Raphael, School of Athens
1509-11

Paul Gaugin, Breton peasant women
1894
 

Renaissance through Early Contemporary Art
SPRING 2009

John W. Myers, Associate Professor

Important Information             
Office Phone:  910-962-7962 (call only during office hours; voice mail is not activated for this phone)
Home Phone:  910-395-5190 (anytime between 8:00am and 9:00pm; if unavailable, leave voice mail and number where you can be reached)
Office:  Cultural Arts Building, 2nd Floor, room 2010
Office Hours:  Tues/Thurs. 10:45-11:30 by appointment; or by appointment at a mutually convenient time. If you wish an appointment, please see me before or after class.  
Email address:  (myersj@uncw.edu)  [on campus just: (myersj) will get you there].  I encourage you to communicate via E-Mail. I check my mail several times daily. You may get a quicker answer to your questions this way.
Instructors Availability:   Professors universally abhor the question "What did I miss?"  If you miss class, please ask other students in class for information about missed material. After you have made the effort to get notes and do the reading for a missed lecture/discussion, then I will be happy to have you come talk with me.

Attendance and Classroom Policies::
Attendance will be taken before each class. Your attendance and active participation in class are expected (see "Absences" below).  This means attending every class, arriving on time, and staying for the full class period.  The minimum requirement is attendance, but full participation is necessary to earn that most sought after grade, the A. "Full participation" carries the expectation of asking thoughtful questions, making insightful comments on readings, reacting to peers' comments and bringing in related ideas from your experiences outside the class. In short, you are expected to attend class, actively participate in class discussions, and complete assignments when they are due.  In-class exercises and class discussion can not be made-up out of class, so consistent attendance is absolutely critical to getting the most out of this course. 
1)Late arrival and early departure are discourteous, adversely affect your ability to contribute to the class, and will affect your final grade.
2) It is rude to leave and return to class. Please use the restroom before class begins.
3) NO FOOD IN CLASS.  Drinks with tight lids or screw tops are permitted.
4) Cell phones and pagers must be turned off during class.

Freedom of expression is encouraged.  Courteous argument is welcome (The Romans called it "disputation" from the Latin disputare: "to reckon,"  "to discuss." To dispute is to explore opposing viewpoints, to debate, to question, to discuss with passion, but not to dominate the discussion or "inflict" your opinions on others. Tolerance for the ideas of others who disagree with you is a sign of maturity and an indication of a true desire to learn.  Rudeness and discourteous behavior stifle debate and disrupt learning, and therefore are unacceptable in this class.

Absences:  Two unexcused absences/cuts during a semester are standard for a Tuesday/Thursday class. You are expected to save them for illness or emergencies. Absences beyond the two allowed will require some form of documentation to be excused. If health or personal problems arise that necessitate your missing class, please contact me prior to the missed class or as soon as possible afterwards. You are responsible for finding out from me or a classmate any assignments, announcements, instructions, etc., that were discussed in class on days you missed. Each unexcused absence beyond the first two will result in a three point deduction from your final class average.

Late Work:
Work is late anytime after the end of the class on the day it is due. Unexcused late submission of work will result in the loss of one letter grade per day. Submission of written assignments by email attachment is unacceptable.  Sample excuses which don't work: 1) My printer cartridge ran out of ink at midnight last night; 2) My computer crashed and I only had the copy of my paper on the hard drive; et cetera.    If health or personal problems arise that necessitate your an assignment deadline, please contact me prior to the missed class or as soon as possible afterwards.  Except in extreme emergencies, any extension of a deadline must be approved by the professor IN ADVANCE. 

Midterm and Final Examinations:

PLEASE DO NOT MAKE ANY ARRANGEMENTS OR COMMITMENTS WHICH CONFLICT WITH YOUR OFFICIAL  EXAM TIMES. ONLY EXTREME DOCUMENTED* EMERGENCIES WILL BE CONSIDERED AS REASONS FOR MISSING THE SCHEDULED EXAMS. NO MAKE-UPS ARE POSSIBLE WITHOUT SOLID DOCUMENTATION.
*This does not include (but is not limited to) such things as attending a relative's wedding, going to a sibling's graduation, or having airline tickets to an exotic foreign destination. 

FINAL EXAMINATION DATE
TUESDAY, MAY 5, 8:00-11:00 AM

ACADEMIC HONOR CODE
"The University of North Carolina at Wilmington is committed to the proposition that the pursuit of truth requires the presence of honesty among all involved. It is therefore this institution’s stated policy that no form of dishonesty among its faculty or students will be tolerated. Although all members of the university community are encouraged to report occurrences of dishonesty, each individual is principally responsible for his or her own honesty." (Above is an excerpt from the "Student Code of Life" in the UNCW Student Handbook. All students are encouraged to read all of section V, "Academic Honor Code" for definitions of plagiarism, and cheating; and the procedures for reporting and adjudication of any activities involving student dishonesty). Any evidence of student plagarism or cheating will result in automatic failure of the course.

