Art History Impressionism

The American Business School Paris

Course Description

  • Course Name

    Art History Impressionism

  • Host University

    The American Business School Paris

  • Location

    Paris, France

  • Area of Study

    Art History

  • Language Level

    Taught In English

  • Course Level Recommendations

    Lower

    ISA offers course level recommendations in an effort to facilitate the determination of course levels by credential evaluators.We advice each institution to have their own credentials evaluator make the final decision regrading course levels.

    Hours & Credits

  • US Credits

    3
  • Recommended U.S. Semester Credits
    3
  • Recommended U.S. Quarter Units
    4

  • Overview

    COURSE DESCRIPTION:
    • This art appreciation course is designed for students with no or little background in Art History who would like to try a Humanities subject for their general culture and to better appreciate museums and esthetics. A quick survey of early 19th century French art and civilization provides the background for France's renowned Impressionism movement during the Industrial Revolution when art left the patronage of the Church and State and became a middle-class enjoyment. At this moment, painting reflected not only contemporary life-styles and fashion but also modern transport and entertainment centers.
    • Emphasis is on learning to see art for art itself by becoming open and sensitive to: The joy in color harmonies, the calm of composition, the mood-setting of lighting, humor of caricature, the tromp l'oeil of perspective, etc. while not neglecting the references to past works and subject matter that enhance the meaning.
    • All class lectures and discussions are illustrated with slides of works of art. Four museum visits give direct access to great works allowing students to develop a critical eye and get the most out of the experience.
    COURSE OBJECTIVES:
    It is hoped that the students will:
    - Acquire a certain "connoisseur's eye" able to notice beauty in all aspects of everyday life.
    - Develop an awareness of the civilization reflected in works of art and of the particular ways each individual artist responded and created his/her own approach.
    - Recognize and differentiate the palette and brushwork of over 15 world-class painters.
    - See that many solutions are possible for the same problem and use one's esthetic component (gut feeling) instead of always seeking a rational justification.
    - Understand how to evaluate and appreciate quality directly especially in a realm where quantitative data has no bearing.
    - Learn to enjoy museums and visit them in the future as a pleasant pass-time.
    Presence in class is mandatory. More than 2 absences will lead to a failing grade.
     
    EXPECTED LEARNING OUTCOMES:
    Upon completion of this course students should be able to:
    - Understand and properly apply the artistic terminology acquired in the course,
    - Learn the basic genres (subject matter) seen in painting.
    - Organize thoughts and opinions into well-written critiques.
    - Slow down viewing so as to relish a single image instead of having to zap by several per second to satisfy a limited attention span.
    - Cultivate "sensibility and appreciation" which includes noticing design and beauty in everyday life
    - Understand the notions of harmony, balance, order, pattern, creativity, etc. not only in esthetic objects but also, by extension, in any domain including management and economics
     
    EVALUATIONS:
    The final grade will be determined as follows:
    - 2 quizzes of 30 minutes and 1 final exam of 120 minutes. Will test the student's identification and critical analysis of the material and paintings discussed in class.
    - The final grade will be determined as follows:
    First homework 10 points
    A quiz 15 points
    Second homework 20 points
    Final Exam 30 points
    Participation 25 points (creative tasks, weekly reading review, debates, films, gallery game)
     
    COURSE SCHEDULE:
    Session 1
    Photo card-set game
    Creative task 1
    Modified postcards or
    Chance aesthetics
    Reading: Rubin: Chapter 1 Modernity and Form
    Introduction: Seeing through Art, the Art of Seeing
    Introduction to the basic elements of color and design including tricks of trompe l?oeil and other ways of creating illusion. How to understand color harmony, the golden ratio, and composition.
    Debate: What is good taste; what is art; what is Art History?
     
