Department of Art History

All art history minors are encouraged take at least one (1) course in art history at the 10000-level to fulfill their general education requirement in the arts. Minors can count an additional two courses at the 10000-level for the degree. These courses are useful preliminaries to advanced work, and it is, therefore, strongly recommended that students take 10000-level courses as early as possible in their undergraduate careers. Note: Students who have formally declared the minor in art history and seek admission to a 10000-level courses should notify the instructor in advance.

Six courses are required for the art history minor. The six required courses can include two at the 10000- level. The rest should be at the 20000-level or above.* The formula for course requirements in the minor goes by the sobriquet “3-and-3.”

• Three (3) art history courses to meet a distribution requirement within the department. Courses should be selected for maximal geographical, chronological, cultural, and methodological diversity, and for minimal overlap with the Special Field.
• Three (3) art history courses in a Special Field. Students develop the Special Field in consultation with departmental instructors and the Director of Undergraduate Studies. Because Special Fields reflect the interests of individual students, they range widely in topic, approach, and scope. Reading courses with art history faculty may be used to pursue specific questions within a Special Field. For more on the Special Field, see Special Field.

One research paper is required for the minor. In one of their courses, students will write a research paper of about 10–15 pages on a topic chosen with and guided by the instructor, by individual arrangement at the start of the quarter (see Research Papers).

Minors may elect to take ARTH 29600 Doing Art History with the majors.

Students who elect the minor program in art history must meet with the Director of Undergraduate Studies before the end of Spring Quarter of their third year to declare their intention to complete the minor. Students choose courses in consultation with the Director of Undergraduate Studies. The Director's approval for the minor program should be submitted to a student's College adviser by the deadline above on the Consent to Complete a Minor form available on the Art History website.

Courses in the minor may not be double counted with the student's major(s), other minors, or general education requirements. Courses in the minor must be taken for quality grades, and more than half of the requirements for the minor must be met by registering for courses bearing University of Chicago course numbers.

*Art History graduate seminars at the 40000-level may count toward requirements in the major. Students are advised, however, that such courses impose special burdens of time and expertise, and admission to them is typically only by explicit approval of the instructor and may involve various prerequisites.

The Special Field

The Special Field is developed by the student in consultation with instructors and the Director of Undergraduate Studies and may take various forms. It may be defined with reference to a civilization, a chronological period, a nation-state, a cultural institution, or a suitable combination; it may be conceptual in character (e.g., art and the history of science, urban history, geography, gender and sexuality studies); it may combine historical, critical, and theoretical perspectives (e.g., politics and visual art in the twentieth century); it may be based in a particular medium or class of object (e.g., the built environment, tomb assemblages, or prints); it may combine historical and studio-practice courses (e.g., DoVA, CMST, TAPS, Music) to explore interrelations (e.g., art and dance).

* Two 10000-level art history courses can count towards the total of ten required for the major. The rest should be at the 20000-level or higher.

**One of the courses may be ARTH 29600 Doing Art History. Students in the minor would research and write an essay on a topic of their choice instead of preparing an honors paper proposal.