UNIVERSITY STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC EXPECTATIONS FOR STUDENTS
"In choosing UNCW, your have become part of our community of scholars. We recognize that the UNCW learning experience is challenging and requires hard work. It also requires a commitment to make time available to do that hard work. The university expects you to make academics your highest priority by dedicating your time and energy to training your mind and acquiring knowledge. Academic success in critical thinking and problem solving prepares you for the changes and challenges you will encounter in the future. Our faculty and academic support resources are readily available as partners in this effort, but the primary responsibility for learning is yours."

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION
As course instructor I will strive to make appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities, as specified in federal regulations. If you have a disability and need accommodation, please follow this procedure. First, contact and register with the office of Disability Services in Westside Hall (x3746). Second, obtain a copy of your accommodation letter, and then make arrangements to speak with me. Assistance will gladly be provided based on the recommendations of Disability Services and our mutual agreement.

COURSE FORMAT
All 200 level art history courses are surveys of art with an emphasis on architecture, graphic and decorative arts, painting, and sculpture as these media are appropriate to the historical period under discussion. These are essentially a combination of lecture and discussion. Individual questions and class discussion are encouraged at all times.

COURSE PHILOSOPHY
A knowledge of the arts is an essential part of every individual's education, and is basic to a proper liberal arts education. In the broadest definition, the FINE ARTS include all of the media listed above in "Course Format," as well as music, dance, and many forms of literature. In earlier times, the boundaries between these categories of art were clearly defined, but in the 20th Century these divisions have become blurred as artists experiment with re-combinations and new combinations of the traditional forms.  Nevertheless, in whatever time or context, the arts constitute a major component of the creative side of our lives as human beings. They are an expression of the experience of the world in which we live, and may bring deep emotional and intellectual satisfaction to those who make art, and those who take the time to respond to it.

One writer has defined art as "a product of man which has a defined form or order and communicates human experience, [and] is affected by the skilled control of the materials used in its construction to project the formal and communicative concepts that the artist wishes to present "(Nathan Knobler, The Visual Dialogue, p.39). This is a very simplified definition, but it does cover most of the bases -- 1) product of woman(man), 2) defined form or order, 3) skilled control of the materials, 4) projection of formal and communicative concepts. Art is clearly about COMMUNICATION, and requires knowledge of a specialized language. This course will teach that language so you may better understand what the artist is trying to communicate to you, her/his audience.

Art is everywhere you look--in the architecture of your home, the landscaping of your yard, the pictures on your walls, the music to which you listen.  Life without art would be lackluster and boring. This course is designed to expose you to one aspect of the arts--traditionally known as the VISUAL ARTS, and composed of the categories of architecture, painting, sculpture, graphic and decorative arts listed under the "Course Format" section. The ultimate purpose of this course is to provide you with an appreciation for art through its study in a cultural and historical context. It is my hope that you will leave this course with a growing and lasting appreciation of the visual arts which will lead to a lifelong exploration and enjoyment of all the arts. Whether immediately apparent or not, a knowledge of the history of art may even enhance your experience of contemporary art forms such as music videos and commercial advertising.  And, it might just make you a lifelong lover of the visual arts in all their manifestations.  In the latter case, Oh joy! Oh rapture!  Your professor will move one step closer to accomplishing his life's work!!!!

USING THE DIGITAL IMAGE DATABASE

1.  Accessing your WebMail Account: You must use your UNCW WebMail address to access the Digital Image Database, which is where your lectures' images are located for review purposes.  This consists of your WebMail address ( your initials followed by the four letters of your I.D. or four numbers in a random order) followed by your password. If your account is new, it has already been set for you, and your password is your nine number I.D. If you already have an account, you have probably reset your I.D. to something else. 

           Note Well:  If you have not used your  WebMail recently, your password may have expired; or if you have never accessed your UNCW account there are a couple of ways of dealing with this:  a)   You can go to the Computer Help Desk (HO201C) and pick up a WebMail handout.   b)  You may call the Computer Help Desk (962-4357) and ask for help.

2. Accessing the Database: Go to the following web address (www.uncw.edu/art) and you will see the Art and Art History website.  At the top of the page, on the far right, you will find a drop-down menu titled "Digital Image DB." Click to find the "Direct Link."  In the first spaceof the "Welcome" page, type your WebMail address or "userID (e.g.: jwm7788).  In the second space type your UNCW WebMail password. 

TEXTS
Required Text:  Davies, et al., Janson's History of Art, The Western Tradition, Seventh Edition. 2007.  
NO EARLIER EDITION WILL DO.

WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS AND EXAMINATIONS
 

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GRADING
Your grade for this course is entirely performance-driven, and so is based on the quality of your work and participation. This means that you are not in direct competition with each other for grades. Instead, you are in competition with yourself in terms of how well you learn and apply the material from the course. The number of points you earn on attendance, participation, and assignments will be averaged at the end of the semester to arrive at a percentage which will be used to compute your final letter grade. There is no accommodation for "extra credit" assignments in this course. Your grade will be based entirely on your attendance, participation, and the established assignments listed above.

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*all page numbers refer to readings in Janson
** Reading Assignments should be completed prior to the date listed