Intro to Visual Arts 301 Johns syllabus fall 2021 8-12 PDF

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Introduction to Visual Arts Fall 2021 Syllabus with Dr. Johns...

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ARH 301: Introduction to the Visual Arts, Fall 2021 PLEASE NOTE: This is a hybrid, primarily online course!!!! See the class Canvas site for more information: https://utexas.instructure.com/courses/1320545 PLEASE NOTE that we merged all 24 sections into one for Canvas. So only 20 of you are in the #20805 (unique number) section listed at the top of the Canvas home page! Check your schedule through the registrar and make sure you know your unique number! Professor Information: Professor: Dr. Ann Johns (she/her/hers), Dept. of Art and Art History email: [email protected] (NOT through the Canvas email) or Chatter (see below) Zoom Office Hours: Monday/Wednesday 2:00-3:00 (access through Canvas) or in-person, scheduled appointments Teaching Assistant Information: Lead TA: Kearstin Jacobson (she/her/hers): Office Hours: by appointment via Zoom TAs (by unique number/discussion section time): Chasitie Brown: 20810 (T 11-12), 20830 (T 12-1), 20850 (T 1-2), 20870 (T 2-3) Aaron Moses: 20890 (T 3-4), 20910 (T 4-5), 20815 (W 11-12), 20835 (W 12-1) Ellen Birch: 20855 (W 1-2), 20875 (W 2-3), 20895 (W 3-4), 20915 (W 4-5) Sheyda Khaymaz: 20820 (Th 11-12), 20840 (Th 12-1), 20860 (Th 1-2), 20880 (Th 2-3) Madeline Keller: 20900 (Th 3-4), 20920 (Th 4-5), 20805 (F 10-11), 20825 (F 11-12) Lauren Bock: 20845 (F 12-1), 20865 (F 1-2), 20885 (F 2-3), 20905 (F 3-4) To contact the Teaching Assistants, please direct your inquiries to one or more of the following: 1. Email: [email protected] 2. TA office hours: All TA office hours will be held via Zoom (access through Canvas) Chasitie Brown (she/her/hers): M 9-10 and by appointment Aaron Moses (he/him/his): to be determined Ellen Birch (she/they): M 11-12 and by appointment Sheyda Khaymaz (they/them/theirs): W 11-12 and by appointment Madeline Keller (she/her/hers): W 11-12 and by appointment Lauren Bock (she/her/hers): to be determined 3. Chatter: See the Canvas course site for details (menu on left side of screen). This is a more informal site that will be monitored by the TAs and Dr. Johns, and we highly encourage you to use it! DO NOT CONTACT US VIA CANVAS EMAIL!!! This is a dead zone! Chatter should be your first choice for communication, followed by the TA email and office hours!

Technical Support: To contact technical support outside of class, please email: [email protected] Visual and Performing Arts Credit (VAPA) : This course may be used to fulfill the visual and performing arts component of the university core curriculum and addresses the following four core objectives established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board: communication skills, critical thinking skills, teamwork, and social responsibility. Global Cultures flag: This course carries the Global Cultures flag. Global Cultures courses are designed to increase your familiarity with cultural groups outside the United States. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from assignments covering the practices, beliefs, and histories of at least one non-U.S. cultural group, past or present. Course Objectives: “I don’t say everything, but I paint everything”

--Pablo Picasso, 1881-1973

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“I prefer drawing to talking. Drawing is faster, and leaves less room for lies” --Le Corbusier, 1887-1965 “I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way…things I had no words for” --Georgia O’Keeffe, 1887 -1986

