Current Upper Level Courses in Art History
Rose Hill
Fall 2026 Courses
ARHI 2370 – Art and Science in the Middle Ages
This course investigates intersections of art and science from the Carolingian period through the 14th century and the historical role images played in the pursuit of epistemic truths. Science in the Middle Ages included a broad range of intellectual pursuits into both the supernatural and natural worlds, and scholars have classified these pursuits in various ways (i.e., experimental or theoretical science, practical science, magic, and natural philosophy). A particular focus of this course is placed on the assimilation of Greek and Islamic scientific advances in cartography, cosmology, and optical theory into the Latin theological tradition.
ARHI 2410 - Northern Renaissance Art
Northern Renaissance art draws inspiration from the cultural and social developments of the early modern era (circa 1400-1600). Painters strove to depict the bustling energy of expanding cities, sculptors fabricated dynamic ensembles aimed at making tangible the subtleties of church doctrine, and illuminators and printmakers created precious and personal works that enhanced the domestic sphere. In this course we will explore such phenomena, considering how masters—including Jan van Eyck, Albrecht Dürer, and Hieronymus Bosch—experimented and innovated in an age of artistic revolution. This course includes site visits.
ARHI 2553 - Art, Gender, and Sexuality in Asia
This upper-level art history course probes into artistic and cultural representations of bodies in Asia in relation to such themes as sex, gender, sexuality, race, nationhood, war, and post-humanity. Through thematic examinations of diverse bodily representations, students will learn a broad range of interpretive tools and frameworks to appreciate artistic objects.
ARHI 2575 - Visualizing Black Queer Feminisms
This course explores contemporary visual culture through the lens of queer and Black feminist artists, activists, and scholars. What does it mean for Black women and queer artists to garner unprecedented mainstream visibility but Black queer feminism is still marginalized in art criticism? How can we study art history in such a way that this separation is remedied? Together we study Black lesbian and queer feminist texts alongside 21st century new media art, photography, cinema, sculpture, and painting.
Rose Hill
Spring 2026 Courses
ARHI 2226 - Religion, Philosophy, and Entertainment in Premodern Asia
This course will explore the arts of religion, philosophy, and entertainment across South and East Asia from approximately the 3rd century BCE to the 19th century CE. Topics include the art and architecture of Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam in India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan; ink painting traditions in China; and woodblock prints in Japan. The course will also engage with influential scholarship by leading art historians in the field to examine how visual culture reflected and shaped the spiritual and cultural life of premodern Asia.
ARHI 2550 - 20th Century Art
This course is a study of major trends in global 20th century art, including but not limited to: Surrealism, Abstract Expressionism, Postcolonial Modernism, and Conceptualism. Students will learn about significant art movements such as the Harlem Renaissance, Gutai in Japan, the Black Arts Movement in the United States, Cubism and “Primitivism” in Europe, Négritude, Mexican Muralism, Brazilian (Neo) Concretism, Hurufiyya in the Islamic world, Dansaekhwa in Korea, and the Young British Artists, among others.
Lincoln Center
Fall 2026 Courses
ARHI 2250 – Ancient American Art
This course is an introduction to the art of the Americas from its beginnings to the time of European contact, including Mexico, the Andes, the Caribbean, and the U.S. Southwest. The course examines architecture, sculpture, ceramics, and textiles within cultures such as the Olmec, Maya, Aztec, Moche, Nazca, Inca, Pueblo, and Taíno. While centering foundational studies in ancient art and archaeology, the course also incorporates recent scholarship from Indigenous studies that draws on oral histories and decolonial approaches, connecting ancient visual cultures to present-day Indigenous communities in the Americas.
ARHI 2419 – The Medici: Art and Politics in Renaissance Florence
In 1530, the city of Florence ceased to be a republic with a long tradition of representative democracy and became instead a hereditary princely state ruled by the Medici family. Much of the family’s power and fame derived from two kinds of patronage: the social and political patronage that established their political power, and the artistic and cultural patronage that fashioned the family’s image and earned their lasting fame. This course examines the development of Medici art patronage from the emergence of the family as a political force in the early fifteenth century to the establishment of the grand-ducal dynasty in the sixteenth century. Surveying works by artists including Botticelli, Donatello, Michelangelo, and Bronzino, it both introduces students to the art of Renaissance Florence and considers the role of art in establishing, consolidating, and expressing power in a period of political change.
ARHI 2545 – Museum Architecture
How does architecture support (or undermine) the museum’s goals to display objects for the public and preserve these objects for the future? Is the museum building a monument or a type of public infrastructure, and who should pay for it? What new considerations for museum design have emerged in the face of climate change? In this course, we’ll explore these questions through a historical analysis of museum design, connecting the construction of cutting-edge spaces to a longer tradition of building public museums. We will pay special attention to museums in New York City, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim, the American Museum of Natural History, and the National Museum of the American Indian. We’ll also consider buildings that no longer exist, such as the former home of the American Folk Art Museum, and buildings that have housed the collections of multiple institutions, such as the Breuer building, to practice reading architecture to better understand museums and their varied missions.
ARHI 4600 - Senior Seminar
As the capstone seminar for art history majors, this seminar has several goals: to give art history majors an introduction to the principal thinkers who shaped the field of art history; to explore some of the key methodological approaches to art history today; to hone students’ skills in critical reading and viewing; and to provide students the opportunity to conduct independent research on an art historical topic of their own choosing. Offered fall semesters only; required for majors.
Lincoln Center
Spring 2026 Courses
ARHI 2365 - Medieval Art and the Museum
Medieval works of art were not made to be seen in museums. The luxurious sculptures, paintings, manuscripts, and tapestries of the Middle Ages (ca. 500-1500) mostly were created for the eyes of nobles or priests, and the makers and original users of these objects never could have imagined the diverse museum-goers of today in the USA. But over the past two hundred years, such works were transferred to museums and in these settings have been used to tell stories about nation, faith, and identity. In this class, we will examine the modern engagement with medieval art, considering diverse phenomena such as: the destruction of monuments in the French Revolution, the development of Gothic Revival style in the Victorian era, the formation of the art market, the establishment of museums as public institutions, and the use of medieval themes in today’s social media and gaming. Students in the course will also have the special opportunity of collaborating on an upcoming exhibition of medieval manuscripts.
ARHI 2408 - Early Italian Renaissance Art
This course serves as an introduction to the painting, sculpture, and architecture of the early Italian Renaissance, c.1300-1450. Topics will include the importance of communes as patrons of the arts; the competition among artists; the rise of new devotional practices and their influence on the arts in Italy; and the relationship between art and science.
ARHI 2620 - Introduction to Fashion History
This course surveys developments in fashion from antiquity to the modern era, with particular attention paid to the impact of technology and the social contexts of fashion makers and consumers.
ARHI 4610 - Art History Senior Thesis
This course allows students to pursue an independent research project, putting into practice and further refining the knowledge and insights gained about historiography and disciplinary discourses in the Methods of Art History seminar. Students will gain advanced skills for research in the humanities, taking advantage of resources at the Fordham Library and other institutions in New York City. Guest speakers from Fordham and beyond will introduce a variety of modes for organizing and sharing research in traditional and digital platforms.