Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2026

Introduction to Art History (Online)

ARTH 2500-30I

Course: ARTH 2500-30I
Credits: 3
Term: Fall Semester 2026
Department: Filmmaking, Art, & Design
CRN: 31623

Course Description

This course introduces students to the disciplines of art history theory and methodology through such issues as the roles of tradition and innovation in the production and reception of art; methods of evaluation based on a standard of originality or novelty versus one of quality or excellence; the relation of art to broader theoretical discourses; the role of exhibition and commerce in art; the effect of historical oversights and distortions on the development and maintenance of artistic canons; and problems inherent in the definition of art itself. (Fall) [Graded (Standard Letter)] General Education Category: Humanities 

Required Texts

Another recommended text is Michael Hatt and Charlotte Klonk's Art History: A Critical Introduction to Its Methods (Manchester University Press, 2017 [ISBN-13: 978-0719069598]). 

Online access to all required texts will be provided by the instructor in class announcements. 

Learning Outcomes



2.1. Arts: Upon successful completion of the General Education Arts requirement, students will have gained a developing ability to:

2.1.1. Understand: Explain the creative artistic process as an iterative and recursive practice culminating in an expression of human experience 
        and emotion through a medium;

2.1.2. Appreciate: Apply artistic concepts and ideas drawn from traditions of artistic creation and theory to better engage with, analyze 
       and understand a creative work;

2.1.3. Connect: Examine connections between art and society and articulate how the arts are a historical and cultural phenomenon.






2.2. Humanities: Upon successful completion of the General Education Humanities requirement, students will have gained a developing ability to:

2.2.1. Examine: Examine how humanities artifacts (such as oral narratives, literature, philosophy, media, and artworks) express the human condition;

2.2.2. Explain: Explain how humanities artifacts take on meaning within networks or systems (such as languages, cultures, values, and worldviews)
        that account for the complexities and uncertainties of the human condition;

2.2.3. Analyze: Analyze humanities artifacts according to humanities methodologies, such as a close analysis, questioning, reasoning, interpretation,
        and critical thinking; 

2.2.4. Compare and Contrast: Compare and contrast diverse humanistic perspectives across cultures, communities, and/or time periods to explain
        how people make meaning of their lives; and 

2.2.5. Apply: Using humanities perspectives, reflect on big questions related to aesthetics, values, meaning, and ethics and how those apply to their
        own lives.



Course Requirements

Technology Requirement:

Course content is accessible through Canvas. Students will need to be able to view videos, write and upload assignments, post to discussion boards, and take assessments. Students should have access to high-speed internet and updated software. Mobile devices may be used to view course content, upload assignments, and take assessments as determined by the instructor. 

Course Outline

CLASS SCHEDULE: 

Week 1
INTRODUCTION
1. Wednesday, September 2nd: Syllabus reading
2. Friday, September 6th: What is art? Some definitions – the dictionary vs. Dickie; Allais vs. Malevich vs. Rauschenberg

Week 2
MODULE 1 (begins): ART BEFORE THE ART WORLD 
3.  Wednesday, September 9th: Aesthetics From Plato to Aristotle to Baumgarten to Schopenhauer (1)
4. Friday, September 11th:  Aesthetics From Plato to Aristotle to Baumgarten to Schopenhauer (2)

Week 3
MODULE 1 (concludes):  “ART FOR ART’S SAKE” – TELEOLOGICAL ART THEORY
5. Monday, September 14th: “Art for art’s sake” Whistler vs. Ruskin, Morris vs. Tolstoy
6. Wednesday, September 16th: Formalism, Significant Form, Stylistic Analysis Bell, Pater, Freedberg
7. Friday, September 18th: “Bad taste" – Winckelmann to Berenson, Murillo to Keane, Corot to Kinkade

Week 4
MODULE 2: “READING THE IMAGE” – ICONOGRAPHY AND PSYCHOANALYSIS
8. Monday, September 21st:  Reading the Image 1 Freud and Breton
9. Wednesday, September 23rd:  Reading the Image 2 Cassirer, Warburg
10. Friday, September 25th: Panofsky’s iconographical methodology

Week 5
MODULE 3: SOCIAL THEORIES OF ART HISTORY
11. Monday, September 28th: Social Theories of Art 1 Socialist vs Nationalist art theory
12. Wednesday, September 30th: Social Theories of Art 2 Differing Views: Haynes vs. Hauser
13. Friday, October 2nd:  the relation between art history and art theory

Week 6
MODULE 4: MODERNIST THEORY VS. MODERNIST PRAXIS
14. Monday, October 5th: Modernism 1 Origins of conceptual art: from Denis to Duchamp
15. Wednesday, October 7th: Modernism 2  Kosuth, Baldessari, and the Conceptual Art movement 
16. Friday, October 9th: Modernism 3 – Duchamp on art

