Administration
Eunice D. Howe, PhD., ChairWatt Hall of Architecture and Fine Arts 104
(213) 740-4552
FAX: (213) 740-8971
http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/Art_History
Faculty
Professors: John Pollini, Ph.D.; Nancy Troy, Ph.D.
Associate Professors: Selma Holo, Ph.D.; Eunice Howe, Ph.D.* Carolyn M. Malone, Ph.D.; Lynn Matteson, Ph.D.
Assistant Professors: Kendall Brown, Ph.D.; Richard Meyer, Ph.D.
*Recipient of university-wide or school teaching award.
Art history combines the study of art with the study of culture. The undergraduate major not only receives sound training in the history of art but also a basis in other humanistic disciplines. The curriculum is designed to guarantee students a general knowledge of both western and eastern art, and to offer a variety of upper division courses in specialized areas. Majors are exposed to a diversity of theoretical approaches and encouraged to sharpen their critical and conceptual thinking. This foundation has enabled many art history graduates to continue in advanced degree programs of a national reputation, to enter different fields like law or business and to pursue careers in the arts.
A special feature of the undergraduate program is the apprenticeship, which affords upper-division students the opportunity to work in the professional art world in return for academic credit. Students gain valuable job skills in local museums, galleries, auction houses, and art foundations. Apprenticeship placement is also available during the summer months throughout the United States.
Graduate students in art history pursue a wide range of subject matter, using a variety of methodologies and techniques. Graduates may also pursue parallel interests by taking courses in outside departments such as history, classics, East Asian languages and cultures, Slavic languages and literatures, French, German, Italian and others.
Graduate students are encouraged to participate in annual conferences and symposia. Travel grants are available through the department. In addition to an excellent slide library, electronic mail access to university catalogues from home or office, courtesy privileges and cross-registration of course work at UCLA, our graduate students have access to numerous research opportunities in and around Southern California at institutions such as the Los Angeles County Museum, the Huntington Museum, the Archives of American Art, the Institute for Modern Russian Culture and the J. Paul Getty Museum.
Undergraduate Degree
Bachelor of Arts (Art History)
This four-year program is offered in collaboration with the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. 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 Fine Arts requires 128 units, distributed as follows.
General Education Requirements
Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts in art history must complete the general education requirements of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
Major Requirements
The major requires 48 units as follows.
Required courses, lower division Units AHIS 120 Foundations of Western Art 4 AHIS 121 Western Art after 1500 4 AHIS 125 Arts of Asia: Antiquity to 1300, or AHIS 126 Introduction to Asian Art: 1300 to the Present 4 ____ 12
Upper Division Requirements (36 units)
Five courses at the 300 level to include one course from each area: 319-330, 340-356, 360-378, 384-389; plus one other 300-level course for a total of 20 units.
Four courses at the 400 level to include AHIS 494 Undergraduate Proseminar in Art History (4) for a total of 16 units. The following courses may be enrolled in with written permission of the chair of art history: AHIS 495ab Undergraduate Honors Thesis (2-2) (by invitation); and AHIS 499 Special Topics (2-4, max 8).
Electives
The remaining 36 units of the required 128 unit total may be taken as electives.
Minor in Art History
The Department of Art History offers a minor in art history as a supplement to major fields of specialization in other departments and schools. A minor in art history may emphasize a specific area of interest that will augment the student's major program of study. The minor requires a total of 24 units.
Lower Division Curriculum (8 units)
The minor requires two of the following four courses: Units AHIS 120 Foundations of Western Art 4 AHIS 121 Western Art after 1500 4 AHIS 125 Arts of Asia: Antiquity to 1300, or AHIS 126 Introduction to Asian Art: 1300 to the Present 4
Upper Division Curriculum (12 units)
The minor requires any three courses in the 300 art history series: AHIS 319-389.
Additional 400-Level Course
The minor requires one additional 400-level course in a specific area of interest: AHIS 420-499.
Graduate Degrees
Master of Arts, Art History (Museum Studies)
The Museum Studies Program is a three-year course of study leading to the Master of Arts in art history, designed to meet the special training needs of students whose career goals are oriented toward professional work in art museums. Fellowship support is awarded on a competitive basis.
The degree requires a minimum of 40 units. The program consists of four parts: the academic core discipline, the museum studies courses, a catalogue and exhibition, and an internship in a museum. Advancement to the third year of the Museum Studies Program is based upon the M.A. committee's review of academic and professional preparedness.
Admission
Applicants must hold a Bachelor of Arts with a major in art history, or the equivalent, from an accredited school. Admission to the program is granted through the Graduate School in conjunction with the Department of Art History; all applicants must meet the requirements of both departments.
Admission standards are competitive and based on presentation of an outstanding undergraduate academic record with the bachelor's degree in art history, and completion of the supplemental application form for the Master of Arts in art history/museum studies.
Supplemental application forms may be obtained by writing: Graduate Programs, Art History Department, Watt Hall 104, University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0293.
Foreign Language Requirement
All candidates must pass a reading proficiency examination in one language, normally French or German. Substitutions can be made with faculty recommendation and approval of the chair of Art History when it seems appropriate to the student's course of study (i.e., Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Greek, etc.). The language should be completed by the end of the first year.
M.A. Written Examinations
All students in the museum studies program must pass a written examination demonstrating their skill at planning a series of hypothetical exhibitions. This written examination is due in the fall of the second year.
Areas of Concentration
Greek and Roman Art, Medieval Art, Renaissance Art, Baroque Art, 18th and 19th Century European Art, 20th Century Art, Chinese and Japanese Art, Russian Art, and Decorative Art.
