History of Western art from the Paleolithic period through the Middle Ages.

This course introduces students to the rich world of visual art, architecture, and material cultures before 1500. While the course is broad in its scope—we will survey artworks from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Mediterranean—it does not aim to offer an encyclopedic view of art or art history during this period. Instead, we will seek to understand art and visual culture’s relationship to power and politics across cultures and eras and ask critical questions to guide our entry into global artistic practices of the ancient and medieval worlds.

What is art and why do we make it? How does art express our views on life... and what comes after? How does culture shape how we see the world? What is the relationship between earthly and divine power? Who gets to write history? These questions are as relevant to the people from thousands of years ago who made the artwork we will study as they are to us today.

The course is organized around core themes related to power and politics, but we will generally work in a chronological manner beginning with humanity’s earliest days through the rise of the early modern world. As we engage with the material in this course, students will develop and hone critical thinking skills to help them interpret visual art and material culture and reflect on how this art was and is used as a vehicle to communicate, reflect, inspire and provide evidence of cultural shifts, changes, and shared human experiences.

• Interpret works of art and material culture through visual and iconographic analysis
• Analyze/Situate works of art within the historical and cultural context within which they were created
• Evaluate/Analyze primary and secondary sources
• Reflect how art and material culture helps us grasp the complexities of what it means to be human
• Build and communicate opinions, perspectives, and arguments about works of art through writing and speech
• Construct a thesis statement and a supporting argument using evidence-based reasoning

This course appears on your transcript identically to how it appears on the transcript of an enrolled ASU student who has taken the course on one of ASU’s campuses. Course attendance dates will be listed on your transcript. An on-demand course will appear on your transcript in the session you complete the course.

This course satisfies 3 credit hours at Arizona State University. It is strongly encouraged that you consult with your institution of choice to determine how these credits will be applied to their degree requirements prior to transferring your credit.

To be successful in this course, we recommend English language fluency and computer literacy. We also encourage you to make sure your laptop or desktop computer meets the technical requirements.