Art History Methodologies and Language of Art

Purpose: to help other instructors teaching the same course

Common Course ID:
AH 1103 section 60 – Art History Methodologies 1 (Fall 2021)
AH 1104 section 60 – Art History Methodologies 2 (Fall 2021)

ART 1150 sections 03 & 04 – Language of Art (Fall 2021)

CSU Instructor Open Textbook Adoption Portrait

Abstract: This open textbook is being utilized in an Art History course for undergraduate or graduate students by Matthew Poole at California State University, San Bernardino. Art history is often taught with textbooks. In the best-case scenarios typically anthologies of canonical essays or chapters by a range of art historians or theorists are used. In other cases, sometimes textbooks by single authors are used. I find that my pedagogy is richer, more nimble (able to react to student needs and interests), and more up-to-date by providing the students with a range of reading materials that are sourced from open sources including JSTOR, other online databases of scholarship, museums and galleries websites, art journals, art magazines, newspaper articles, and online videos that can all be accessed online for free by our students. The main motivations for using this wide range of materials for teaching is to ensure that students are exposed to a broad range of viewpoints and perspectives, to include other voices from scholars of underrepresented groups, and to demonstrate to the students that scholarship is a process of discovery that each individual can engage in themselves. I use Canvas and Google Drives to distribute the study materials to my students, and this all works really well.

Fall 2021 Course Titles and Numbers:
AH 1103 (Section 60) Art History Methodologies 1 (3 units) –Introduction to methodologies in art history and research: how to navigate archives, collections, libraries, and art bibliographies to obtain peer-reviewed art historical scholarship. Engage in critical reading and analysis, and learn practices of writing for art history. Broad survey of examples from the fine arts and design. This course will explore several key approaches to art historical research and writing and will investigate their use and relevance in contemporary art history today. The course begins with some introductions to key skills, moves on to several canonical figures in art history and their methods exploring their approaches, and then circles back to look at these different approaches from a contemporary perspective.

AH 1104 (Section 60) Art History Methodologies 2 (3 units) 
Survey of historical traditions, mythologies, and exhibitions types in the fine arts and design. Focus on understanding methodologies of art history and research into specific themes of art in the global context. Broad range of fine arts and design examples used. This course will explore several key moments in the development of the history of museums to explore the relationship of museum collections, structures, and activities to art historical research and writing. The course will also explore the relevance of museums in contemporary art history today and how museums and the discourses about museums is changing. The course begins with some introductions to key skills, moves on to several canonical and recent models in museology, and then circles back to look at these different approaches from a contemporary perspective.

ART 1150 (Sections 03 & 04) Language of Art (3 units)
Students will gain foundational knowledge of the terminology, and diversity of approaches related to the practice, interpretation, exhibition, and teaching of art. This course will explore several key terms, phrases, and concepts that are foundationally important to thinking about, talking about art and design, writing about art and design, and making art and design. The course begins with some introductions to key skills, such as understanding discourse and methods of interpretation, and then moves on to look in detail at the key terms, phrases, and concepts.

Student population: Students with studio art, design, art history, history, criminal justice, physics, mathematics and liberal studies.
 
Learning or student outcomes:  

AH 1103 (Section 60) Art History Methodologies 1 (3 units) 
· Recognize different art historic methodologies, and critically appraise their use and relevance today.

· Recognize and deploy critical thinking in approaches to describing, analyzing, and situating art works.
· Navigate libraries and collections to obtain peer-reviewed art historical scholarship.

· Engage in critical reading and analysis, and learn practices of writing for art history. 

AH 1104 (Section 60) Art History Methodologies 2 (3 units)  · Recognize different structures of museums as well as different discourses in museology, and critically appraise their use and relevance today.

· Recognize and deploy critical thinking in approaches to describing, analyzing, and situating museum activity as it relates to the practices and discourses of art history and works of art.

· Navigate libraries and collections to obtain peer-reviewed art historical and museological scholarship.
· Engage in critical reading and analysis, and learn practices of writing for art history and museology.

ART 1150 (Sections 03 & 04) Language of Art (3 units) 
CLO 1: Define key terms and concepts that are specific to art and design discourse, both in writing and in verbal communication.

