BA Programme: First Arts
HA1001 An Introduction to Art History (15 credits)
Co-ordinator: Dr. Flavio Boggi.
Time: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 17.00-18.00 (semester one and two).
Location: Kane Building G.2.
The below modules are available to Visiting Students only (time and location are as above)
HA1002 European Art & Architecture: From Antiquity to the Renaissance (7.5 credits; semester one only)
HA1003 European Art & Architecture: From the Baroque to Modernism (7.5 credits; semester two only)
What is Art History?
The term ‘Art History’ usually refers to the history of the visual arts, including painting, sculpture and architecture, and can also encompass theory. Ideas about the definition of art have changed over time and the field of art history attempts to categorise trends and influences in art throughout the centuries and throughout the world.
Course Content
Cork’s course has been designed to cover the history and theory associated with the major phases of Western art and architecture—from classical antiquity to the present—and to examine the critical concepts that underpin the culture of the visual arts in the West. It is a demanding and stimulating course that will teach you to use your eyes, to ask questions, and to have confidence in your own critical judgments.
Course Objectives
Art history is a vital and challenging discipline of quite particular relevance to the interests and needs of contemporary society. We live in a world dominated by images, and the primary vehicle of modern culture is visual. Even so, many people feel ill at ease with visual information and do not understand the way in which images make an impact and produce meaning. The study of art history, with its emphasis on visual analysis and critical thinking, will enable you to:
- think and write creatively;
- build your own criteria for making value judgements;
- understand the way in which art is related to the social, political, psychological, and philosophical contexts from which it emerges.
In short, the course provides you with a firm foundation on which to build an understanding of the visual culture and physical environment of modern-day Ireland, set within both its European and wider global contexts.
What is visual literacy?
Visual literacy is the set of skills involved in the interpretation and criticism of images and draws heavily on art history and theory. The basic skills of visual literacy include the vocabulary of concepts necessary for understanding and discussing images with an ability to transform thoughts and information into images. As a result, visual communication takes place when people are able to construct meaning from the visual image, and a visually literate person possesses the ability to look at visual information with perception.
