Catalogue 2008-09

• USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
• Art History
  • Undergraduate Degree
  • Graduate Degrees
  • Courses of Instruction

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.

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 level		Units
AHIS 120	Foundations of Western Art	4
AHIS 121	Art and Society: Renaissance to Modern	4
AHIS 125	Arts of Asia: Antiquity to 1300	4
AHIS 126	Introduction to Asian Art: 1300 to the Present	4

AHIS 201	Digging into the Past: Material Culture and the Civilizations of the Ancient Mediterranean	4
AHIS 220	Medieval Visual Culture	4
AHIS 230	Art and Culture in Early Modern Europe	4
AHIS 250	Modernity and Difference: Critical Approaches to Modern Art	4
AHIS 255	Cultural Wars: Art and Social Conflict in the USA, 1900-Present	4
AHIS 270	L.A. Now: Contemporary Art in Los Angeles	4
AHIS 282	Korean Art	4

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

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

(1) Photography, Flim and the Reproduction of Images
AHIS 373	History of Photography	4
AHIS 469	Critical Approaches to Photography	4
ANTH 263	Exploring Culture Through Film	4
COLT 452	Representation and Cognition in Photography	4
COLT 480	Dada and Surrealism	4
CTCS 392	History of the American Film, 1925-1950	4
CTCS 393	History of the American Film, 1946-1975	4
CTCS 394	History of the American Film, 1977-Present	4
CTCS 400	Non-fiction Film and Television	4
ENGL 471	Literary Genres and Film	4
ENGL 481	Narrative Forms in Literature and Film	4
FA 309*	Advanced Photography	4
FA 310	Digital Photo Studio	4
FA 311	Printmaking	4
FREN 320	French Cinema and French Society: 1900 to the Present	4
HIST 225	Film, Power, and American History	4
HIST 381	Cinema and History	4
HIST 481	Producing Film Histories	4
PHIL 446	Aesthetics and the Film	4

(2) Popular Culture
AHIS 370	Modern Art III: 1940-present	4
COLT 365	Literature and Popular Culture	4
COMM 384	Interpreting Popular Culture	4
COMM 450	Visual Culture and Communication	4
COMM 455	Advertising and Society	4
COMM 458	Race and Ethnicity in Entertainment and the Arts (prerequisite: COMM 300)	4
CTCS 392	History of the American Film, 1925-1950	4
CTCS 393	History of the American Film, 1946-1975	4
CTCS 394	History of the American Film, 1977-Present	4
CTCS 404	Television Criticism and Theory	4
ENGL 392	Visual and Popular Culture	4
ENGL 471	Literary Genres and Film	4
ENGL 481	Narrative Forms in Literature and Film	4
HIST 380	American Popular Culture	4
PAS 400	Contemporary Public Art	4
PHIL 446	Aesthetics and the Film	4

(3) Gender and Sexuality
AHIS 304	Italian Renaissance Art: Old Masters and Old Mistresses	4
AHIS 363	Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Contemporary Art	4
ARCH 442	Women's Space in History: "Hussies," "Harems" and "Housewives"	4
COLT 480	Dada and Surrealism	4
COMM 395	Gender, Media and Communication	4
COMM 465	Gender in Media Industries and Products	4
CTCS 192	Race, Class, and Gender in American Film	4
CTCS 412	Gender, Sexuality and Media	4
ENGL 476	Images of Women in Contemporary Culture	4
ENGL 478	Sexual/Textual Diversity	4
HIST 245	Gender and Sexualities in American History	4
SOCI 437	Sexuality and Society	4
Total units required		24

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