Art is a language: how do we decode its meaning, its intent, and its extraordinary effect on us, the viewers? In this course, we explore an astonishing array of art and architecture, in both a thematic and chronologic fashion. While we will concentrate on painting, sculpture, and architecture, we will also be looking at manuscripts, textiles, prints, photography, the decorative arts, garden planning, ceramics, earthworks, and installation art. This vast amount of material is organized, in our textbook, into both chronological and geographical groupings. In class, however, we will explore art and architecture thematically. What we aim to do is teach each of you how to look at art. What should you look for? What kind of questions should you ask? What differences and commonalities can we see from region to region, era to era? How have art, artists, and viewers dealt with some of humanity’s greatest joys and challenges, from religion to statecraft to war to our environment? Is the production of art, after all, one of the things that makes us human? It is important to note, from the onset, that while we will look at many images of outstandingly beautiful and famous works of art, we will also be looking at images that you will not find “beautiful”; some of these images may even offend you. Art confronts war, power, sex, murder, and social injustice, as well as beauty and the divine, so open minds (and open eyes) are very important in this context. If you are bewildered about WHY we are studying a particular object, it is often useful to ask yourself “so what?” In other words, why do we even bother, out of all the objects in the world, to study this particular work? At ANY point, if you are confused about something we are studying, PLEASE contact one of us via email or office hours. Don’t be disgruntled—get informed! At all times, you should be considerate and respectful towards your classmates and their opinions, which may differ from yours. Your cooperation in this regard will greatly enhance your TA-led discussion sessions. Much modern and contemporary work is deliberately provocative and/or confrontational. Artists have long known that it can take something quite shocking to get our attention! At all times in this class, we treat each other with the utmost courtesy and respect! We also need to consider and borrow from many different disciplines as we analyze these objects; art history is among the most interdisciplinary fields that you’ll encounter at UT. Throughout this course, our art historical inquiry will take us into a number of related disciplines, including history, religion, science, engineering, politics, anthropology, philosophy, and psychology, to name a few. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Lectures (twice weekly): Live Online Streaming Students will log onto the course through Canvas for the twice-weekly lectures on Monday and Wednesday, 10-10:50 (students may log on to view each pre-class video between 9:45 and 10:00 on Monday and Wednesday). This means that students can log on wherever they’d like (home or any other safe, socially distanced space), as long as there is a strong internet connection (http://www.laits.utexas.edu/tower/tech.html [links to an external site]). However, students must log in and participate at the specific times listed above, as the videos are live and streaming. During each class, we will have lectures, announcements, and there will be a quiz or test for most every class. Students can ask questions via Canvas, so it is mandatory that each student log on during each class and participate. For each lecture class, we will present three “key” images that will form the basis of our discussion. You will be tested on the Key images in both the quizzes and the tests (3 tests, one at the end of each section). Class lectures will be available 12-48 hours later as VOD (video on demand), but students will have missed the opportunity to take the class quizzes and will thus not be able to gain credit for that quiz or test. There are NO make-up quizzes or tests. Students requiring special in-room accommodations should contact their instructor and TA ASAP (with the appropriate paperwork), and if needed, Services for Students with Disabilities.

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Course Canvas Format: 1. CLASS CANVAS WEBSITE: to get everything associated with the class, go to: https://utexas.instructure.com/courses/1320545. You will need your UT eid and password. 2. Class Homepage. The homepage will have links to the Course Syllabus, the technical requirements and the stream webpage, the live video stream of the lecture, information regarding technical questions, as well as contact information for the professor and teaching assistants. On the left-hand side of each page of the Canvas course site are navigation tabs to all parts of the website, including the syllabus. 3. Video Stream. The Video Stream is the page on which you will find the live streaming video for the course. The Video Stream will also display the outline for the current lecture, links to live quizzes and tests, and other participation activities. 4. Modules. The Modules page includes information about the Reading Assignments and links to the Lecture video archives, related websites and other course documents. We will also include the powerpoint for each video, as many students prefer to take notes in the space below each powerpoint slide. 5. Pre-class video. We have created videos for the 15-minute, pre-class log-on period. These are a mix of serious topics (images of related art with period music) along with pop culture references to art (the Simpsons, Monte Python, etc.) These are entirely optional, but we hope you will enjoy them! 6. Other pages. On the homepage, you will find a listing of other important course pages. TA-led Discussion Sessions (8 times during the semester): Students will be responsible for attending in person (depending on the course of the pandemic) and online, MANDATORY TA-led Discussion Sessions on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday (according to your unique number; check your course schedule). At this time, students and their TA will apply the material and concepts learned from online lectures and the readings to various activities. Students will be asked to address questions and issues that will challenge them to look carefully at art objects and build their visual literacy. This is a critical component of the class, as students gain the experience of analyzing and discussing works of art with their peers. Students will be graded on attendance, participation, preparation, and attitude. Your TA will more thoroughly review the grading specifics when you meet in September. Students must attend discussion sections during the time allotted to them by the registrar (by unique number); students cannot just attend whenever they’d like. Check your unique number on your course schedule from the registrar: it will list the twice-a-week lecture times AND an additional hour. We will give you much more information on this process at the beginning of the semester. In the week before each in-class test, students will not have sessions; instead, we will create VOD or video on demand reviews on the Fridays before the three tests. Students are also highly encouraged to visit Dr. Johns and their TA in Zoom office hours. Please note that you will lose partial credit of your attendance/participation grade if you log in/arrive substantially late. You CANNOT substitute sessions. You MUST attend during your allotted time! IMPORTANT: In TA sections, you will be in close proximity to your peers. For your safety and the safety of your peers and TAs, we implore you to get vaccinated and wear a mask!