CLO 2: Explain and discuss key terms and concepts that are specific to art and design discourse, which will help to define and evolve your identity as an artist or designer.

CLO 3: Apply your definitions and explanations of key terms and concepts that are specific to art and design discourse and relate these to a range of artistic approaches and works by yourself, your peers, and other artists/designers.

CLO 4: Apply your definitions and explanations of key terms and concepts that are specific to art and design discourse in the making of art or design works.
CLO 5: Analyze and critique your own art or design works and those of other artists and/or designers using specific art and design terminology appropriately and productively.

Key challenges faced and how resolved: None. It takes extra time to research, find, and then either download PDFs or link URL to the syllabi, but that’s not a problem.

OER/Low Cost Adoption Process

Provide an explanation or what motivated you to use this textbook or OER/Low Cost option. I adopted zero-cost materials for these courses to: (a) save students money; (b) improve learning materials, by presenting a range of authors, perspectives, and methodologies; and, (c) customize course materials for the specific needs of art history pedagogy.

How did you find and select the open textbook for this course?
I used my knowledge and expertise of art history and art theory to scour online journal databases for appropriate and relevant articles, and I searched for open source book chapters, web pages with archived materials, appropriate and relevant newspaper and art specialist articles online and easily accessible, and videos about the topics taught.

Sharing Best Practices:  Carve out plenty of time to search online for PDFs and other online learning resources. Be sure that you either know the material you are distributing to the students well, and/or read it before adding it to your syllabus or course materials repository.

I know it would take extra time to find and collate all of the materials for these courses, so I set aside extra time over the summer.

How do you plan to share this OER experience with other faculty, staff, etc. who develop curriculum and teach?

CSUSB has an ASL showcase event in April 2022, at which I expect to present. Also, I plan to develop a page for the ALS website. Also, I will talk with my faculty colleagues in the Department of Art & Design individually and as a group about using ALS materials, and what the benefits all round are.

Student Feedback or Participation
Students like the range of materials. They have told me that they feel like they are getting a good survey of different approaches to art history and art theory.

Textbook or OER/Low cost Title: 

Brief Description: PDFs, online resources. Also used CANVAS, YouTube, other websites, museums and galleries collections websites, all of which are free and readily accessible.

Student access:  Got rid of textbook. Found PDFs and online learning resources. Changed syllabus.

In CANVAS, and via a Google Drive.
https://csusb.instructure.com/courses/4891
https://csusb.instructure.com/courses/4895
https://csusb.instructure.com/courses/5216

Cost Savings:  
Textbook: The Art of Art History, by Donald Preziosi (Oxford University Press, 2009) = $29.99
Number of students = 87
Total costs saved Fall 2021 = $29.99 x x87 students = $2,609.13

Describe effects on teaching and learning that resulted from adopting OER e.g.
I use a broad range of teaching materials and methodologies. This is exposing / introducing students to a wide array of learning activities and suits a wide range of student learning styles.

Matthew Poole, Professor
California State University, San Bernardino

I am a professor in the Department of Art & Design at CSUSB. I teach art history and global cultures courses, as well as art and design theory courses, and I occasionally teach into the MA in Art and MFA in Studio Art programs.

My research interests are broad, but all strands of my research focus on the production and reception of modern and contemporary art and these research areas inflect all of my teaching, which could be broadly described as transdisciplinary. These areas of focus include museology and curatorial history and theory, the political and socio-economic ramifications and influences of the production and reception of art, post-Fordist labor models and post-Taylorist management structures, neo-liberal 'governmentality' and subjectivity modulation, post-Marxian political theory as pertaining to art, as well as materialist philosophies pertaining to art. In terms of teaching, the most important thing in my approach to pedagogy is to ensure that my courses explore the significance of, the agency, and the efficacy of art and design for people today. Especially teaching art history it is important that students feel connected to the subjects under discussion, even when looking at artefacts that may be hundreds or thousands of years old. Supporting students to understand how the past of the visual aspects of our world relate to the present moment is key to developing the agency of the students to understand and shape their world. We communicate more than ever before, and more widely than ever before, and visual communication and understanding the power of art and design are today a fundamental element of helping students to be successful in their studies and in their lives beyond university.