March 8
2nd Annual Art History Research Symposium
Welcome
In an increasingly visual world, Art History provides students with the skills to think with and through imagery as a global form of communication. At MSU Denver, our curriculum emphasizes an inclusive approach to diverse traditions of art making and visual cultures from around the world. We also seek to balance critical questions surrounding art, its creation, and the cultural conventions and contexts of representation with an experiential, hands-on approach to the humanities.
Why Study Art History at MSU Denver
- Small classes of 10-40 students that range from introductory surveys of world art to lecture courses and seminars addressing specific topics in Art History.
- An emphasis on experiential learning and innovative teaching.
- Our long-standing commitment to diversity across the curriculum; at every level of coursework students will be introduced to the global study of art, along with complex issues of identity and representation in differing historical contexts.
- Opportunities for one-on-one mentorship with caring faculty via work study, teaching assistantships, and individualized research projects.
- Internship opportunities at local museums and galleries, including the Denver Art Museum, Museo de las Americas and MSU Denver’s Center for Visual Art.
- Exposure to prominent figures in the field of Art History presenting the latest research through our Visiting Scholars program.
- Study Abroad programs to a variety of locations including Italy, Spain, and Morocco.
- Opportunities to present and publish research at department, university, and regional symposia and the MSU Undergraduate Research Journal: The Rowdy Scholar.
- Connections to community both on campus and along the Front Range.
What You’ll Learn
- How to critically look at, describe, interpret, and analyze objects and images from global human history.
- How to understand art in relation to the historical events and cultural norms that surrounded its creation.
- How the materials and processes of art making impact the appearance and meaning of a work of art.
- How to develop and use critical analysis, research skills, oral, and written communication skills.
Opportunities for Experiential Learning
Travel the World
Our faculty offer unique study abroad programs to Italy, Greece, Spain, Morocco, Berlin and more!
Engage Your Community
We offer numerous volunteer opportunities to work with local museums, galleries, and arts non-profits.
Student organizations (ex. the Art Guild) and extracurricular event provide numerous opportunities for students to come together for trips, exhibitions, art walks, movies, game nights, etc.
Break New Ground
The annual Undergraduate Research Symposium provides a university-wide forum for students to present original research.
Students can gain early experience publishing their work in the MSU undergraduate research and creative work journal, The Rowdy Scholar.
Students may also present their research in annual Art History symposia at the departmental and regional levels.
Senior Art History students are mentored to create an original thesis paper as part of their capstone experience, which will be presented at the BA Capstone symposium.
Experience Art
Our materials collection contains roughly 300 objects for students to interact with the materials, processes, and tools of art-making in a historical context.
Our classes regularly visit local museums to provide direct access to the objects of our study.
Guest lectures by local experts tap into the rich experience of our community to bring multiple perspectives into the classroom.
Hands-on experiments with historical art-making techniques (ex. Marble carving, faience production, etc.) enhance our experiential understanding of the objects we study in lectures.
Develop Professionally
Internships for course credit place you in local museums and galleries to gain real-world experience in art handling, display, curation, and education.
Work study positions allow students to learn directly from faculty as research and teaching assistants.
Expand Your Mind
Learn from leaders in the field with our Visiting Scholar program, which regularly brings prominent scholars and artists to share their work with students.
Attend local, regional, or national conferences. Financial support is available to students who wish to attend professional conferences.
Careers
Upon graduation students will be prepared for a variety of jobs or post-baccalaureate programs in fields like:
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Degrees at a Glance
- 3 world surveys in Art History
- 1 class in writing and research methods for the visual arts
- 9 upper-division elective courses in Art History
- 2 senior-level Art History seminars
- 1 Art History capstone and directed study
- 6 Studio Art courses
- 2 semesters Foreign Language
- 3 world surveys in Art History
- 4 Art History elective courses
- 1 class in writing and research methods for the visual arts
(Coming in Spring 2024)
All Art History Majors complete a capstone experience course and directed study during which they will complete a senior thesis research paper. The research from this paper will be presented in a 20-minute talk at the end of the semester at the BA Senior Thesis Symposium.
World Art II: In this course students are introduced to the art, design and architecture created around the world from the 15th through the 19th centuries. Students learn to research, analyze, and interpret works from the Italian Renaissance to French Impressionism, from Macchu Picchu to the Forbidden City. Students also explore the impact of historical attitudes about gender, power, and identity on artists and their artworks, as well as the influence of global exchanges through networks of trade, religious conversion, and colonization. This course is required for students majoring or minoring in art, art history, and communication design and is recommended for non-majors to meet the General Studies requirements in Arts and Humanities and/or Global Diversity.
Art of Africa: This course examines the art of the continent of Africa and evaluates the ways it has been studied and displayed. It traces historical relationships between regions, from the shores of the Mediterranean and the Nile Valley, the west and Ivory Coast, to the central regions and east and south to the Swahili Coast and the Cape.
Graduating students earning the BA in Art History, Theory and Criticism liberal arts degree should be able to:
- Locate and synthesize a range of scholarly sources of sufficient breadth and depth to thoroughly investigate an art historical problem.
- Apply appropriate art historical methods and theoretical frameworks to analyze an art historical problem.
- Develop and support a clear, logical thesis derived from an art historical study that is eloquently articulated in both oral and written formats.
Our Faculty
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Leila Armstrong |
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Jillian Mollenhauer, Ph.D. |
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Deanne Pytlinski, Ph.D. |
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Summer Trentin, Ph.D. |
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Jessica Weiss, Ph.D. |