AHV1012 - Approaches to Art History and Visual Culture
2022/3 Module description
| Staff | Dr Sabrina Rahman - Convenor Dr Camille Mathieu - Convenor Dr Sabrina Rahman - Convenor |
|---|---|
| Credit Value | 30 |
| ECTS Value | 15 |
| NQF Level | 4 |
| Pre-requisites | AHV1011 Questions and Methods in Art History and Visual Culture |
| Co-requisites | None |
| Duration of Module | Term 2: 11 weeks; |
Module description
This module builds on AHV1011 Questions and Methods in Art History and Visual Culture by introducing you to the practical applications of study in the subject. Drawing on a range of contemporary critical debates, it offers you the opportunity to engage with current approaches relevant to archival and curatorial practices, digital art history, the art market, and the relationship between cultural consumption and visuality. You will learn about more specialised issues in the field, and will have the opportunity to apply a deeper understanding of Art History & Visual Culture through a variety of learning methods, including lectures, seminars, workshops, and a project-based learning assessment.
Module aims
Building on AHV1011 Questions and Methods in Art History and Visual Culture in Term 1, this module aims to:
- Provide an understanding of the practical and creative applications of Art History & Visual Culture.
- Engage critically with a range of specialist approaches to the subject.
- Assist your thinking about the production and consumption of works of visual art and culture in a contemporary context.
- Encourage you to develop individualised and collaborative approaches to your learning path through project-based learning and group workshop activities.
The module offers you a critical awareness of a range of contemporary approaches to Art History & Visual Culture, as well as their wider social, economic and creative applications. Through project work, the module acquaints you with a range of innovative University resources, including the Digital Humanities Lab and the collections of the Bill Douglas Cinema Museum, and provides practical instruction in the making and dissemination of individual research projects. The project-based learning assessment allows you to apply and present your work through diverse formats, such as a video essay, podcast, blog, online exhibition or presentation.
ILO: Module-specific skills
- 1. Describe and evaluate some of the dominant concepts, methods and debates informing art history & visual culture as a mode of enquiry
- 2. Apply a variety of methodologies and theoretical approaches to the interpretation of visual artefacts and practices in an informed way
- 3. Demonstrate knowledge of art, visual culture and visuality in different historical periods
- 4. Undertake independent and groupwork research on a visual artefact or practice
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
- 5. Research, present and evaluate relevant descriptive and analytic material with increased independence??
- 6. Use specialist terminology effectively and make proficient use of the relevant literature
ILO: Personal and key skills
- 7. Through writing and project assessments, demonstrate good research and bibliographic skills, construct a coherent, substantiated argument, and write clear and correct prose
- 8. Through research for projects and essays, retrieve and analyse information proficiently
- 9. Through project work, work collaboratively orally and/or in written form, and in teams towards the development, research, organisation, and expression of ideas under pressure of time
Syllabus plan
Whilst the module content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that the module will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Aesthetics
- Connoisseurship
- Exhibiting art and visual culture
- Visual culture and mass consumption
- Digital art history
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 56 | 244 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 11 | Lectures |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 11 | Seminars - these will be led by the tutor. You will need to prepare for each seminar and to present on a given topic on at least one occasion (1 hr per week) |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 22 | Workshops (2 hours every week) |
| Scheduled learning and teaching | 12 | Tutorial guidance for reading, research and essay preparation |
| Guided independent study | 244 | Private study |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Critical analysis | 500 words | 1-8 | Feedback sheet with opportunity for tutorial follow-up |
| Oral presentation | 5-10 minutes | 1-9 |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 90 | 0 | 10 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participation and contribution | 10 | Continuous participation in groupwork and documentation of that participation where relevant; 5 written pieces to submit of 600 words, composed either individually or in groups depending on activity | 1-9 | Continuous participation in groupwork and documentation of that participation where relevant; 5 written pieces to submit of 600 words, composed either individually or in groups depending on activity |
| Essay | 45 | 2000 words | 1-8 | Feedback sheet with opportunity for tutorial follow-up |
| Project | 45 | 1500 words | 1-9 | Feedback sheet with opportunity for tutorial follow-up |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participation and contribution | Mitigation/repeat study; or if all are missed, 3000 word essay on weekly topics | 1-9 | Referral/Deferral period |
| Essay | Essay | 1-8 | Referral/Deferral period |
| Project | Project | 1-9 | Referral/Deferral period |
Re-assessment notes
For Participation and engagement: you will either repeat the exercise of responding to the prompts for the 600-word write ups, or, if all of the participation makes have been missed, you must complete a 3000-word essay on a particular topic as chosen by the course convenor.
Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.
Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
- Mieke Bal ‘Visual Essentialism and the Object of Visual Culture’, Journal of Visual Culture 2, no. 1, 2003 pp. 5–32. [see also ‘Responses to Mieke Bal’s “Visual Essentialism and the Object of Visual Culture.” ’ Journal of Visual Culture 2, no. 2, 2003, pp. 229–68.
- Malcolm Barnard, Approaches to Understanding Visual Culture, 2001.
- Hans Belting, An Anthropology of Images: Picture, Medium, Body, 2011.
- Daniel J. Cohen, Digital History: A guide to Gathering Preserving, and Presenting the Past on the Web, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2006.
- Stuart Hall. "The Work of Representation." In Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices, ed. Stuart Hall, 13–74. London: Sage, 1997.
- Jonathan Harris The New Art History: A Critical Introduction , 2001.
- Nicholas Mirzoeff (ed.), The Visual Culture Reader, 1998.
- Hans Ulrich Obrist, Ways of Curating. London: Penguin Books, 2014.
Module has an active ELE page?
Yes
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
ELE - https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=11485
Available as distance learning?
No
Origin date
11/07/2019
Last revision date
13/07/2020
Key words search
Visual culture, media, art history
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