Graduate Calendar Archives: 2001 / 2002

School for Studies in Art and Culture: Art History

The School

The School for Studies in Art and Culture offers a program of study and research leading to the degree of Master of Arts in Canadian Art History. The program is unique in its breadth and comprehensiveness. Students can choose to focus on art and architecture drawn from Canada's wealth of different artistic communities, including the traditions of Euro-Canadians, aboriginal peoples, other ethnic groups, and women. They are encouraged to consider these traditions as aesthetic expressions and within broad contexts of race and gender and of social, political, and economic history.

Qualifying-Year Program

Applicants who do not qualify for direct admission to the master's program may be admitted to a qualifying-year program. Applicants who lack an Honours degree, but have a 3-year degree with an honours standing (at least B overall) will normally be admitted to a qualifying-year program. Refer to the general Regulations section of this Calendar (see p. 52.)

Master of Arts

Admission Requirements

The minimum requirement for admission to the master's program is an Honours bachelor's degree (or the equivalent) in art history or a related discipline, with at least high honours standing. Related disciplines may include anthropology, Canadian history, and Canadian studies. Applicants without a background in art history may be required to take up to a maximum of 2.0 credits in certain designated courses from the undergraduate art history program in addition to their regular program.

Program Requirements

The specific program requirements for students in the M.A. program are as follows:

* Art History 11.500 (1.0 credit)

* 2.0 credits with a minimum of 1.0 and no more than 1.5 to be taken from the following six areas of concentration in Canadian art: Euro-American tradition, Indian art, Inuit art, architecture, photography, folk and popular arts

* Art History 11.599 (2.0 credits)

Subject to the approval of the graduate supervisor, 0.5 credit may be taken outside the Art History program. A maximum of 1.0 credit may be selected from course offerings at the 400-level in Art History.

The student's program will be developed in consultation with the graduate supervisor and graduate faculty of Art History, and must be approved by the graduate supervisor. The prescribed program will take into account the student's background and special interests, as well as the research strengths of the Art History graduate faculty.

Deadlines

Full-time students will normally submit their thesis topic to the thesis proposal board no later than April 15 of the first year of registration for students enrolled full-time, and no later than the middle of the fifth term of registration for students enrolled part-time.

Regulations governing requirements for the master's thesis, including deadlines for submission, are outlined in the General Regulations (see p.64.)

Language Requirements

Students are required to demonstrate a reading knowledge of French (or another language to be approved by the Art History graduate supervisor).

Academic Standing

A standing of B- or better must be obtained in each credit counted towards the master's degree.

Courses

Not all of the following courses are offered in a given year. For an up-to-date statement of course offerings for 2001-2002, please consult the Registration Instructions and Class Schedule booklet published in the summer.

F,W,S indicates term of offering. Courses offered in the fall and winter are followed by T. The number following the letter indicates the credit weight of the course: 1 denotes 0.5 credit, 2 denotes 1.0 credit, etc.

Art History 11.500T2

The Practice of Canadian Art History

Examination of the historiography of native and non-native Canadian art history; history and practice of collecting institutions, including contemporary theoretical approaches; cross-cultural and multi-cultural aspects of contemporary art, with on-site research in the major collecting institutions of the National Capital Region.

Art History 11.501F1, W1 or S1

Graduate Practicum

Pracitcal on-site work in the collecting institutions of the National Capital Region (as available), including a written assignment. The practicum coordinator and the on-site supervisor jointly determine the final mark. A maximum of 1.0 practicum credit may be applied towards degree requirements.

Art History 11.502F1, W1, S1

Directed Readings and Research

Students may pursue topics in Canadian art, which they have selected in consultation with the graduate faculty of the program.

Art History 11.511F1 or W1

Topics in Historical Canadian Art

A consideration of social, political, and economic contexts of Canadian art in selected periods from French settlement to 1900. Emphasis will be placed on the transformation of European traditions by artists and sculptors and on the impact of Canada's geographical proximity to the United States.

