高中藝術史概論第一部（古代到文藝復興）FLEX

In this class, students will explore the development of artistic production throughout world history over the course of ten weeks, starting with paleolithic art and ending with the Italian and German Renaissances of the 15th and 16th centuries. This class is designed for students aged 13-18 as a way of exploring world history through the arts. Each week, students will watch 45-90 minutes of lecture videos and participate in a class discussion in the classroom message boards on the given topic for the week. Students will participate in two writing assignments over the course of the semester to invite students to think critically about artworks that interest them. 

PARENTS: This is a FLEX class, meaning there are no weekly meetings and every assignment and lecture is completed at the student's pace. Each week contains 45-90 minutes of lecture, a weekly group critical thinking and research discussion question in the classroom, and there are two longer writing assignments assigned across the ten weeks. Grading is optional.


The class schedule is as follows:

Week 1: Introduction to Art History and Arts of the Paleolithic Period
During Week 1, we will begin with a brief overview of what art history actually is and how it formed as a discipline. We will also introduce major art terminology that we will use throughout the course. The last half of the lesson is dedicated to an introduction to art history through a discussion of major Paleolithic pieces that predate written history. This week's case study is Stonehenge, through which we will study early monumental architecture and its potential meanings. Students will learn about major sculptural types, including relief and sculpture in the round. 

Week 2: The Arts of Mesopotamia
During Week 2, we will explore the many cultures of the Mesopotamian world! This week's lecture will focus on the shift from hunter-gatherer societies to static societies and how that impacted the type of arts being produced. Students can expect to learn about religious significance of Mesopotamian sculpture and temples, as well as the impact of the first codes of law through the Code of Hammurabi. This week's case study is the Babylonian Ishtar Gate, through which students will learn about the types of materials being used in Mesopotamia and the royal iconography of the Babylonian empire. 

Week 3: The Arts of Ancient Egypt
During Week 3, we travel to ancient Egypt to explore this mystical civilization. This week students can expect to learn about the early development of painting, the influence of papyrus scrolls, the development of sculpture, a shift in monumental architecture through the pyramids of Giza, and the role of funerary arts through mummification and the importance of sarcophagi. This week's case study will be a section of the Papyrus of Huenfer, through which we will discuss Egyptian religious practices and how they impact development in the arts. This week, I will introduce the visual analysis assignment. Students will have two weeks to select an artwork from the ancient world and write an in depth description of the work, engaging with the work in a highly observant manner. Students will get instructions and practice with this assignment in class today.

Week 4: The Arts of Ancient Greece (Part 1)
During Week 4, we begin our two part unit on Ancient Greece, moving through some of the earlier periods of the Greek world. This week we emphasize the abstracted forms of Cycladic sculpture, the mythos of Mycenean sculpture and the Mask of Agamemnon, the painted frescoes of Crete, early Greek pottery of the Orientalizing period, and the basic developments of sculpture through the Archaic period, which lasts through about 480 BCE. Each of these will emphasize a stage of development from previous cultures we have studied, emphasizing the artistic trajectory that is being traced over thousands of years. Further, for the second half of the course, we will begin discussing Greek architecture, focusing on the Parthenon as our case study. The Parthenon will help students discover basic traits of Greek architecture, like columns, friezes, and the Golden Ratio! 

Week 5: The Arts of Ancient Greece (Part 2)
During Week 5, we continue our analysis of artistic development in Greece primarily through sculpture!  Sculpture was one of the most important artistic methods of expression throughout the Mediterranean and today we will evaluate how sculpture developed through the Classical period and into the Hellenistic period of Greece, through 30 BCE. This week's case study will be the Nike of Samothrace, through which students will learn about the stylistic shift of the Hellenistic period towards more realistic representation, the importance of drapery and the depiction of clothing, and the archaeological history of Greek art through the unique story of the Nike. This course will end with a discussion of how Greece became absorbed by the Roman Empire.

Week 6: The Arts of the Roman Republic and Empire
During our final week, students will be looking at the shift in artistic practices in the Roman period, particularly their struggle with bronze work and their unique taste in portraiture. This week's case study will look at the Equestrian Portrait of Marcus Aurelius as a way of evaluating a shift in stylistic tendencies in portraiture, emphasizing old age as a way of humanizing their Emperors. The close of this lesson will focus on how the rise of Christianity impacted the arts and we will look at Emperor Constantine as an example of how artistic practices and representation shifted with the rise of Christianity. This week, students will be introduced to their final writing assignment, in which they research an artist that was active prior to the 16th century and write a five-paragraph essay that evaluates the artist's biography and one of their works. 

Week 7: The Medieval Arts of Europe
This week, we will discuss the arts of medieval Europe, focusing heavily on architecture. Students will learn about the effects of the spread of Christianity on art during this period and spend a majority of the class discussing Christian architecture and sculpture. We will focus on the famed Notre Dame cathedral in Paris as a case study during this lesson, where students will learn about how these monumental churches were built, the importance of the sculptural elements inside and out of the churches, and about the process of making stained glass. Students will also discuss relics that were housed in these places of worship. Finally, students will discuss the painting of illuminated manuscripts and tapestries--both types of art that would have been considered important to the wealthy and what stories they told. 

Week 8: The Arts of the Byzantine Empire
In Week 8, students will focus on the Byzantine Empire, which was the only part of the Roman empire that survived after 500 CE. Students will focus heavily on the influence of Islamic cultures in the Byzantine Empire, and will learn the differences in architecture between Mosques and Cathedrals, using the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul as the primary example. Students will learn about the rule of Justinian and how his rule affected art production--primarily through mosaics. 

Week 9: The Italian Renaissance
This week, students will be exposed to a number of famous artists through our discussion of the Italian Renaissance. Students will learn about how the Renaissance happened and the importance of humanism at this time. They will primarily discuss painting and discuss the shift to more realism within images, starting with the works of Raphael. Then, we will discuss representations of the human body during this time, comparing Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man and Michelangelo's images on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Students will discuss the differences in art production in different parts of Italy and the importance of the church in commissioning some of the most famous works of this time.

Week 10: The Northern/German Renaissance
Week 10 covers the lesser known Northern or German Renaissance. Students will learn about the differences in artistic development between Italy and Northern Europe at this time, focusing on paintings by artists like Jan Van Eyck and Albrecht Durer--through which students will learn about the shifting role of the artist in society. Further, students will be introduced to the idea of genre painting, or painting of everyday scenes and discuss why this might be important. Students will learn about art for the masses this week and discuss the importance of the invention of the printing press. This class, we will wrap up our discussion on the Renaissance and how it will impact art moving forward, which is where part two of this class picks up.