Week 7
MODULE 5:  POSTMODERNIST THEORY VS. MODERNIST PRAXIS
17. Monday, October 12th: Postmodernism 1 – in 36 seconds  
18. Wednesday, October 14th: Postmodernism 2 
19. Friday, October 16th: Postmodernism 3 

Week 8
REVIEW of Modules 1-5; MIDTERM TEST

Week 9
MODULE 6: EXISTENTIAL THEORY AND ART
20. Monday, October 26th: Existentialism 1 Kant vs. Schopenhauer 
21. Wednesday, October 28th: Existentialism 2  Sartre
22. Friday, October 30th, 2026: Existentialism 3 de Beauvoir; Camus

Week 10
MODULE 7: FEMINIST THEORIES OF ART
23. Monday, November 2nd: Feminism 1 – Linda Nochlin, and Opportunity-based Feminism, Sontag’s Erotics; the Gaze explored
24. Wednesday, November 4th: Feminism 2 – Griselda Pollock
25. Friday, November 6th: Feminism 3 – Identity-based Feminism; Judy Chicago; Miriam Schapiro and the Pattern & Decoration movement; Barbara Kruger and Jenny Holzer

Week 11
MODULE 8: POST-ART THEORIES
26. Monday, November 9th:  Post-art theories 1 Walter Benjamin
27. Wednesday, November 11th: Post-art theories 2 André Malraux
28. Friday, November 13th: Post-art theories 3 Martin Heidegger and Theodor Adorno

Week 12 
MODULE 9: INTER-ARTS, SYNAESTHETIC, AND RELATIONAL THEORIES OF ART 
29. Monday, November 16th: Inter-arts theories Aeschylus, Richard Wagner,  Kurt Schwitters, Frank Lloyd Wright, Alexander Scriabin, and Yves Klein
30. Wednesday, November 18th:   Relational Aesthetics 1Nicolas Bourriaud, Fluxus, Allan Kaprow, Yoko Ono, Marina Abramović, Deborah de Roberts
31. Friday, November 20th:   Relational Aesthetics 2 Sophie Calle; and Liam Gillick and Henry Bond

Week 13 
THANKSGIVING BREAK – NO SUU CLASSES

Week 14 
MODULE 10 (begins): SEMIOTICS – THE SEARCH FOR SIGNS IN VISUAL ARTS 
32. Monday, November 30th: Lacanian theory and art Jacques Lacan and psychoanalytic structuralism
33. Wednesday, December 2nd: Semiotics and art Ferdinand de Saussure and Roland Barthes; and autotelesis in art
34. Friday, December 4th: An alternative summary of semiotics theory 

Week 15
MODULE 10 (concludes):  ANOTHER KIND OF SEMIOTICS – THE RISE OF SPIRITUALIST MODERNISM
35. Monday, December 7th: Social Justice Narrative – LaToya Ruby Frazier 
36. Wednesday, December 9th: Review of Modules 6-10
Friday, December 11th: Study day

Week 16 
REVIEW of Modules 6-10; FINAL TEST 




Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

  Excused absences/late assignments include documented illness, deaths in the family and other documented crises, call to active military duty or jury duty, religious holy days, and official University activities. These absences will be accommodated in a way that does not arbitrarily penalize students who have a valid excuse. Consideration will also be given to students whose dependent children experience serious illness.

·       Student participation will be assessed by the completion of all module assignments by the assigned due date. There will be biweekly lecture meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:30 – 3:45 PM and attendance is taken and required. For those who cannot attend due to other obligations please communicate with the instructor via email at cynthiatorgesen@suu.edu

·       If a valid excuse is not submitted, the instructor will deduct one point per day for assignments submitted past the due date.

·       It is your responsibility to make sure that you read the syllabus, modules, course announcements, and instructor emails to submit your work on time. If you have questions about due dates or meetings, please contact the instructor via email. 

·       All students will be expected to behave in a professional manner during meetings and in responding to their peers’ discussion boards.  Unprofessional behavior will not be tolerated, and I reserve the right to delete any posts.  If this occurs the student will receive a zero (0) for the assignment. 

 

Policy for Missed Tests:

·       Students must contact the instructor prior to the due date for missed tests. Failure to do so will result in points lost to the exam grade per day late. 

Policy for Assignments:
·       Students must contact the instructor prior to the due date for missed assignments. Failure to do so will result in a five-point loss to the assignment grade per day late - days late include weekends. 

Attendance Policy

Participation 
·       Your participation grade will be based on your lecture participation in our biweekly lecture discussions.

·     

Course Fees

As part of the ARTH program, this course has an attached fee of $9 per credit-hour ($27 in total)

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.