Art History Department

The curriculum in art history acquaints students with the visual and built culture of humankind through the ages: with works of art and architecture as individual organizations of shape, space, surface and color, and as cultural artifacts with a history and function within their societies linked to other forms of cultural production. The curriculum shares with the department of art and design a concern with understanding the making of art and architecture, and the concern of other humanities departments with the variety of ways in which art and architecture have become a focus for discourse in the past and in the present. Students may enroll in one or more of the introductions to art history and architecture or to the broader field of visual culture. They may also take more specialized historical courses in the art and architecture of a particular era, or of a particular geographical area, or topical courses on particular problems in the field.

The curriculum places the study of art and architecture within the broadest possible context, and in order to be well prepared, students are encouraged to take courses linked to their work and majors in other disciplines. The department encourages and advises students toward interdisciplinary studies and sponsors conferences and symposia to strengthen such links to other fields.

Binghamton’s programs in the history of art and architecture prepare students not only for advanced graduate work in art and architectural history, but also for a broad range of professions and vocations in a variety of related fields. In the past, students completing degrees in the program have enrolled in history of art and architecture graduate programs in most major universities across the country (including, of course, Binghamton’s own very distinctive graduate program) and around the world. But many others have chosen to enter fields closely related to art history, such as curatorial practice, museum administration, museum education, art conservation or visual resources management, or to work in commercial galleries, auction houses, archives and libraries. Students with a concentration in architectural and urban studies have pursued graduate degrees and careers in architecture, urban planning, historic preservation and other related fields.

The department offers a major (with two possible tracks) and a minor in art history. The department also offers graduate degrees in art history, detailed below.

Graduate Programs

For four decades, Binghamton University has pioneered new approaches to art history. The graduate program in the history and theory of art and architecture was among the first graduate degree programs in the United States to offer opportunities for advanced study and research in a department with a particular commitment to new theoretical perspectives and to interdisciplinary, cross-cultural and global approaches to the history of art, architecture and visual culture. The success of the department has been aided by a campus with strong interdisciplinary programs in cultural history, theory and global studies, and by University strengths in history, sociology, anthropology, cinema, Middle East and North Africa Studies and critical theory.

The program aims to foster innovative teaching and research, and to develop scholars, teachers, museum curators, and heritage and planning professionals capable of interpreting the role of art, architecture, visual culture and cultural production in the broadest sense. Because of its programmatic links with other interdisciplinary research centers and graduate programs within the University, the program in the history and theory of art and architecture also offers a unique opportunity to graduate students wishing to undertake innovative studies of a cross-disciplinary nature, with a stress on the development of critical theoretical and historical perspectives in relation to the visual arts, photography, architecture, planning and the wider built environment at local, national and global levels.

The program caters effectively to a broad range of students from diverse national backgrounds who wish to pursue careers in research, education, museum and gallery practice and publishing, as well as in related areas in cultural policy, urban design, planning and conservation. Essential to our integrated program is the active working relationship between faculty and students in an intellectual environment in which students are offered a unique opportunity to engage in advanced studies and research in theory and criticism, the social history of art, feminist interpretations of art, the history and theory of photography, architectural history, the study of museums and art world institutions, media studies and digital art history from early modern to modern and contemporary.

In addition to organizing the department’s cross-disciplinary lectures, workshops and symposia, faculty and students are actively involved in the teaching and conference activities of other interdisciplinary centers and programs, including the Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies. Faculty also play prominent roles in campus-wide transdisciplinary initiatives, such as the Material and Visual Worlds Transdisciplinary Area of Excellence (TAE).

Departmental Honors

Departmental Honors are offered for both concentrations. Departmental Honors offers students an opportunity to pursue advanced independent research in a carefully defined project supervised by a member of the Art History faculty. Honors candidates must have a GPA of 3.5 in the major and must obtain the agreement of a member of the faculty to serve as advisor.

Students should apply for the honors program during the spring semester of their junior year. To apply, please submit a thesis project proposal of 2-3 pages, as well as a 1-page bibliography, to the prospective faculty supervisor and the director of undergraduate studies by April 1.

Fifty percent (50%) of the required coursework for the major must be advanced (300 level and above). Not more than 4 credit hours, equivalent to one of the required advanced-level courses, may be an independent study (ARTH 397).

Majors in art history may elect the Pass/Fail grade option in only two ARTH courses (or a total of 8 credits). These courses may not include ARTH 498-499: Honors Thesis. Courses passed with a grade of D do not fulfill requirements for the major.

Transfer credits toward the art history major must be reviewed by the department. A maximum of 16 credits at the 100- and 200-levels may be accepted. All 300- and 400- level courses must be completed in residence.

All art history majors are advised to take at least two courses in other departments that relate specifically to their art historical work. Such courses might include the history, politics and/or literature of a temporal period or geographical region, or courses in philosophy, sociology, and/or anthropology. In addition, the department strongly advises majors to acquire a reading knowledge of French, German, or a research language appropriate to their field of interest. Courses should be selected with the advice of the Director of Undergraduate Studies. The department also encourages the pursuit of study abroad opportunities related to research interests, when feasible.