    Session 2
    GUIDE FOR FIRST HOMEWORK (Creative
    Reading: Rubin: Chapter 2 the Artists as Subject Edouard Manet
    Found objects transformed
    Recollecting your younger self
    LECTURE: Background for Impressionism - Geography, Dates, Society, Political Framework, previous and parallel styles
    Debate: Sensor and Political cartoons
     
    Session 3
    Museum visit
    Making Excel spread sheets on artists
    Creative task 3
    Picture Poem
    Torn paper
    Reading: Rubin, Chapter 7 Opposition or Complicity - Political
    Visit 16:00-19:30 Louvre Museum at 16:00, meeting inside the grand hall under the big pyramid at the "Accueil groups desk". - Earlier 19th century painting: Neoclassicism, Romanticism), Private apartments of Napoleon III and the private collection of Impressionist works. (Coffee Break half way through)
     
    Session 4
    FIRST HOMEWORK PAPER DUE
    Bingo over Reading and visits questions
    Reading: Rubin Chapter 3 Naturalism in Plein-air
    LECTURE : Ecology and 19th century landscape painting
    Luminous brushstroke artists (Monet, Renoir, Pissarro, Sisley, etc.) En plein air. Landscape and portrait painting
    Beginnings of Impressionism How? A leader/work? Influences and reactions.
    Debate: How to communicate a message through art. Is this propaganda?
     
    Session 5
    Museum visit
    Creative task 4
    Nature: things themselves
    Figuration to abstraction
    VISIT 8:00-11:00 sharp at the Church Saint Sulpice. 2 rue Palatine, 75006 Paris.
    Métro Saint Sulpice. Double visit of mural paintings in the church and then the home of Delacroix, Musée national Eugène Delacroix 6 rue de Furstenberg 75 006
     
    Session 6
    Just-a-minute game
    How to write an essay
    Creative task 5
    Surreal scenarios
    Composite faces
    Reading: Rubin: Chapter 4 Places, People and Traditions - Bazille, Pissarro & Renoir
    Chapter 5 Choreography and Science Edgar Degas
    Review first homework & Writing guide for second homework (Biography of an artist)
    Debate: Art verse Science, what side of your brain should you think through?
     
    Session 7
    Slide Quiz over chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 7
    Creative task 6
    Walking to abstraction
    Poetic actualities
    Reading: Rubin: Chapter 6 Feminine and Masculine - Morisot, Cassatt & Caillebotte
    The "snapshot" capturing an instant of modern life artists (Bazille, Degas, Caillebotte) Cityscapes, Ballet and Nightlife in Haussmannian Paris. Women artists (Cassatt, Morisot, Gonzales) Impact of contemporary fashions on painting
    Debate: Gender differences in artistic style and subject matter
     
    Session 8
    Afternoon Visit
    Museum visit
    Creative task 7
    Scrapbook collage Miniature museums
    Reading: Rubin: Chapter 9 Commerce and Creativity - Series and Originals
    Visit, 15:15 to 18:00 either at Musée Marmotton, Tuilleries, Grand Palais or elsewhere
    Temporary exhibition on ???? the new programs for 2016-17 at museums have not yet been announced.
     
    Session 9
    SECOND HOMEWORK DUE
    Teamwork for Gallery game
    Reading: Rubin: Rubin Chapter 8 Reassessment and Renewal
    Lecture: Impressionism and Marketing. Art Dealers, Auction Houses, prefabricated canvas and tubes of oil paint
    Beyond Impressionism, pixel-like perfection: Neo-Impressionism, Pointillism (Seurat, Signac, etc.)
    Debate: What business does business have with art?
     
    Session 10
    Slide Quiz over chapters 4, 6, 5, 8, 9 & visit
    Presentation and animation of Gallery Show Game
    Reading: Chapter 10 towards an Aftermath - Cézanne
    Lecture: Developments and variations on Impressionism. What would Impressionism really influence? From Cezanne to Pollock. Impressionism in sculpture (Rodin, Claudel)
    Debate: Paris as the "Capital of Art", until when?
     
    Session 11
    Museum visit
    Students present a painting from their homework biography
    Treated faces
    Modified readymade
    Reading: Rubin Chapter 11 Other Media, Other Places
    VISIT 9:00-11:00 Musée d'Orsay 1 Rue de la Légion d'Honneur, 75007 Paris meeting at 9:00 in front of the Group entrance (near the statue of a Rhinoceros) Visit the permanent collections of the Impressionists
    General revision
     
    Session 12
    FINAL EXAM over all chapters & Slide Quiz with paintings from CHAPTERS 6, 8, 9, 10 & 11 and from visits
    Lecture: Merits/limits, charm, originality, how fitted into historical situation, Impact contribution to cultural and other history. Why finished? What's next?

Course Disclaimer

Courses and course hours of instruction are subject to change.

X

This site uses cookies to store information on your computer. Some are essential to make our site work; others help us improve the user experience. By using the site, you consent to the placement of these cookies.

Read our Privacy Policy to learn more.

Confirm