultural Wars: Art and Social Conflict in the USA, 1900-Present4
AHIS 270L.A. Now: Contemporary Art in Los Angeles4
AHIS 282Korean Art4

Upper Division Requirement (16 units)
Choose from 300- and 400-level AHIS courses. At least one course must be at the 400 level.

Minor in Visual Culture

A critical approach to art history is the departure point for the minor in visual culture, which is dedicated to the analysis of the visual arts, broadly defined to include fine art, film and television, photography and video, illustrated books, advertising, architecture and design. Students are required to take two introductory courses in the history and theory of art. These courses will prepare them for focused study in one of three concentrations: (1) photography, film and the reproduction of images, (2) popular culture or (3) gender and sexuality.

Required coursesUnits
AHIS 100Introduction to Visual Culture4
COMM 306The Communication Revolution and the Arts, or
AHIS 250Modernity and Difference: Critical Approaches to Modern Art (Gateway Course)4

Four coures to be selected from one of the following three tracks:

(1) Photography, Film and the Reproduction of Images
AHIS 373History of Photography4
AHIS 469Critical Approaches to Photography4
ANTH 263Exploring Culture Through Film4
COLT 452Representation and Cognition in Photography4
COLT 480Dada and Surrealism4
CTCS 392History of the American Film, 1925-19504
CTCS 393History of the American Film, 1946-19754
CTCS 394History of the American Film, 1977-Present4
CTCS 400Non-fiction Film and Television4
ENGL 471Literary Genres and Film4
ENGL 481Narrative Forms in Literature and Film4
FA 309*Advanced Photography4
FA 310Digital Photo Studio4
FA 311Printmaking4
FREN 320French Cinema and French Society: 1900 to the Present4
HIST 225Film, Power, and American History4
HIST 381Cinema and History4
HIST 481Producing Film Histories4
PHIL 446Aesthetics and the Film4

(2) Popular Culture
AHIS 370Modern Art III: 1940-present4
COLT 365Literature and Popular Culture4
COMM 384Interpreting Popular Culture4
COMM 450Visual Culture and Communication4
COMM 455Advertising and Society4
COMM 458Race and Ethnicity in Entertainment and the Arts (Prerequisite: COMM 300)4
CTCS 392History of the American Film, 1925-19504
CTCS 393History of the American Film, 1946-19754
CTCS 394History of the American Film, 1977-Present4
CTCS 404Television Criticism and Theory4
ENGL 392Visual and Popular Culture4
ENGL 471Literary Genres and Film4
ENGL 481Narrative Forms in Literature and Film4
HIST 380American Popular Culture4
PAS 400Contemporary Public Art4
PHIL 446Aesthetics and the Film4

(3) Gender and Sexuality
AHIS 304Italian Renaissance Art: Old Masters and Old Mistresses4
AHIS 363Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Contemporary Art4
ARCH 442Women's Space in History: "Hussies," "Harems" and "Housewives"4
COLT 480Dada and Surrealism4
COMM 395Gender, Media and Communication4
COMM 465Gender in Media Industries and Products4
CTCS 192Race, Class, and Gender in American Film4
CTCS 412Gender, Sexuality and Media4
ENGL 476Images of Women in Contemporary Culture4
ENGL 478Sexual/Textual Diversity4
HIST 245Gender and Sexualities in American History4
SOCI 437Sexuality and Society4
Total units required24

*32 units if students select FA 309 Photography with 8 units of prerequisites