http://upei.ca/finearts

Fine Arts (art history) is a discipline which examines the role of the visual arts in the development of human society. Fine Arts attempts to understand the nature of art, its origins and evolution, and the role it plays in various civilizations. While the task of the artist is the creation of works of art, that of the art historian is their systematic study, analyzing and understanding the products of creative expression. Studies of the Fine Arts can involve the examination of economic, social, and political issues; problems of patronage, taste, style, and iconography; and questions of literary influence, philology, philosophy, psychology, and religion. At the same time, how works of art are made, their conservation and/or restoration and theories of perception or optics are also investigated.

The study of Fine Arts helps to enhance our aesthetic awareness and our ability to “see” and describe and to search for new meanings and explore new ideas in our environment. The Department of Fine Arts offers a range of art history courses, especially Western art, from ancient times to the present. The art history courses concentrate on the study of architecture, sculpture, painting, and minor/decorative arts.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MINOR IN FINE ARTS
Students in the Minor Program in Fine Arts must take FAH 1010 and FAH 1020 consecutively as prerequisites and five other courses including at least two at the 2000 level and at least two at the 3000 or 4000 level.

FINE ARTS COURSES

FAH—Fine Arts History

FAH 1010 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART I
This course is a survey of the development of visual arts from Prehistoric to Medieval times. Emphasis is placed on the study of major works of art, methods of analysis, use of proper terminology, historical and cultural contexts, and changes of forms and styles.
Cross-listed with History 1030.
Three hours a week

FAH 1020 INTRODUCTION TO THE HISTORY OF WESTERN ART II
This course is a continuation of the survey begun in FAH 101. It covers the most representative works of the visual arts from the early Renaissance period through the Modern era. The major artistic achievements and stylistic changes are studied with particular emphasis on their relationship to historical and cultural circumstances.
Cross-listed with History 1040.
Three hours a week

FAH 2010 EGYPTIAN AND MESOPOTAMIAN ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the prehistoric periods in Egypt and Mesopotamia to the establishment of the Hellenistic kingdoms in both regions. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics 2310.
Three hours a week

FAH 2020 GREEK ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the Archaic period to the end of the Hellenistic age. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics 2320.
Three hours a week

FAH 2110 ROMAN ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/ decorative arts from the beginning of the Roman Republic to the end of the Imperial era. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/ architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Classics 2410.
Three hours a week

FAH 2120 MEDIEVAL ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting (especially illuminated manuscripts), sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts from the Byzantine period to the end of the Gothic era in Europe. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Cross-listed with Religious Studies 2720.
Three hours a week

FAH 3010 RENAISSANCE ART
This course examines the artistic milieu in Europe — with a particular emphasis upon the Italian and Flemish schools — from the early Fifteenth Century to the mid-Sixteenth Century.
Three hours a week

FAH 3020 BAROQUE AND ROCOCO ART
This course examines (in chronological order) the changes of style in architecture, painting, sculpture, and the minor/decorative arts in Italy and other parts of Europe from the early Seventeenth Century to the end of the Eighteenth Century. The characteristics of each period are considered with emphasis on the outstanding works of art/architecture and their historical contexts.
Three hours a week

FAH 3110 NINETEENTH-CENTURY ART
The evolution of the visual arts is studied from the French Revolution to the Post-Impressionist era. Neoclassicism, Romanticism, revival styles, Realism, and Impressionism are the subject areas of the course.
Three hours a week

FAH 3120 TWENTIETH-CENTURY ART
This course is designed to develop an understanding of the various artistic expressions in the visual arts, including the new art forms of photography and cinema, from the late Nineteenth Century to the present.
Three hours a week

FAH 3210 CANADIAN ART
The development of the visual arts in Canada is studied from the Seventeenth Century (colonial times) to the present. The course examines the native tradition in Canada, the legacy of the early French and English settlers, and later developments in the visual arts within the context of the socio-economic and political history of the country.
Three hours a week

FAH 4510-4520 DIRECTED STUDIES
These courses involve the examination of particular problems in specific areas of interest in the visual arts and archaeology.* Individual studies are conducted under faculty guidance. Open to qualified students from any discipline.
(See Academic Regulation 9 for Regulations Governing Directed Studies.)
*Archaeology of Roman Pannonia and of early Medieval times in Western Hungary. Fieldwork in Hungary.