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General Information

Course ID (CB01A and CB01B)
ARTSD002B
Course Title (CB02)
History of Art: Europe During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance
Course Credit Status
Credit - Degree Applicable
Effective Term
Fall 2023
Course Description
This course introduces the discipline of art history through an analysis of images, objects, and works of architecture produced from approximately 600 through 1600 C.E., including discussion of Islamic and European cultures during the Middle Ages, and the art of the Renaissance (including Mannerism) in northern and southern Europe.
Faculty Requirements
Course Family
Not Applicable

Course Justification

This course is a major requirement in the discipline of Art History for at least one CSU or UC. Further, this course meets a general education requirement for ý, CSU GE, and/or IGETC. It belongs on the Art History Associate of Arts Degree. It was developed to meet a thematic requirement within the ARTS 2 (History of Art) series, introducing students to the practice of art history through analysis of imagery and architecture produced during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

Foothill Equivalency

Does the course have a Foothill equivalent?
No
Foothill Course ID

Course Philosophy

Formerly Statement

Course Development Options

Basic Skill Status (CB08)
Course is not a basic skills course.
Grade Options
  • Letter Grade
  • Pass/No Pass
Repeat Limit
0

Transferability & Gen. Ed. Options

Transferability
Transferable to both UC and CSU
ý GEArea(s)StatusDetails
2GC1ý GE Area C1 - ArtsApproved
CSU GEArea(s)StatusDetails
CGC1CSU GE Area C1 - ArtsApproved
IGETCArea(s)StatusDetails
IG3AIGETC Area 3A - ArtsApproved
C-IDArea(s)StatusDetails
ARTHArt HistoryApprovedARTS D002A & ARTS D002B required for C-ID ARTH 110 ARTS D002B & ARTS D002C & ARTS D002D required for C-ID ARTH 120

Units and Hours

Summary

Minimum Credit Units
4.0
Maximum Credit Units
4.0

Weekly Student Hours

TypeIn ClassOut of Class
Lecture Hours4.08.0
Laboratory Hours0.00.0

Course Student Hours

Course Duration (Weeks)
12.0
Hours per unit divisor
36.0
Course In-Class (Contact) Hours
Lecture
48.0
Laboratory
0.0
Total
48.0
Course Out-of-Class Hours
Lecture
96.0
Laboratory
0.0
NA
0.0
Total
96.0

Prerequisite(s)

Corequisite(s)

Advisory(ies)

EWRT D001A or EWRT D01AH or ESL D005.

Limitation(s) on Enrollment

Entrance Skill(s)

General Course Statement(s)

(See general education pages for the requirements this course meets.)

Methods of Instruction

  1. Lecture and visual aids

    Discussion of assigned reading

    Discussion and problem solving performed in class

    In-class essays

    In-class exploration of Internet sites

    Field observation and field trips

    Collaborative learning and small group exercises

Assignments

  1. Required reading from primary and secondary sources
  2. Written assignment.

Methods of Evaluation

  1. Midterm and final exams, including both of the following formats: objective questions identifying works of art and their respective artists, historical periods, dates, and media, and/or “short answer” questions; and written essays requiring analysis of works of art in conjunction with works discussed by students in class, and in response to assigned readings, including application of primary source documents and secondary written sources.
  2. At least one written assignment, comprised of a term paper which requires visual analysis of original works of art (or architecture) contextualized in relation to works of art (or architecture) discussed by students in class. The paper will be evaluated on the basis of any or all of the following: student analysis of physical condition and technical production of art objects; implementation of formal and stylistic analysis; interpretation of subject matter; consideration of the gender, ethnicity, and social status of artists (or architects and/or patrons); and analysis of the function and meaning of the work in society.

Essential Student Materials/Essential College Facilities

Essential Student Materials: 
  • None.
Essential College Facilities:
  • None.

Examples of Primary Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisherDate/EditionISBN
Kleiner, Fred S. "Gardner's Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective, fifteenth edition." Volumes 1 and 2. Boston: Cengage Learning, 2017.