Required Internet-enabled device, lectures: All students must be connected to the class via Canvas every day during class using an Internet-connected computer or laptop. Most recent desktop and laptop computers are supported, but tablets and phones may not be. Be sure to test your device using the following link: http://www.laits.utexas.edu/tower/tech.html . Students living on campus and using UT-proved Internet service (restricted.utexas.edu wireless network) should be aware of their bandwidth package. We recommend Tier 2 of bandwidth for this course. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have adequate network bandwidth for this course. View bandwidth tiers here: https://management.pna.utexas.edu/faqs/tiered.html.

(No) Required Textbook: All readings will be posted on Canvas. Also, you have almost unlimited electronic resources through UT’s Libraries and you pay for these resources through your fees and tuition! A particularly reliable resource is Oxford Art Online, which you need to access through UT Direct (https://login.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/login?qurl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.oxfordartonline.com%2f).

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Do not rely on Wikipedia or Google for information! Students can get themselves into deep trouble (= bad grade) by relying on inaccurate or outdated information on the internet! Use your textbook and class notes! If you are an art history major, art history minor, or interested in improving your art historical writing, you may find it useful to consult Sylvan Barnet’s A Short Guide to Writing about Art (at the Coop or other bookstores, or in the Fine Arts Library Reference section, N 7476 B37 1993) or Henry Sayre’s Writing about Art.

Class Communication and Etiquette: Announcements: Outside of the video lectures, any class communication initiated by your professor and teaching assistants will be conducted via the Announcements page on our course website, so please make sure to check the Announcements page on a daily basis. Please note that we will NOT check Canvas email; please use: [email protected] or Chatter. Outside of Class Discussion: This course uses a discussion board tool called Chatter that’s built directly into your Canvas course. Here, students can submit questions related to the content of the course that other students might benefit from seeing. Students are encouraged to answer each other’s questions and your professor and TAs will regularly “endorse” good submissions. Private Communication: Students who wish to contact Dr. Johns are encouraged to visit during office hours by Zoom or in person rather than by email. If students wish to contact teaching assistants, they may do so in person during office hours, via Zoom, or via the email address [email protected]; please state the name of your TA in the subject line of the email. In-class Questions: Students will have the opportunity to ask questions during lecture through the “Ask a Professor” Button on the Dashboard. Class Etiquette: 1. ***Treat ALL TAs with the courtesy and respect that you would use with a professor. 2. Be polite and considerate at all times on Canvas and Chatter—your postings are NOT anonymous (to us; they can be to your classmates)! 3. ***When you send an email to me or to a TA, please use a salutation (Dear Dr. Johns, Hi Prof. Johns, or just Dr. Johns, but never Mrs./Ms Johns. Also, use something similarly polite for the TAs) and a closing with your name. This is probably the most important thing you’ll learn in this class, because the work world uses email! For more information, see: http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/06/email-etiquette.html. I will not answer improperly formatted emails! And I encourage the TAs to follow my example! 4. Check your Canvas Announcements regularly for messages from your professor and TAs. If you miss some important piece of news that was conveyed via Canvas Announcements, you will be sorry! We will also make announcements at both the beginning and end of the televised lectures. Class resources: Many resources will be posted on Canvas, including study guides for each portion of the class (3 in total) and other resources. The study guides will include things like key images, key vocabulary, etc. In addition, the powerpoints for each lecture will be posted shortly before each class on Canvas. In addition, we will post other useful websites and resources. All of the images for which you will be responsible can be found on the ARTstor database, which you need to access through the libraries and UT Direct. The images are divided into 3 collections, one for each test. Detailed instructions about how to reach the ARTstor database are posted on the course Canvas site. You can download these images and use them for studying. Please note that the data on ARTstor, the data in the book, and the data on your study guides is not always be the same; in that case, use the information on your study guides.

