Introduction to Art Concepts

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Module 1: What Is Art?

Why It Matters

Defining Art from the Medieval Period to Today

Purposes of Art

Aesthetics and Value

Representational, Abstract, and Nonrepresentational Art

Putting It Together

Works Cited

Module 2: Elements of Art and Principles of Design

Why It Matters

Formalism and Content

Elements of Art

Videos: Elements of Art

Design Principles

Putting It Together

Module 3: Context and Perspective

Why It Matters

How We See: Objective and Subjective Means

Context

Perspectives and Criticism

Art in the Twenty-First Century

Iconography

Putting It Together

Module 4: Fine Art Media and Technique

Sculpture and Installation Art

Time-Based Media: Film and Video

Digital Technology

Architecture

Putting It Together

Module 5: Art History (Prehistory to Rococo)

Why It Matters

Paleolithic and Neolithic Art

Ancient Near East: Cradle of Civilization

Ancient Egyptian Civilization

Ancient Greece and Rome

The Early Middle Ages

Early Islamic Art and Mosque Architecture

Romanesque and Gothic Architecture

Towards the Renaissance

The Early Renaissance

Leonardo da Vinci

Michelangelo

The Reformation and Counter-Reformation

The Baroque and Rococo

Module 6: Art History (The Modern West & Non-Western Art)

The Age of Enlightenment

Neo-Classicism

Romanticism

Becoming Modern

Realism and Early Photography

Impressionism and Fauvism

Abstract Expressionism

Photography in the Early 20th Century

Pop Art

Conceptual Art

Contemporary Art

Shiva "Nataraja" (India)

Fan Kuan's Travelers by Streams and Mountains (China)

Hokusai's Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Japan)

Nkisi Nkondi (Africa)

Maya Portrait Stelae (Mesoamerica)

Putting It Together