Art History

Overview

Our Art History faculty at the University of Wisconsin Madison is comprised of specialists in, to name a few: African and African Diaspora art; American art and architecture; American material culture; contemporary art and theory; Chinese art; curatorial studies; early modern European art; Islamic art and architecture; Japanese art; Medieval European art; print culture; photography, film, and video; vernacular architecture; Victorian art and material culture; and visual studies and critical theory.

Students enjoy close interaction with their mentors and profit from superb resources for interdisciplinary research. Faculty members have international reputations in their specialties, regularly receive prestigious awards, lecture widely, and serve on major professional boards. Graduates of the department teach at the postsecondary level or pursue careers in museum and curatorial professions, private galleries and auction houses, library or archival work, architecture and historical preservation, and conservation.

Learning outcomes

• Mastery of techniques for visual analysis (examining features such as materials, proportion, light, color, form and narrative structure) of single images and for comparative analysis of multiple images and objects.
• Advanced proficiency in interpreting images/objects in ways that take into account the historical contexts in which they were produced and received.
• In-depth knowledge across a range of time and geography to reach an understanding of the ways in which art and its meaning are rooted in culture.
• Advanced ability to locate and enlist research resources in both print and digital form and assess the strengths and weaknesses of various types of resources.
• Advanced knowledge and skills necessary to interpret images/objects in ways that consider a variety of theoretical perspectives.
• Ability to assess and critique complex scholarly arguments and evaluate the strength of the visual and textual evidence presented.
• Advanced skills in effective and impactful communication in both written and oral form in ways that acknowledge diverse audiences in an increasingly global society.
• Skills in public engagement such that our students are able to effectively communicate complex ideas to a lay public in written, oral, and digital form in keeping with the Wisconsin Idea.