Examples of Supporting Texts and References

AuthorTitlePublisher
Aikema, Bernard. "Renaissance Venice and the North: Crosscurrents in the Time of Bellini, Durer, and Titian." New York: Rizzoli, 2003.
Baxandall, Michael. "Painting and Experience in Fifteenth-Century Italy: A Primer in the Social History of Pictorial Style, second edition." Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2017.
Kavaler, Ethan Matt and Anne-Laure Van Bruaene, eds. "Netherlandish Culture of the Sixteenth Century: Urban Perspectives." Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols Publishers, 2018.
Pearson, Andrea. "Envisioning Gender in Burgundian Devotional Art, 1350-1550: Experience, Authority, Resistance." Aldershot, Hampshire: Ashgate, 2005.
Cellini, Benvenuto. "Autobiography." Translated by Anne Macdonnell. New York: Everyman's Library Classics, 2010.
Chadwick, Whitney. "Women, Art, and Society." 5th edition. London: Thames and Hudson, 2012.
Gabbarelli, Jamie. "Sharing Images: Renaissance Prints into Ceramic and Bronze." London: Lund Humphries, 2018.
De Hamel, Christopher. "Medieval Craftsmen: Scribes and Illuminators." London: British Museum, 1992.
Eco, Umberto. "Art and Beauty in the Middle Ages." 2nd edition. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2002.
Ettinghausen, Richard, et al. "Islamic Art and Architecture, 650-1250." New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003.
Frisch, Teresa G. "Gothic Art 1140 c.1450: Sources and Documents, second revised edition." Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2004.
Camps, Jordi, Manuel Castiñeiras, and Richard Plant, eds. "Romanesque Patrons and Processes: Design and Instrumentality in the Art and Architecture of Romanesque Europe." London: British Archaeological Association and Abingdon, Oxfordshire and New York: Routledge, 2018.
Irwin, Robert. "Islamic Art in Context." New York: Abrams, 1997.
Jung, Jacqueline E. "The Gothic Screen: Space, Sculpture, and Community in the Cathedrals of France and Germany, c. 1200-1400." Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2017.
Stemp, Richard. "The Secret Language of the Renaissance: Decoding the Hidden Symbolism of Italian Art." London: Duncan Baird, 2006.
Johnson, Geraldine A. and Sara F. Matthews Grieco. "Picturing Women in Renaissance and Baroque Italy." Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
Rothstein, Bret. "Sight and Spirituality in Early Netherlandish Painting." Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Maalouf, Amin. "The Crusades through Arab Eyes." New York: Schocken Books, 1989.
Machiavelli, Niccolo. "The Prince." Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2005.
Partridge, Loren. "The Art of Renaissance Rome, 1400-1600." Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc., 2005.
Bradbury, Carlee A. and Michelle Moseley-Christian, eds. "Gender, Otherness, and Culture in Medieval and Early Modern Art." London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017.
Schapiro, Meyer. "Late Antique, Early Christian and Medieval Art: Selected Papers." New York: George Brazillier, Inc., 1993.
Shaver Crandell, Annie and Paula Gerson. "The Pilgrim's Guide to Santiago de Compostela: A Gazetteer." London: Harvey Miller Publishers, 1995.
Kavaler, Ethan Matt. "Renaissance Gothic: Architecture and the Arts in Northern Europe, 1470-1540." New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012.
Moxey, Keith. "The Practice of Theory: Poststructuralism, Cultural Politics, and Art History." Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1994.

Learning Outcomes and Objectives

Course Objectives

  • Analyze the political and cultural function of works of art and architecture produced during the Middle Ages and Renaissance in northern and southern Europe.
  • Evaluate works of art and architecture through both traditional and contemporary art historical methods.
  • Explore the concept of the artist and architect during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
  • Discuss concepts and practices of European art and architecture produced during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in relation to Islamic art and architecture
  • Utilize both primary and secondary written texts in the active process of writing art history.

CSLOs

  • Students will analyze the social experiences of artists, demonstrating how artists' relationships with their patrons was a defining factor in the production of works of art.

  • Students will demonstrate visual literacy and critical thinking skills by evaluating diverse scholarly perspectives when interpreting of works of art.

  • Students will investigate different techniques utilized in the production of works of art through written analysis based on firsthand evaluation of original art objects.

Outline

  1. Analyze the political and cultural function of works of art and architecture produced during the Middle Ages and Renaissance in northern and southern Europe.
    1. Art and architecture during the Middle Ages
      1. Art of Islam
      2. Art of the Germanic migration period
      3. Hiberno Saxon, Celtic, and Viking art
      4. Carolingian and Ottonian art
      5. Romanesque art
      6. Gothic art
    2. Art and architecture during the Northern Renaissance
      1. The Low Countries (Netherlandish regions)
      2. Germany
      3. England
      4. France
    3. The Italian Renaissance
      1. Proto-Renaissance
      2. Early Renaissance
      3. Late Renaissance
      4. Venetian Renaissance
      5. Mannerism
  2. Evaluate works of art and architecture through both traditional and contemporary art historical methods.
    1. Traditional methods of interpretation, such as:
      1. Formalism
      2. Iconography
      3. Connoisseurship
      4. Biography and autobiography studies
    2. Contemporary methods of interpretation, such as:
      1. Marxism and World-Systems theory
      2. Feminism, Gender analysis, and Queer theory
      3. Postcolonial theory and colonial discourse studies
  3. Explore the concept of the artist and architect during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
    1. Training of artists and architects: masters and apprentices
    2. Guild systems
    3. Giorgio Vasari and the social legitimization of artists
    4. The development of early art academies in Italy
    5. Artists in relation to the European courts
    6. Role(s) of women in relation to artistic production
  4. Discuss concepts and practices of European art and architecture produced during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in relation to Islamic art and architecture
    1. Sites of prayer and worship
    2. Domestic art and architecture
    3. Palaces
    4. Concepts of nature and garden design
  5. Utilize both primary and secondary written texts in the active process of writing art history.
    1. Primary sources, such as:
      1. Documents from medieval Europe
      2. Documents from the northern European Renaissance
      3. Documents from the Italian Renaissance
    2. Secondary sources, such as:
      1. Textbook
      2. Scholarly articles
      3. Other books
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