Writing a paper for this class is optional, unless you are an art history major. It is required for majors. It is recommended for anyone who wants practice with paper writing and/or who wants to investigate a work of art in more detail--provided you have time to devote to the project.

DUE DATES:

1) by no later than Tuesday, Feb. 2, submit

A) a description of the paper topic
B) an initial, short bibliography that includes both books and journal articles where appropriate

2) Your paper is due Thursday, March 4.

3) Rough drafts are strongly encouraged. I will look them over up to Tuesday, March 3.

 

General Guidelines:

1. Carefully proofread, edit, and spell-check your text. Papers with too many misspellings or errors will be returned ungraded.

2. Secondary sources MUST be footnoted, including basic biographical information. If you are uncertain about when or what to footnote, ASK. Do not simply repeat arguments and information you find in books and articles. Think about the issues. Please familiarize yourself with the University's guidelines on plagiarism, available through the Student Conduct Program.

3. Include photocopies of all works you deal with at length, when available, numbering them and referring to those numbers in the text. Visual presentation is an important part of this kind of essay.

4. Titles of works of art are underlined or italicized.

UO Museum of Art hours: Wednesday noon-8PM; Thurs through Sunday, noon-5.

Portland Art Museum hours: Tues. 10-5; Weds. 10-9; Thurs-Sat. 10-5; Sun 12-5

Admission, with a student I.D. is $6.00

 

For those with little or no experience writing an art history paper

1) Select one of the works on view for this class in the UO Museum of Art study gallery and upper hallway, or on view at the Portland Art Museum in either the two exhibitions, "The Other Nineteenth Century" and "Essay on Impressionism," and write 1) a formal analysis of the work, AND 2) relate the work to one other example by the same artist. I will provide you with a separate handout for the formal analysis.

For those with more experience

2) Choose one of the works on view for this class in the UO Museum of Art study gallery and upper hallway, or on view at the Portland Art Museum in either the two exhibitions, "The Other Nineteenth Century" and "Essay on Impressionism," and provide a more detailed understanding of where the work fits in the artist's career or notion about art.

3) Propose a specialized topic of your own concerning one of the works in the study gallery exhibition.

4) If you are coming into this class with a special interest in the 19th century from another field of study--for example, Victorian novels; the social theory of Marx; the repercussions of Darwin's theory of evolution--you may design a topic that will combine that interest with the course material using specific art works. Please consult with me about the workability of your topic. Try to keep the scope narrow.

5) Select one or two works that you find by perusing well-illustrated texts that are on reserve for the course, or that you may have seen in visits to museums, that really affect you, and I will assist you in defining a topic. It might be thematic (e.g. images of death) or contextual (Degas' portrayal of milliners and the status of the fashion trade in late 19th-century Paris) or stylistic (Delacroix's sketching technique and its role in his wild animal paintings).

My office hours are Monday, 1-2 and Wednesday 1:30-3, and by appointment. Feel free to clear a topic with me before or after class as well. Consult with Kim as well.

 

Works on view for this class in the UO Museum of Art for this class:

J.L. David, God the Father Appearing to Noah, c. 1776

Goya, from Los Caprichos, 1797/98: "Ensayos (Trials)," "Duendecitos (Hobgoblins)," "Qual la Descañonan (How they pluck them!)"

John Crome, Near Hingham, 1813 and At Cringleford.

Corot, Le Someur [The Dreamer], 1854

Cézanne, La Péniche [The Canal Boat] c. 1875

James A. M. Whistler, Black Lion Wharf, 1859

Charles Daubigny, Les Bateaux Vapeurs [Steamboats]

H. J. Harpignies, Landscape, Road with Trees

Henri Monnier, Indiscretion

C. Gavarni, Masques et Visages, c. 1850

Adolphe Monticelli, Men on Horseback

Edouard Detaille, French Hussars' Review, 1879