Watt Hall of Architecture and Fine Arts 104
(213) 740-4552
FAX: (213) 740-8971
http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/Art_History
Email: arthist@usc.edu

Administration

Nancy J. Troy, PhD., Chair

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: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 pursue advanced degrees in nationally recognized programs, to enter diverse fields, including 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 library 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, the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Getty Research Institute for the History of Art and the Humanities.

 

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 Art History 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) 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

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)

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	4
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

An additional four units of upper-division courses are required.

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 100x	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, Film and the Reproduction of Images
AHIS 373	History of Photography - Pictorialism to Postmodernism	4
AHIS 469	Critical Approaches to Photography	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, 1975-Present	4
COLT 480	Dada and Surrealism	4
ENGL 471	Literary Genres and Film	4
ENGL 481	Narrative Forms in Literature and Film	4
FA 309	Advanced Photography	4
FA 310	Introduction to Computer Imaging in the Arts	4
FA 311	Printmaking	4
FREN 320	French Cinema and French Society: 1900 to the Present	4
PHIL 446	Aesthetics and the Film	4
(2) Popular Culture
AHIS 370	Modern Art II: 1900-1945	4
AHIS 372	Contemporary Art, 1945-Present	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, 1975-Present	4
COLT 365	Literature and Popular Culture	4
COMM 384	Interpreting Popular Culture	4
ENGL 392	Visual and Popular Culture	4
ENGL 471	Literary Genres and Film	4
ENGL 481	Narrative Forms in Literature and Film	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 471	Gender and Sexuality in the Visual Field	4
ARCH 442	Women's Space in History	4
COLT 376	Women in Contemporary Literature and the Arts	4
COLT 480	Dada and Surrealism	4
COMM 395	Gender, Media and Communication	4
ENGL 476	Images of Women in Contemporary Culture	4
ENGL 478	Sexual/Textual Diversities	4
Total units required		24

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

 

Graduate Degrees

Admission

Admission to all programs, with the exception of the Museum Studies Certificate, is granted through the Graduate School in conjunction with the Department of Art History; all applicants must meet the requirements of both. Applicants at the M.A. level must hold a Bachelor of Arts with a major in art history, or the equivalent, from an accredited school. Applicants at the Ph.D. level must indicate an intended area of primary research and submit an M.A. thesis for consideration. Interviews are strongly encouraged. Applicants to the Museum Studies Certificate Program must hold an M.A. or Ph.D. in Art History from an accredited institution. Admission to this program is granted through the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, Art History Department.

All applicants must complete the department's supplemental application form, which may be obtained by writing: Graduate Programs, Art History Department, Watt Hall 104, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0293.

Complete details for all graduate programs can be found in the Guidelines for Graduate Studies in Art History, obtainable upon admission.

Areas of Concentration

Greek and Roman Art and Archaeology, Medieval Art, Renaissance Art, Baroque Art, 18th and 19th Century European Art, Modern and Contemporary Art, Chinese and Japanese Art.

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: courses in art history, the museum studies courses, production of an exhibition and accompanying catalogue, and an internship in a museum. Advancement to the third year of the Museum Studies Program is based upon the department's review of academic and professional preparedness.

Foreign Language Requirement

All candidates must pass a reading proficiency examination in one language, normally French or German. Substitutions may be made upon faculty recommendation and approval of the chair of art history when it is deemed appropriate to the student's course of study (i.e., Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Greek, etc.). The language requirement should be completed by the end of the first year.

Course Distribution

Courses will be at the 500 level; 400-level courses may be accepted with approval of the graduate advisor. No more than two seminars with the same course number can be taken for 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 graduate advisor. 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 regular intervals throughout the first and second years.

Required courses		Units
AHIS 500	Methods and Theory of Art History	4
AHIS 530	Museum Studies I: The Museum as an Institution	2
AHIS 531	Museum Studies II: The Work of Art in a Systematic Collection	2
AHIS 540	Museum Studies Exhibition Colloquium	4
AHIS 541ab	Museum Studies Exhibition	4-1
AHIS 630ab	Museum Internship	1-1
Additional 500 level courses		20
		____
		(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 16 units is required. The museum internship may be waived at the discretion of the Director, Museum Studies Program.

Required courses		Units
AHIS 530	Museum Studies I: The Museum as an Institution	2
AHIS 531	Museum Studies II: The Work of Art in a Systematic Collection	2
AHIS 540	Museum Studies Exhibition Colloquium	4
AHIS 541ab	Museum StudiesExhibition	4-2
AHIS 630ab	Museum Internship	1-1
		____
		16

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

Course Distribution

Courses will be at the 500 level; 400-level courses may be accepted with approval of the graduate advisor. No more than two seminars with the same course number can be taken for credit toward the Master of Arts. AHIS 500 normally must be taken in the first semester of study.

Foreign Language Requirements

All candidates must pass a reading proficiency examination in one language, normally French or German. Substitutions may be made upon faculty recommendation and approval of the chair of art history when it is deemed appropriate to the student's course of study (i.e., Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Greek, etc.). The language requirement should be completed by the end of the first year.

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.

Course Requirements

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.

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 examination must be submitted at least 60 days before the date of the scheduled examination. The written portion of the examination 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.