Studying strategies: It is VERY important that you keep up with both the reading and lecture classes. To help you organize your reading and studying, we have posted study guides on Canvas (under “Important Documents”). You must begin organizing your notes (class and reading), of course, like any other class and not wait until the day before each test. But more importantly, YOU need to create your own “image banks” of the Key Images. Experience has proven that you CANNOT absorb all of these images in 1 (or 2 or 3) night. ALL of us need some time to accumulate our “image banks”, so start early. Make flash cards. Make powerpoints. Look at your book. Consult your notes. Look at the images on ARTstor. Form study groups. Ask US questions! Learning to look at art and architecture is a skill, just like learning a language or mastering calculus. For some of you, this material will all come easily; for others, it will be a struggle. Start your studies early on.

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If you use Quizlet, use your OWN notes. This is the most frequent way in which students fail an exam and get reported to Student Judicial Services (see below), and it’s also a good way to get a bad grade, because often students copy someone else’s highly flawed analysis of a work of art. We can tell if you’re using someone else’s Quizlet notes! It isn’t hard to figure this out! Sometimes one person will get the cards started, with just the information on the study guide. That is fine, but there is nothing as useful as making your own cards and ordering the information on these works of art in your own way. Also, we’ve recorded interviews with some art history majors, and they have many useful suggestions. These interviews are posted on Canvas. If you don’t believe us about study tips, hopefully you’ll believe your peers! Feel free to email us if you have any questions, but students should also plan on visiting us in office hours. Please see page 1 for faculty and TA office hours. I urge all of you to avail yourselves of our time and advice. There is a very high correlation between following these study strategies and receiving a good grade .

Grading Breakdown: Tests (60%): There will be THREE in class, non-cumulative tests in this course: Test 1 = 15%; Tests 2 = 20%; and Test 3 = 25%. This progression allows students to gain familiarity with the format and not be penalized. You will have the entire class period (50 minutes) for each test. We will administer these essay and short answer tests through Canvas, and students will be tested on both key images AND reading images. We will review this testing format, along with studying strategies, during our lecture-based class in the first few weeks of class. TA-led sessions (25%): You have 8 TA-led sessions visits; there are no makeups. Your grade for each visit will include attendance, participation, discussion, attitude, and group work. Your TA will go over this with more specificity in September when you meet the first time. We will break this grade in two so that you can improve upon your grade in the second half of the course.

In-class quizzes (15%): We have 23 in-class quizzes at 1% each; we will drop the lowest 8 grades for 15 % of your total grade. These will be short, 4-5-minute multiple-choice quizzes, and we will administer them at various points during the scheduled class times.

You may use your notes to “fact-check”, but you may NOT use the internet, GroupMe’s, or take the tests or quizzes in groups. You may, of course, study in groups. Please see the section, below, on cheating and academic honesty. These courses have very sophisticated tools to determine if students took quizzes together, so PLEASE do not do it!

IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ 1. There will be no final, comprehensive exam. 2. THERE WILL BE NO MAKE-UP TESTS unless you have an EXTREMELY SERIOUS, DOCUMENTED EXCUSE, in which case you will write a makeup paper. 3. THERE WILL BE NO MAKE-UP QUIZZES and no MAKE-UP TA SESSIONS. 4. ….AND NO INCOMPLETES WILL BE GIVEN IN THIS COURSE. Any grading issues need to be resolved by the student and the professor and/or TA NO LATER THAN the last d...