Global Art History I: Rise of Cities and Empires

Catalog description

GE-Human Culture: Arts/Human Diversity In this course, you will encounter an historical overview of global art and architecture, spanning from the Prehistoric era to the Fall of Rome circa 500 CE. You’ll explore the complex interrelationships among art, society, culture, religion, and geopolitics on a global scale. Beginning with Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods, extending to complex societies in Mesopotamia and Egypt, the course ventures into an analysis of the art and architecture of the Persian Empire and examines the works facilitated by early trade routes. The class continues with the art and material culture of Asia, focusing on the Asuka period in Japan as well as the Qin and Han Dynasties in China. Significant attention is also devoted to the Indus Valley and Gupta Civilizations, which have left indelible marks on the history of art and aesthetics. The course then navigates through the artistic legacies of the Olmec civilization in Mesoamerica and the Cycladic and Minoan cultures in the Aegean before culminating with a study of Classical Greece and Rome.