Course Distribution
Courses will be at the 500 level; 400-level courses may be accepted with approval of advisor. No more than two seminars with the same course number can be taken for major credit toward the Master of Arts. AHIS 500 normally must be taken in the first semester of study.
Units in related electives must be approved by the faculty advisor on the M.A. committee.
A minimum grade point average of 3.0 is required for the Master of Arts degree. Each student's progress will be reviewed by the faculty at the end of the first year and the beginning of spring semester of the second year.
M.A. Committee
An M.A. committee of three faculty members should be established before the beginning of the spring semester of the second year. Unanimous approval by the M.A. committee must be given before the qualifying paper is accepted and the degree conferred.
Complete details for all graduate programs can be found in the Guidelines for Graduate Studies in Art History, obtainable upon admission to the program.
Degree Requirements
Required courses Units AHIS 500 Methods and Theory of Art History 4 AHIS 530 Museum Studies I 4 AHIS 531 Museum Studies II 4 AHIS 540 Museum Studies Exhibition Colloquium 4 AHIS 541ab Museum Studies Exhibition 4-1 AHIS 630ab Museum Internship 1-1 Additional 500 level courses 17 ____ (minimum) 40 The museum internship (AHIS 630ab) requires a full-time commitment for two semesters during the third year.
Museum Studies Certificate
The Museum Studies Certificate is a three-year part-time program leading to a certificate in Museum Studies, designed for the student who has an M.A. or Ph.D. in art history and is seeking additional training for the museum profession.
The Museum Studies Certificate has three components: the core courses (AHIS 530 and 531); the exhibition and catalogue (AHIS 540 and 541ab); and the museum internship (AHIS 630ab). A total of 19 units is required. A thesis is not required. The museum internship may be waived at the discretion of the director, museum studies program.
Requirements for Admission
Applicants must hold an M.A. or Ph.D. in art history from an accredited institution. Admission to the program is granted through the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Art History Department. Admission standards are competitive and based on presentation of an outstanding academic record and completion of the application form.
Certificate Requirements
Required courses Units AHIS 530 Museum Studies I: The Museum as an Institution 4 AHIS 531 Museum Studies II: The Work of Art in a Systematic Collection 4 AHIS 540 Museum Studies Exhibition Colloquium 4 AHIS 541ab Exhibition and Catalogue 4-1 AHIS 630ab Museum Internship 1-1 ____ 19
Master of Arts, Art History
The Master of Arts in art history is a two-year program of study administered in collaboration with the Graduate School, emphasizing course work and specialized research in the history of art. It is not offered as a terminal degree, but only en route to the Ph.D. A student may be eligible for the M.A., on leaving the program after two years. A minimum of 32 units is required for the degree. The opportunity to gain experience as a teaching assistant is available on a competitive basis.
Transfer work applicable to the M.A. program must have been completed within 10 years of the date of application.
Degree Requirements
A minimum of 32 units, usually taken during a two-year period, is required for the Master of Arts in art history, to be distributed as follows:
Required courses Units AHIS 500 Methods and Theory of Art History 4 Additional 500 level courses 28 ____ 32
Doctor of Philosophy
The Doctor of Philosophy in Art History program normally requires at least three years of course work and two years of dissertation research. Applicants may be admitted directly into the program after receiving the B.A. Other applicants may already hold an M.A. in art history or the equivalent from USC or another accredited school.
A student with a master's degree in the history of art from USC must apply to the Ph.D. program, and will be evaluated on the basis of his or her overall performance. Every student will be subject to departmental screening procedures, which involve periodic review by the art history graduate committee. The committee may recommend at any time, based on a student's grades, evaluation of instructors or rate of progress toward the degree, that a student be dropped from the program. Such recommendations will become effective at the end of the semester during which the recommendation is made.
Admission standards are competitive and based on an outstanding academic record. All applicants must indicate an intended area of primary research and submit an M.A. thesis or other research paper to the school for consideration as well as a completed supplemental application form. Interviews are strongly encouraged. Supplemental application forms are available from: Graduate Programs, Department of Art History, Watt Hall 104, University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0293.
Course Requirements
Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy units total 60. Up to 32 Master of Arts units from USC or 30 from other institutions may be transferred with approval of the faculty. Transfer work applicable to the Ph.D. program must have been completed within 10 years of the date of application. AHIS 500, or equivalent, is required of all graduate students. Eight units are for work on the dissertation. (Two units of dissertation credit each semester - including summer - for a minimum registration period of four semesters.)
Foreign Language Requirements
All candidates must pass reading proficiency examinations in a minimum of two languages, normally French and German or the requisite languages in Asian art. Substitutions and/or additions may be made with faculty recommendation and approval of the chair of the Art History Department when appropriate to the student's program. Additional foreign language beyond the minimum may be required depending on the student's program of study. All language requirements must be completed by the end of the third year of study.
Qualifying Examination
At the end of the second year, the student will nominate a five member guidance committee for the qualifying examination that includes one member from outside the Department of Art History. The student must pass the qualifying examination in a major field and satisfy the requirements for the minor and outside fields. Forms for permission to take the qualifying exam must be submitted at least 60 days before the date of the scheduled exam. The written portion of the exam will be followed by an oral examination. The oral examination will be given to discuss in greater depth the student's knowledge of the dissertation proposal; the oral lasts approximately two hours. After passing the qualifying examination, the student will be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D.
Dissertation
Following the completion of the qualifying exam the guidance committee will be reduced to three members, including one member from outside the department, who will guide and finally approve the dissertation.
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