UBC Okanagan

Course Descriptions

Art History and Visual Culture, Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies

ARTH: Art History and Visual Culture

ARTH 101 (3) Art and Visual Cultures of the World I

Introduction to art and visual cultures of major world regions from prehistory to the early modern period. [3-0-0]

ARTH 102 (3) Art and Visual Cultures of the World II

Introduction to art and visual cultures of major world regions from the early modern period to the present. [3-0-0]

ARTH 115 (3) Popular Music and Visual Cultures

A survey of changing attitudes toward class, ethnicity, gender, and ideology as reflected in folk, blues, jazz, rock and hip-hop music and their accompanying visual cultures from the early 20th century to the early 21st century. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 115 or MUSC 115. [3-0-0]
Equivalency: MUSC 115.

ARTH 202 (3) The Critical Viewer

Critical thinking about art and visual cultures of the world, past and present, and how visual works can be viewed closely, creatively analyzed, and interpreted. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: 3 credits of 100-level English.

ARTH 203 (3) Global Contemporary Art

The contemporary global art scene with an emphasis on strategies for understanding the complexity of art production from 1985 to the present. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 203 or ARTH 302. [3-0-0]

ARTH 301 (3) Critical Viewing - Advanced Studies

Key ideas influencing art theory, art practice, and visual culture studies and topics relating to the emergence and globalization of Euro-American art ideologies and practices. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 309 (3) Performance Art: Global Perspectives

History, theory, and practice of performance art as a visual medium, a global language, and a political force. Explores a wide range of experimental and interdisciplinary performance art practices, including key contributions by Indigenous artists. Credit will be granted for only one of THTR 309, ARTH 309 or CULT 380.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.
Equivalency: CULT 380, THTR 309.

ARTH 315 (3) History of 20th-Century Art

Examination of the visual arts of North America and Europe from 1900-1960; pivotal artists and artistic movements; theoretical and critical study of the interrelationship between art production and consumption since the advent of modernism; the changing role of the artist as the bearer of cultural values. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 316 (3) History of 20th-Century Art II

Examination of the visual arts of North America and Europe from 1960 to the present; pivotal artists and artistic movements; theoretical and critical study of the interrelationship between art production and consumption since advent of postmodernism; changing role of the artist as the bearer of cultural values. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 320 (3) Art in Canada 1900-1970

Artistic practice in Canada from the beginning of the twentieth century to 1970. Developments in film, video, photography, performance, painting, and sculpture are considered. Emphasis on art's relationship to the changing political, economic, and social arenas in Canada during this time. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 321 (3) Art in Canada 1970 to the Present

Artistic practice in Canada from 1970 to the present. Video, film, and photography will be considered along with visual artists' continuing engagement with painting and sculpture. Emphasis on art's relationship to the changing political, economic, and social arenas during this time. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 323 (3) Creative Activism: Art, Media, and Social Justice

Examination of the convergence between social justice movements, activist media, and artistic practice. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 323 or CULT 320. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: 3 credits of ARTH or CULT, or permission of the instructor. ARTH 101, ARTH 102 or CULT 100, CULT 101 strongly recommended.
Equivalency: CULT 320.

ARTH 370 (3) Story and Image Across the Islamic World

Selections from the arts of the book across the Islamic world (8th to 19th C) showing how literature inspired painters and calligraphers to weave together word and image. Digital art historical approaches will normally be used, though no computing experience is required. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 370, DIHU 370, or WRLD 370.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.
Equivalency: DIHU 370, WRLD 370.

ARTH 375 (3) Encountering India: The Age of the Mughals

An examination of interrelated arts, visual cultures and texts in South Asia (15th to 19th C) within their historical and cultural contexts. Topics include the rise of the multicultural Mughal Empire, the roles of Hinduism, Islam, and Sikhism, and encounters with Renaissance and Colonial Europe. Digital art historical approaches will normally be used, though no computing experience is required. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 375, DIHU 375, or WRLD 375.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.
Equivalency: DIHU 375, WRLD 375.

ARTH 378 (3) The Arts of Medieval Spain: Three Religions, One Culture

Medieval Iberia's Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities and their shared visual cultures, literatures, and religious traditions. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 380 (3) African Art and Visual Culture

Historic and contemporary sub-Saharan African art and visual culture with emphasis on socio-historical contexts. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 385 (3) African Dress and Fashion

An examination of historical and contemporary African dress and fashion emphasizing sociocultural and political contexts, transculturalism, and global identities. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 390 (3) Indigenous Art and Visual Culture

Historic and contemporary North American Indigenous art and visual culture with emphasis on socio-historical contexts and cultural identity. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 395 (3) Renaissance Europe in a Global Context

A re-evaluation of conventional Renaissance art history facilitated by intercultural perspectives, gender studies, cognitive science, and cultural theory. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 396 (3) Seventeenth-Century European Art in a Global Context

Studies of seventeenth-century European visual cultures during a period of rapid global expansion. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 397 (3) Latin American Art and Visual Culture Since 1521

Latin American art and visual cultures from the colonial period to the present. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 403 (3) Global Surrealism

The development of Surrealism from its roots in 20th-century French thought to its global proliferation in film, literature, visual culture and contemporary theories. Credit will be granted for only one of ARTH 403 or WRLD 403.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.
Equivalency: WRLD 403.

ARTH 410 (3) Gender, Art, and Space in the Islamic World

Critical perspectives on the stereotypes of Muslim gender relations and how gender can be used to analyze the art and architecture of various parts of the Islamic world. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 420 (3) Curating Contemporary Art

Approaches to researching Contemporary Art in a global context, and the practice of curating exhibitions.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 450 (3) Performance in Africa

Examination of performance in sub-Saharan Africa addressing theoretical issues and a range of performance practices in context. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 451 (3) Politics of Exhibition and Representation

Politics of exhibition and representation of world arts and visual cultures in contexts of colonialism and postcolonial activism.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 460 (3-12) d Selected Topics

Topics vary each time the course is offered. [3-0-0]
Prerequisite: Third-year standing.

ARTH 470 (3-9) c Directed Studies

Directed readings and written assignments taken under the supervision of a faculty member for students pursuing an advanced investigation of an area of interest. Normally available to students majoring in Art History and Visual Culture.
Prerequisite: Third-year standing and permission of the Department of Creative Studies and the instructor.