Art History 11.512F1 or W1

The History of Art Criticism in Canada to 1940

Critical reaction to art exhibitions held by the Ontario Society of Artists, the Art Association of Montreal, and the Royal Canadian Academy will be examined with reference to public opinion, critical methodology, and aesthetic attitudes as an indication of the world-view these represent.

Art History 11.513F1 or W1

Esotericism in Canadian Art

This course examines the influence of such factors as Theosophy, mysticism, Buddhism and alchemy on selected twentieth-century artists and their work. It also addresses the theoretical and methodological problems raised by such influences.

Art History 11.514F1 or W1

Canadian Women Artists: Between the World Wars

An examination of art by women in light of the role played by painters, sculptors, printmakers and photographers in the formation of artists' groups, in the development of modernist art and in the production of commissioned works of art which served as Canadian civic and/or national symbols.

Art History 11.515F1 or W1

Reading Modernism and Post-Modernism in Canada

This course will examine writings on Canadian modernist and post-modernist art by artists and critics in light of current concerns about audience response and reception theory.

Art History 11.516F1 or W1

Contemporary Women Artists - 1970 to the Present: Vision and Difference

This course will consider the art of contemporary women artists in the context of cultural, social/political and feminist issues. Examination of patronage systems, viewer response and contemporary art theory will provide additional foci for the discussion of gender and contemporary art-making.

Art History 11.517F1 or W1

Public Art in Canada: Issues and Realities

This course examines works of art commissioned for public spaces. Emphasis is placed on analysis of the art and the interrelationships among the artist, the patron, the critic and the public. Consideration is also given to social, cultural and political contexts.

Art History 11.518F1 or W1

Contemporary Canadian Earthworks and Environmental Art

This course examines selected Canadian artists who create art in nature, and/or with the elements of earth, air, fire and water. These artists are considered from the perspectives of international environmental art, the Canadian landscape tradition, and current ecological concerns.

Art History 11.519W1

Aspects of Contemporary Art Practice

Examination of contemporary art practice in Canada, including the artist collective, traditional and new media (painting, sculpture, installation, video, computer art), the relationship of artist and society, critical and public reception of contemporary art, as well as interaction between institutional collecting and artist-run centres.

Art History 11.520F1 or W1

Art of the Woodlands First Nations in the Historic Period

This course will examine traditions of art-making in eastern Canada from the beginning of European contact through the early twentieth century. It will consider three major cultural groupings: the Eastern Sub-Arctic, the Iroquoian peoples, and the Algonkian peoples.

Art History 11.521F1 or W1

Art of the Plains First Nations in the Historic Period

An examination of distinctive artistic expressions of a regional culture - the Canadian Plains First Nations - in the historic period. Reference will be made to traditional art forms, symbolism, and the adjustments made by native artisans to the changing socio-economic context in the historic period.

Art History 11.522F1 or W1

Art of the North-West Coast First Nations in the Historic Period

Art of Canada's North-West Coast First Nations, from contact through early twentieth century, with reference to ritual contexts and use, as an expression of relations with European colonizers (tourist art), and as a symbolic system generated by historical, social, and environmental factors.

Art History 11.523F1 or W1

Museums and First Nations in Canada

This course will study the representation of aboriginal culture in Canadian museums through the historical examination of institutions, exhibitions and collecting and research policies. Particular emphasis will be placed on changing treatments of objects as 'art' and as 'artifact.'

Art History 11.524F1 or W1

Contemporary First Nations Art

This course will study selected aspects of contemporary aboriginal art in Canada, focusing on the period since 1960. Current debates about museum representation, appropriation, and marginalization will also be discussed.

Art History 11.526F1 or W1

Canadian Art and the Museum

An examination of how visual arts produced by peoples in Canada have been represented in museums and art galleries, including theories of museum representation and the historical development of the museum in western culture, and the histories of Canadian institutions and their landmark exhibitions.

