Art History

Art historians view the world through the history of its art and seek to preserve art as a source for understanding the world and its cultures. Visual sensitivity, knowledge of history, training in research methods and writing skills are developed through the study of art history.

The art history department at SCAD has the largest full-time, full professor faculty devoted to art history in the United States. Faculty members specialize in topics from the ancient world to contemporary art. The department sponsors minors in new media studies, museum studies and British-American studies.

Art history offers a curriculum designed to stimulate an understanding of art and contribute to the core curriculum of all SCAD programs of study. Professors and students in the art history department engage in dynamic discourse of art history, theory and criticism. Art history students benefit from foundation studies courses in drawing, design and color theory.

The B.F.A. program in art history addresses visual arts of diverse periods, cultures and media, as well as new media. The program fosters skills in analysis, research, writing and professional presentation. The M.A. program emphasizes advanced critical and comparative forms of analysis and interpretation, culminating in independent research.

Many cultural institutions, house museums and art galleries offer internship opportunities for art history students to gain firsthand experience preserving and working with art. Students also may pursue professional development opportunities at SCAD, including museum internships and gallery assistantships for major exhibitions.

SCAD galleries at all locations and the SCAD Museum of Art in Savannah provide students with direct encounters with works by major artists, offering an artistic, educational and cultural resource for students, faculty and the region. Significant SCAD Museum exhibition and study collections include nearly 4,500 items.

The Walter O. Evans Collection at the SCAD Museum of Art is renowned as one of the finest collections of African-American art in the United States. The collection surveys the entire range of African-American art from the 19th century through the late 20th century. The Earle W. Newton Center for British and American Studies, also located at the museum, houses a significant collection of British and American paintings, drawings and prints from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.

Art history faculty members present current research at leading professional conferences, including the College Art Association, Southeastern Conference of Art Colleges, Renaissance Society of America, Archaeological Institute of America, and the Society of Architectural Historians. In addition, SCAD is affiliated with the American Academy in Rome, the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, and the American Association of Museums.