ENROLL

Baird E Jarman

Staggering wealth inequality spurred by transformative technological innovation and unbridled corporate power. Political tumult fueled by backsliding civil rights legislation, disputed elections, and anti-immigrant sentiment. Culture wars. American imperialism. Such characteristics have increasingly fueled comparisons between the present day and the late-nineteenth century in the United States. The Gilded Age witnessed the flourishing of mass culture alongside the founding of many elite cultural organizations—museums, symphony halls, libraries—that still stand as preeminent civic institutions. With an occasional eye to the present, this seminar examines the art, architecture, and cultural history of the Gilded Age.

Held for new first year students

Jessica F Keating

Between 1300 and 1600 depictions of witches, monsters, and demons moved from the margins of medieval manuscripts and the nooks of church architecture to the center of altarpieces and heart of princely collections. Although this diabolical imagery was extremely diverse, it came from one place: the mind of the Renaissance artist. This course examines how images that came from within were devised and fashioned into works of art. It considers why fantastical imagery that showcased the artist’s imagination was so highly valued during the Renaissance--a period typically associated with the rebirth of classical antiquity. Finally, it explores the connection between illusions, visions, dreams, and other visual phenomena that highlighted the potential malfunction of the mind, and artistic creation. Some of the artists discussed include, but are not limited to, Hieronymous Bosch, Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci

Held for new first year students

Jessica F Keating

Kathleen M Ryor

This course will survey art and architecture in China from its prehistoric beginnings to the end of the nineteenth century. It will examine various types of visual art forms within their social, political and cultural contexts. Major themes that will also be explored include: the role of ritual in the production and use of art, the relationship between the court and secular elite and art, and theories about creativity and expression.