'Parallels abound among the mythical stories depicted in ancient art and literature, but the nature of those correspondences remains elusive. The course compares artistic representations of popular love tales with texts and (records of) performance. The aim of the course is to acquaint students with visual modes of storytelling in the various media of sculpture, mosaic, fresco, and the minor arts. In which contexts did such stories appear, why, and what do we know about their reception among ancient viewers?'

'By 1300 Paris was the largest city in Europe, the royal capital of France, home to a brilliant university, and a thriving commercial hub. This seminar investigates the city through its surviving buildings, paintings, graphic images, maps, and literature. Using digital tools we will reconstruct key lost monuments in a process that casts participants in the role of builder, that demands careful evaluation of fragmentary evidence and that encourages creative imagination informed by art and architectural history.'

'Despite the biblical prohibition against 'graven images' there exists a rich history of Jewish religious art and aesthetics. This course will study ancient Israelite art and archeology, including the Second Temple in Jerusalem, the extraordinary mosaic floors and frescoes of early synagogues throughout the Mediterranean world, medieval illuminated Hebrew manuscripts and printed book culture, synagogues of later periods, including the wooden synagogues of Eastern Europe, and Judaic ritual objects of many types.

'African and African Diasporic artists recently have achieved unprecedented acclaim in the most august institutions and trendiest art fairs in contemporary art. This course examines the complex and global histories of both 'overnight sensations' and artists still unknown in global art circuits. The course begins with an examination of arts education in Africa during the first half of the twentieth century. We next study how African nationalism, the Black Arts Movement, Pan-Africanism, and anti-Apartheid struggles emerged and interacted through artistic expression.

'This survey course traces the rise and development of photography in the United States and, to a lesser extent, Mexico and the countries in Western Europe. It charts the wide range of work with the camera, including commercial, so-called 'vernacular,' and fine art projects, and considers pictures from photography's very beginnings in the mid-nineteenth century to today's practices.

'An exploration of major movements and personalities in architecture from the late nineteenth century to the present. Emphasizing the United States against the background of European developments, the course considers the search by architects, including Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, and Frank Gehry, for a language of form and space that captures the contemporary spirit as it elevates society to a higher plane of existence.

'This course traces major developments in European art during the periods traditionally designated by the terms neoclassicism, romanticism, realism, and impressionism. Focusing primarily on French art, but branching out to consider the art of England and Spain, it explores the key artistic themes of the century: the engagement with history, the rise of nationhood, the experience of the urban, the Marxist proposal, the grappling with modernity, the dealing in individual temperaments.

'Hellenistic art has often been regarded as a chaotic, decadent phase between the golden ages of classical Greece and imperial Rome. Yet the period in the Mediterranean from the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.E. to the Roman conquest of Egypt in 31 B.C.E. saw the creation of some of the greatest masterpieces of ancient art, the development of formal art criticism, and the mass production of art for private enjoyment. The course addresses the new themes and purposes of art in a cosmopolitan culture that, in many respects, was not unlike our own.'

'A discussion-oriented introduction to art history. Working with original objects in the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum, we will examine the various materials, practices, and strategies of artists as we move historically across the centuries from the Renaissance to the present. Students will practice the art of describing and refine their skills of observation and analysis.'

'This multicultural course introduces students to the visual arts of Asia from the earliest times to the present. In a writing- and speaking-intensive environment, students will develop skills in visual analysis and art historical interpretation. Illustrated class lectures, group discussions, museum visits, and a variety of writing exercises will allow students to explore architecture, sculpture, painting, and other artifacts in relation to the history and culture of such diverse countries as India, China, Cambodia, Korea, and Japan.'