Art History 11.527F1 or W1

Creating an Exhibition

Students curate an exhibition of Canadian works for a museum or gallery in the Ottawa region, under guidance from museum professionals, who instruct in curatorial practice, from the development of an exhibition concept, selection and research of works, writing texts and designing the installation.

Art History 11.528F1 or W1

Museum Studies and Curatorial Practice: Theory and Practice

A seminar realizing an exhibition of Canadian art to be presented at the Carleton University Art Gallery. This will involve conceptualization, research, selection, cataloguing, labeling, promotion, contextualization, and evaluation using the collections of the Gallery.

Art History 11.530F1 or W1

Prehistoric and Historic Inuit Art

A study of prehistoric and historic cultural production by North American Arctic peoples, comparing perspectives of art history and anthropology, regarding aesthetic and utilitarian requirements in objects of use, artistic continuity and change, and the diffusion of style through time and across geographic area.

Art History 11.531F1 or W1

Contemporary Inuit Sculpture

The development of contemporary Inuit sculpture from 1949 to the present is addressed with reference to the evolution of regional and individual styles and the effect of government policies and market forces on work, including issues of acculturation, identity, and cultural affirmation.

Art History 11.532F1 or W1

Contemporary Inuit Graphic Arts

An examination of contemporary Inuit graphic arts from 1957 to the present, with attention to regional and individual styles and the effect of government policies and market forces on the work, as well as issues of acculturation, identity, and cultural affirmation.

Art History 11.533F1 or W1

Topics in Contemporary Inuit Art

Selected topics in the historical development and significance of Canadian Inuit art in the broad context of world art may include such broad themes as historiography, cross-cultural aesthetics, and the relationship of contemporary Inuit art to contemporary critical and social theory.

Art History 11.540F1 or W1

Aspects of Historical Architecture in Canada

A selective examination of historical Canadian architecture from French settlement to Confederation, including traditional architecture of Quebec, the role of British-trained architects after 1760, the impact of patronage, the emergence of distinctive Canadian forms, and the professional recognition of architects apart from builders.

Art History 11.541F1 or W1

Canadian Architecture 1867-1940: Themes and Approaches

This course will examine the traditional interpretations of Canadian architecture in light of current research methodologies and recent advances in historical writing. Emphasis will be placed on architecture from the Parliament Buildings in Ottawa to the advent of the Modern Movement.

Art History 11.542F1 or W1

Architectural Drawings in Canadian Collections

This course will introduce students to major collections in Canada and to problems posed and insights gained through study of original perspectives, elevations, plans and working drawings.

Art History 11.543F1 or W1

Contemporary Canadian Architecture

An examination of the leading figures and trends in Canadian architecture since 1950. This includes the influence of international modernism, regionalism, urban theory, and postmodernism.

Art History 11.550F1 or W1

Historical Canadian Photography

This course will examine the emergence of photography in Canada in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Photographs will be examined from the perspective of their format and aesthetic qualities as well as in social, political and cultural contexts.

Art History 11.551F1 or W1

Modern Canadian Photography

This course will examine the developments in pictorial, documentary and fine-art photography by amateur and professional photographers in Canada from 1900 to 1945.

Art History 11.560F1 or W1

Canadian Folk and Popular Arts: Sources and Styles

This course will examine regional and community-based artistic traditions, particularly those involving immigrants to Canada from Europe and other parts of the world. It will survey sources and styles with particular emphasis on the social context of artistic practice and appreciation.

Art History 11.561F1 or W1

Canadian Folk and Popular Arts: Critical Readings

An examination of discourse on folk and popular arts in North America with special reference to Canada, including the relationship between theoretical approaches and exhibition and collection practice, with emphasis on issues of nationalism, regionalism and the influence of the market.

Art History 11.599F4, W4, S4

M.A. Thesis