Faculty
Janos Fedak, Professor, Chair
Fine Arts (art history) is a discipline which examines the role of the visual arts in the development of human society. Fine Arts attempts to understand the nature of art, its origins and evolution, and the role it plays in various civilizations. While the task of the artist is the creation of works of art, that of the art historian is their systematic study, analyzing and understanding the products of creative expression.
Studies of the Fine Arts can involve the examination of economic, social, and political issues; problems of patronage, taste, style, and iconography; and questions of literary influence, philology, philosophy, psychology, and religion. At the same time, how works of art are made, their conservation and/or restoration and theories of perception or optics are also investigated.
The study of Fine Arts helps to enhance our aesthetic awareness and our ability to "see" and describe and to search for new meanings and explore new ideas in our environment.
The Department of Fine Arts offers a range of art history courses, especially Western art, from ancient times to the present. The art history courses concentrate on the study of architecture, sculpture, painting, and minor/decorative arts.
The studio arts course offered by the Department (FAS 111) provides an introduction to basic artistic techniques.
REQUIREMENTS FOR A MINOR IN FINE ARTS
Students in the Minor Program in Fine Arts must take FAH 101 and FAH 102 consecutively as prerequisites and five other courses including at least two at the 200 level and at least two at the 300 or 400 level.
FINE ARTS COURSES
FAH - Fine Arts History
FAS - Fine Arts Studio
FAH 101 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART I
This course is a survey of the development of visual arts from Prehistoric to Medieval times. Emphasis is placed on the study of major works of art, methods of analysis, use of proper terminology, historical and cultural contexts, and changes of forms and styles.
Cross-listed with History (cf. History 103 ).
Three hours a week.
FAH 102 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART II
This course is a continuation of the survey begun in FAH 101. It covers the most representative works of the visual arts from the early Renaissance period through the Modern era. The major artistic achievements and stylistic changes are studied with particular emphasis on their relationship to historical and cultural circumstances.
Cross-listed with History (cf. History 104 ).
Three hours a week.
FAS 111 STUDIO ARTS
This course explores five media through the use of visual problems. All sessions consist of working periods with technique and media. The media are Drawing (pencil, pen and ink, brush, charcoal); Painting (acrylic, watercolour, mixed media); Sculpture (carving, modelling, assembling); Design (sources, elements); Graphics (silk screen, line block, wood block, embossed, direct image). Limited enrolment. Preference is given to students who have already gained credit in Fine Arts courses or who are currently enroled in other courses in Fine Arts.
Three hours a week for two semesters
Credit value: three semester hours
NOTE: Students must register for this course at the beginning of the fall semester. Later registration is not allowed.
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FAH 201 EGYPTIAN AND MESOPOTAMIAN ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the prehistoric periods in Egypt and Mesopotamia to the establishment of the Hellenistic kingdoms in both regions. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics (cf. Classics 231)
Three hours a week.
FAH 202 GREEK ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the Archaic period to the end of the Hellenistic age. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics (cf. Classics 232).
Three hours a week.
FAH 211 ROMAN ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the beginning of the Roman Republic to the end of the Imperial era. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics (cf. Classics 241).
Three hours a week.
FAH 212 MEDIEVAL ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting (especially illuminated manuscripts), sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the Byzantine period to the end of the Gothic era in Europe. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Religious Studies (cf. Religious Studies 272).
Three hours a week.
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FAH 301 RENAISSANCE ART
This course examines the artistic milieu in Europe -- with a particular emphasis upon the Italian and Flemish schools -- from the early Fifteenth Century to the mid-Sixteenth Century.
Three hours a week.
FAH 302 BAROQUE AND ROCOCO ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts in Italy and other parts of Europe from the early Seventeenth Century to the end of the Eighteenth Century. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Three hours a week.
FAH 311 NINETEENTH CENTURY ART
The evolution of the visual arts is studied from the French Revolution to the Post-Impressionist era. Neoclassicism, Romanticism, revival styles, Realism, and Impressionism are the subject areas of the course.
Three hours a week.
FAH 312 TWENTIETH CENTURY ART
This course is designed to develop an understanding of the various artistic expressions in the visual arts, including the new art forms of photography and cinema, from the late Nineteenth Century to the present.
Three hours a week.
FAH 321 CANADIAN ART
The development of the visual arts in Canada is studied from the Seventeenth Century (colonial times) to the present. The course examines the native tradition in Canada, the legacy of the early French and English settlers, and later developments in the visual arts within the context of the socio-economic and political history of the country.
Three hours a week.
FAH 451-452 DIRECTED STUDIES
These courses involve the examination of particular problems in specific areas of interest in the visual arts and archaeology.* Individual studies are conducted under faculty guidance. Open to qualified students from any discipline. (See Academic Regulation 9 for Regulations Governing Directed Studies)
*Archaeology of Roman Pannonia and of early Medieval times in western Hungary. Field work in Hungary.
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